Saturday 15 December 2012

play a little hockey, enjoy a few pops and talk about our relationships?



Dear Readers,

I bring you an article, verbatim by Brent Cooper in the Huntsville Forester, a Metroland newspaper in Huntsville, Ontario about the change in location for the 2013 Pond Hockey tournament. Below is my response and below that is space for your comment.



Pond hockey officials end six year run

Event moving to Haliburton for 2013 national championships, says event executive director




Pond hockey.
HUNTSVILLE - The ice on Sunset Bay will remain untouched this winter for the second straight year.

Last year, the annual Canadian National Pond Hockey Championships, which had operated in town since 2006, were cancelled due to poor weather conditions that didn’t allow the water to freeze for the creation of the ice rinks.
 

Now, according to the event’s executive director Neil Lumsden, the 2013 championships will be played in Haliburton County. He said due to financial reasons organizers are forced to take the two-weekend event elsewhere.
 

The annual tournament brings in more than 1,700 players on more than 260 teams during the course of the two weekends. During the peak of its popularity, the event garnered national attention, including a one-hour special on TSN in 2007 and two visits from Canada’s most famous hockey dad, Walter Gretzky.
 

Lumsden said one reason for moving out of town was that Deerhurst Resort representatives wanted changes to the existing agreement with pond hockey officials; changes he said would not work for his group.
“It’s like any deal, you have to make sure that it’s good for both sides, and Deerhurst wanted to make some adjustments to the contract we had,” according to Lumsden, who wouldn’t disclose the conditions. “The way the changes were proposed … it wasn’t going to be good for us and we had to make a decision.”
However, a representative with the Skyline Corporation, owners of the resort, denied that their officials requested any changes to the Canadian Pond Hockey Championship agreement.
 

“We were simply trying to get back to the terms originally negotiated in 2006,” said Kate Hillyar, the company’s director of communications and media relations. “Over the years, Deerhurst’s involvement in the tournament has gone over and above the terms set out in the original agreement.” She said that Deerhurst has made every effort to ensure the success of the tournament for the past six years and that it was unfortunate that the resort would not be able to host any future championships.
 

“It has always been a highly-anticipated and fun series for our guests and colleagues, and a great draw for the Town of Huntsville. Ultimately, we have to protect our business and decisions that are going to support the overall success of the resort,” Hillyar said. Lumsden also said that the town’s denial for a request of $18,000 in financial support for the championships also played a part in the decision to move the event.
“The first is that we were going to use part of that to prepare the rinks (on Sunset Bay), which was something that Deerhurst did for all those years. That ($18,000) was part of the difference, but they said they weren’t going to do that anymore. Having just heard that (the town) committed in a proposal form to pay 20 grand a year for five years to bring in the Ironman Canada event, I thought it would be more than fair to approach them and say, ‘We had been here six years, and drive a lot to the community. How about looking at us that same way you looked at the triathlon.’ That was turned down.” 
 

Huntsville mayor Claude Doughty pointed out that the $100,000 committed by the town to bringing the triathlon here was to assist TriMuskoka, a not-for-profit, where Lumsden’s company, Drive Marketing, operates the pond hockey championship, and the event for-profit. “We typically don’t fund for-profit operations. He has had the benefit of Huntsville volunteers for years helping out and in consideration of that he did make some contributions to the community, like the skating pond on Cann Lake. At the end of the day, he made more money because of (the volunteers).”
 

Rumours have surfaced that the monetary request from the town was to offset some financial shortfalls that resulted from the cancellation of the 2012 championships, something Lumsden vehemently denies.  “That is wrong, absolutely wrong. During the six years, Deerhurst took on the responsibility of prepping the rinks and working with us on the maintenance. That was no longer going to be available to us. We needed to find a way to offset a cost that we never had to incur before,” he said.
 

While many of the teams for the two weekends came primarily from eastern Canada, the tournament also attracted teams from south of the border, and some squads included former professional players. Along with the players and guests came economic impact for the resort and the town.  According to a 2007 report that was created by the town’s event tourism subcommittee entitled “Marketing Huntsville and Lake of Bays,” information provided from the Ontario Ministry of Tourism estimates that the average sport event visitor and athlete spends between $150 to $300 per day in the community.
 

Based on projections that if the tournament attracted in excess of 1,500 players and visitors over the course of the two weekends, the economic loss to Huntsville could be in the range of $225,000 to $450,000, if the player/visitor was to stay two of the three-day weekend. If these figures are correct, Huntsville may have received anywhere from $1.35 to $2.7 million over the course of the six years the event was held here.
 

“We always heard from some local establishments that it doesn’t drive that much business here, and there didn’t seem to be an acceptance that it was good for the community,” Lumsden said. “Whether they felt that because it was always at Deerhurst and some people locked themselves away, that wasn’t always the case. People stayed at other motels and hotels in town and motel operators said they loved having the event here. I know there was a significant impact other than just Deerhurst.”
 

Huntsville mayor Claude Doughty, while he doesn’t disagree with the figures, did say that he estimates the recent Girlfriends’ Getaway Weekend had a bigger economic impact on the town proper than the entire run of the hockey championships.  “It has a much greater economic benefit to Huntsville than the pond hockey championship. The pond hockey was largely confined to the Deerhurst property. I would suggest that the getaway weekend this year was bigger than ($1.35 million) in one year.”
 

He also said attracting a national triathlon championship to town is a “significantly different item than a pond hockey event at Deerhurst.”  When asked if he could ever see the event coming back to Huntsville, Lumsden wouldn’t answer the question, saying that right now he is focusing his efforts on the 2013 championships and its new location.
 

“I haven’t even considered it because where we are going have opened up their arms and have told us they would love to (see us) come there. We are moving forward. We are finalizing the deal. At this point I am looking forward to working with these new people who see the value in what we do.” 



                                                         The Precision Label Slo-Timers
my response...

Having participated in Neil's tournament from the start in 2006, our team, the Precision Label Slo-Timers have always enjoyed our boy's weekend where we would play a little hockey, enjoy a few pops and talk about our relationships! Well, ok...two out of three isn't too bad!! 

                                                     Pinestone Pond Hockey rinks, in the evening

I first met Neil in the fall of 1968 when he was a half-back for Northern Secondary in Toronto and I played on the defensive line for Danforth. If fact, the very first time we met, I got a close-up view of his cleats as he ran over me!

                         An efficient method for warming up your skates after a hard day at the rink!

We always had our own chalet in Golfview 27 at Deerhurst Resort, not too far from the rinks on Sunset Bay. We always brought a BIG pot of beans that never seemed to come off the burner and our team-mates would dry their equipment, warm their skates and sleep wherever space permitted!


                                               Our 'hi-tech' hockey equipment drying system!

So now we will be heading up to Pinestone Resort, in Haliburton this weekend. Neil is arranging for a shuttle service to the rinks so logistical matters may not become an issue but regardless, the Slo-Timers will be there, playing our unique brand of hockey...just for fun! Because that is what this tournament is all about!


                                                   A view of the 'youngsters' last weekend!

Pinestone Resort was owned and operated by Jim Gregory and Wren Blair, long time NHL personalities and with winter temperatures cold enough to create at least 8 inches of smooth, hard ice, we will be able to play the game we love.....the way it was meant to be played!

                                                    -30-
@write_stuff_2

bio at about.me/brianweller



today's tweet...
play a little hockey, enjoy a few pops and talk ab... just for fun yorkregion #CNPHC‏

 

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