Congratulations to the Blue Mountain Special Olympics Alpine Team

The athletes from the Blue Mountain Special Olympics Alpine Team brought home lots of hardware on Sunday night.  They braved the cold weather (-41) in Thunder Bay.  Friday's races were cancelled leaving only the GS on Saturday to show their stuff as they raced through the red and blue gates.  Our team brought home a total of 11 medals for downhill racing.  Here are the results from our athletes: Christine Arnott, Gold; Matthew Poste, Gold; Jeffrey Plouffe, Gold; Kayla Tateyama, Silver; Kristin Draper, Silver; Matthew Fields, Silver; Rob Roest, Silver; Robert Edmunds, Silver; Jimmy Cleary, Bronze; Samantha Mayer, Bronze; and Jarred Jennings, Bronze.  Also, Erin McNaulty and Jeremy Robertson are bringing home Bronze medals in Curling.  Pictured here is Jeffrey Plouffe on the podium with his Gold Medal - he's my step son and I couldn't be more proud (his Dad shed a few tears of happiness and pride when we heard the news...ok I did too).  Way to go team!  And a big thank you to the coaches that accompanied the athletes.

Special Olympic Athletes off to Thunder Bay

It was a very chilly day on the slopes as 12 Blue Mountain Special Olympic Alpine athletes had their last training runs before heading out to Thunder Bay on Thursday to compete in the Provincial Games.  Our hearts go out to Malcolm DenBok who broke his leg during training this afternoon dashing his hopes to bring home a medal.

The Empire Grill

Wow, what a great experience.  We dined there last night with some friends.  The first shocker was the wine list.  Great prices with most bottles of wine well under $40.  Now that's refreshing.  The 14 oz Rib Steak was delicious and cooked perfectly (I'm picky!) and the assortment of veggies was very yummy.  My husband had the baked potatoe with his halibut and it looked and tasted great (my fork navigated over to his plate on autopilot).  If you want a well priced delicious steak dinner, try The Empire Grill and Gastro Pub located in the strip mall across from Canadian Tire. 

OMG Traffic Jam on Mountain Road

Twice now I have been caught in the unbelieveable traffic jam on Mountain Road...right around the time that night skiing starts at Blue.  I think it's amazing that Blue and the fantastic dump of snow are drawing this much traffic (literally) to our region especially because the injection of spending into our local economy benefits everyone (don't fool yourself into thinking that all of the spending happens at Blue or in the Village....when there are this many visitors to our region...everyone benefits significantly).  However, if you're a local just trying to get home and can avoid Mountain Road...I strongly suggest it.  The traffic has been backed up all the way from the Mountain to 10th line...just volume and it takes about 20 minutes to get 3 kms.  If you're a visitor and just trying to get to the hill, I might suggest you stay on Highway 26 after driving through town and make a right at the Holiday Inn Express and drive to Grey Road 21 (Osler Bluff Road).  Make a left at Grey Road 21 and then drive about 1km to Monterra Road.  Make a right at Monterra and you'll connect with Grey Road 19.  If you're going to South Base Lodge make a left and if you're going to the Village or the Inn at Blue make a right. Have fun and enjoy night skiing!!!

Local Para Nordic Sit Skier wins gold medal!

Local Para Nordic sit skier Rob "The Rocket" Roest won the 600m sprint to claim a gold medal at the Ontario Cup cross country ski races on Saturday. Fourteen Para Nordic racers from across Ontario attended the event including Paralympics cross country skier and World Champion tandem cyclist Robbi Weldon from Thunder Bay. Also in attendance were Canadian Paralympians Margarita Gorbounova and Alex Novikov from Ottawa.. This was the largest number of Para Nordic athletes to attend an Ontario Cup xc ski race weekend to date. Congratulations to Rob who has been training hard this fall for the ski season.

Welcome to Collingwood - Please Relax!

To all our wonderful weekend visitors.  We're so glad you're excited to be here too!  What an amazing start to the Winter season.  Now that you're here please try to relax as you motor into town.  Our speed limit is a mere 50km on most roads, which is a really smart thing because with the ever changing weather and road conditions, you can't be too cautious.  Not to mention the wildlife that can jump out in front of you...and it does...quite often.  It's a really smart idea not to follow another car too closely.  You never know when they'll pound down on the breaks.  We're proud to be polite and courteous drivers.  We drive to stay alive...not to get there first!  I want you close enough to my rear end to read my logo but not close enough to kiss my ass.  So now that you're here...relax along with the rest of us, welcome and enjoy!

Not a Snow Day! Yeay!

I am so happy it's not another snow day and that my 16 year old is now back at school.  I was never so happy to see that yellow bus come around the corner.  Yippee...it's like a snow day for me!