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Check out some of the good things that have been going on recently.
It's Superbowl Sunday this weekend. The New York Giants vs. The New England Patriots. A rematch of the big game 4 years ago, when the improbably Giants beat the almost perfect Patriots.
Here's the thing. You could watch the game at home, or at a buddy's Superbowl Party. Trash talk, throwing the odd chip, storming out of the room... all acceptable practice at these venues. But what if you want the vibe that only a sportsbar can bring?
We talked to Kip Lindsay, owner of Boston Pizza here in Airdrie, about some of the Do's and Dont's of watching the Superbowl in a public setting.
- Be a good sport, even if your team is losing.
People are looking for a fun experience, no matter what the score is. Being a bitter fan, regardless if your team is up or down by a touchdown, can ruin the experience for those around you. Light hearted barbs aside, people around you are looking for a good time, not to have an ill willed target on their Eli Manning or Tom Brady jerseyed back.
- Be considerate to the staff.
This is a no brainer. They are working on Superbowl Sunday. Some would rather be sitting at the table with you than serve you. Others have no idea what a comeback route is. Either way, they're there to help you enjoy your afternoon/evening. And remember, they're what's standing in the way between you and your plate of nachos or pound of wings. The nicer you are to them, the nicer they will be to you.
- Know your limits.
If you know you become a different person after a few, stop at a few minus one. Everyone around you, including your friends are there to enjoy themselves, and to remember the experience the next day. Don't embarass them, others, or yourself by having 'just one more'. And on the same wave length...
- Set up a designated driver.
Let's be honost here, we're not talking about apple juice consumption. You'll be sitting around for hours, ordering round after round. Don't be an idiot by getting behind the wheel.
- Have fun.
Seriously, if you're not having fun... go home.
Enjoy the weekend, and Go Giants! (I'm a Colts fan... what can I say?)
Woodside Golf Course hosted a demo of the new line of TaylorMade drivers they will be releasing this upcoming season. Bruce Daniels and I, the resident "golfers" at the station, stopped by to try out the new Rocketballz and R11S clubs on a fantastic February afternoon.
Being a lefty, I only had a chance to check out Rocketballz driver. I've yet to crack 100, but I think with the right clubs, including this one, I'd be that much closer to doing so. It was more forgiving, not only in sweet spot, but to the harsh fade I have as well. But the distance was amazing, when it wasn't straight. The accuracy was bang on, without much distance.
This is Tom, making adjustments to the Rocketballz club that I tried, to try and cure my fade. I think it's more my inexperience (maybe 20 rounds in 8 years... if that) than any adjustment he could make, but I appreciated the effort. Say 'Hi' to Tom next time you're at Woodside.
I do have to say that the Rocketballz driver did a better job than the driver that came with my $100 set of clubs I bought back in 2005.
Bruce had a chance to test drive the R11S club, and loved it. I could tell, cause every time he picked up his head after a swing, it was either "nice", "wow", or "that's atleast 275" (with the number increasing every time).
The Rocketballz drive retails for around $350 at the Woodside Pro Shop, the R11S with more bells and whistles retails for around $450.
Thanks to Tom and the gang over at Woodside Golf Course for letting us take a few swings with their demo sticks.
Airdrie is full of surprises. Not the least of which is the hidden talent. Paul Brandt lived here, there's rumours Mikka Kiprusoff lives here, and a World Champion Arm Wrestler comes from here.
Darrell Belyk "got his butt whooped" at a local bar in Calgary in 1987 but someone noticed his talent. They encouraged him to train and be part of the Calgary Arm Wrestling Club so he could learn to do it properly.
Training is surprising. It's not just bicep curls. It's all about the unsung ligaments and muscles you don't normally use. "That's why you have to have the table time, to develop those muscles and tendons up. When I first started training I'd go home and have tennis elbow like you wouldn't believe. But I went through the pain, and once you're through the pain you're ok."
Does he get nervous? Sure. He says it's healthy. "Any given day you can lose. You've got to keep mentally and physically adapting to what you're doing. You're going to have bad days, and if you're not mentally on it you're going to lose for that day. And if you travel to lose in two bouts its a long trip back, licking your wounds."
However, Airdrie is always there to pick him back up from disappointment.
Arm wrestling has taken him all over the world; his favourites so far are Isreal and Italy, but he's very much looking forward to travelling to Brazil for Nationals this year. Leaving the country helps put Canada into perspective.
The question we're all secretly dying to know? Has he ever used his skills to hustle people? Just once. But he felt so guilty he gave all the money to his friends and has never done it since. From then on he only used his powers for good. And remember: "Don't take yourself too seriously. Have that positive, confident attitude. Being proactive will get you far."
Jeff (behind the camera) met up with the team over at Total Control Solutions Group this afternoon for some lunch at Nathan's Famous. Laura (left) entered the @Work Network contest online at discoverairdrie.com and won it for her group! They do some pretty complicated and demanding work over there and definitely deserved the break. Thanks guys!
Your business could be the next winner. Get your entry in! We'll announce the next week's winners Monday and Tuesday mornings on the AIR 106.1 Morning Show.
Mike and Theo from the UPS Store with Christina from the AIR 106.1 Morning Show - and yummy goodies from Good Earth Coffeehouse.
Clay and Mike, along with the rest of their team at Amazing Heating were this week's winners of coffee and goodies from Good Earth Coffeehouse as part of our @Work Network. But they did something amazing and decided to pay it forward, having us deliver the treats to Mike Watkins and his crew at the UPS Store on Main Street.
Watkins tells us that Amazing Heating recently did some work at his home - and they truly were amazing. After today, everyone else will know that, too!
Here at AIR 106.1 we recently decided that it would be a good idea to really get to know our community and everything it has to offer.
While tossing around ideas of places we could check out one location was at the top of the list from the very beginning...GENESIS PLACE!
Airdrie's premier destination for all things sport (and more) was impressive to say the least. In the few years that its been open Genesis Place has gone through a number of changes. Originally Phase One of GP consisted mainly of the aquatic facility, which is quite amazing in its own right, and a fitness centre. Soon after they expanded to include a gymnastics centre and brought in the indoor fields which are now used for soccer, lacrosse, basketball as well as large functions such as High School Graduation.
Phase Three is the next step which will see two ice surfaces added to the property in the near future. With a football field out back and a track surrounding it, it's hard to think of a sport that couldn't be played at this incredible location.
But that doesn't exactly mean sports and exercise are the only goings-on at Genesis Place as everything has been designed for multi-purpose use. There are meeting rooms located upstairs which are fully equipped with tables, screen-projectors, and lots more to make your meeting, party, or activity a success.
Another great thing about Genesis Place is that there are things for people of all ages to enjoy. The track provides a great place to get in a good walk or jog without having to worry about slipping on ice or the weather being too cold. There are yoga rooms away from all the noise where you can get the most peaceful and and relaxing workout possible as well as high intensity circuit training for those that don't like to be quite that relaxed. The indoor fields are great for playing many different sports and with wall dividers the possibility of many different sports all being played at the same time is really high.
All of this is made possible by another great service Genesis Place offers, Child Care. With both day care as well as short term care, you can bring the kids and not have to worry about them while you use the facility. There's even a McDonalds Play Area which on average hosts ten birthday parties a day on weekends.
And to top all of this off there's even a food court so that after a hard workout you can replenish yourself with a delicious smoothie or something to eat from the in house restaurants.
So if you haven't made your way to Genesis Place yet we encourage you to go check it out as there truly is something for everyone all under one roof! Day passes can be purchased for only $10.25 and provide access to all of the facilities.
Genesis Place is located at 800 East Lake Boulevard NE.
Every Tuesday morning, Airdrie Mayor Peter Brown sits down and chats with Jeff from the AIR 106.1 Morning Show for "Airdrie Today". A look at news, events and happenings in and around Airdrie. Here's this week's feature!
Over the weekend, The Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo announced that a part of their celebration in April, they have secured all 9 original principal cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation. The television series started in 1987, and lasted 7 seasons running strictly over syndication.
The show is celebrating its 25th Anniversary this year, and other than a Bluray release of every episode in high definition, nothing else was planned, until now. Sir Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, Marina Sirtis, Brent Spiner, Michael Dorn, LeVar Burton, Gates McFadden, Wil Wheaton and Denise Crosby have all been confirmed to make a stop just down highway 2 for a cast reunion, the first in the past 20 years.
Calgary Expo creator Kandrix Foong told us that bringing in the entire cast has been something they have been working on for quite a while.
In this day in age, keeping a secret this big is tough to keep off blogs and social media, but Foong said it was tough, delayed, and a relief to have out there when they wanted it out, not when someone leaked it.
The weekend will see other non-starfleet actors and actresses available for patrons to check out. Robert Englund (Freddy from the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise), David Prowse (The guy in the Darth Vader Costume for the original trilogy), WWF Superstars Jake 'The Snake' Roberts and the Honky Tonk Man, Adam West (The original Batman, and Mayor of Quahog), and Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy from the Harry Potter franchise) are all scheduled to attend.
Included in the original cast festivities will be a separate celebration at Calgary Stampede Corral on the evening of Saturday, April 28, 2012. Star Trek TNG EXPOsed will be a 90 minute panel discussion and Q n’ A session moderated by InnerSPACE hosts Teddy Wilson, Ajay Fry and Cynthia Loyst, with a video presentation in honour of the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation.
John Quong, owner of The Treasure Cove on East Lake Blvd here in Airdrie, says that Star Trek is still relevant in the minds of local collectors, with many requests for related comics, action figures, and other memorabilia hitting his store.
This year's line up, including the TNG reunion, could put the Calgary Expo on the map, according to Quong. He says pannels were done down south through the 90s for promotion while the show was still on, but this is the first time in Canada that the full cast will be on one stage.
For fans of the genre, the series, or the universe that is Star Trek, this very well could be one of the last times this cast could be together, according to Quong.
It may just be worth the trip to head down to the Calgary Expo in April to see this line-up one more time, all in the same place. And this is coming from a Star Wars fan.
Live long and prosper. (you gotta end with that, right?)
What's better than a delicious meal? A delicious free meal!
Shalimar Cuisine known for its authentic Pakistani and East Indian food is under new management and would like to invite everyone to enjoy a meal of Butter Chicken and Saffron Rice on the house.
The promotion runs today until 4 o'clock so head on over to 2002 Luxstone Boulevard to pick up some of the best East Indian food you'll ever have, for free!
In the age of the internet, we need librarians more than ever.
The library has become much more than it used to be, and the librarian is someone who can help you navigate our world in books, on computers and through the internet. You can come to the library and ask for things and ask for help, so they can find you accurate information. They even have a program called "one-to-one", where you book a half hour with a qualified librarian who will sit down with you and help you with whatever your information request is.
The global connection means more books are available to more people. They're able to have an online system and share three million items. You can go on at night on the website, link to the TRACpac website, and search through three million items. You can get almost anything you want; it's delivered to the Library, they call you, and you pick it up.
People come to the library for different reasons. THey have some space for gathering, and people really want that in this day and age. The diversity of the people who regularly meet at the library is wonderful.
From my chat with Janine I realize that the Airdrie Public Library is often sold short. The misconception is that it's full of dusty books and that you must be quiet, but that's just not true. It's very much alive. It's colourful and full of people bettering themselves through literature and knowledge. Janine is quick to remind me that it isn't her library, it's the community's library. Everybody has a right to be here. Even if you don't want to have a card and take out items, come. You can read here, you can study here, you can work here. Its a great place to be.
