KIX 93.5

WOW… What a busy time we are having lately! It just seems that February kicks the year off after a nice long “off season” during the Christmas/New Years and January break. With Febfest, Valentines and now the Olympics…. Matty and I have been kept busy going to lots of activities. This weekend we are at Commercial Doors on Justus Drive in Kingston from 10-2pm Saturday… then we head to Tamworth for the Maple Leaf Oldtimers game. It will be good for Wayne to see and meet some of the historic names that make the Maple Leaf Nation Canada’s hockey team. Despite the pityfull teams they seem to have in the past decade or so. Tickets are sold out for the game in Tamworth so thanks for all who are involved.

With March just around the corner… it means the Kids for Kids hockey tournament is coming to Kingston and Napanee again this spring. We have 192 teams signed up. That means that over 3500 hockey players and just over 10,000 people will be in Kingston for the March 26-28th weekend! Over $50,000 will be split between the KGH Foundation and The Kingston area Boys and Girls Club Don’t forget to stayed tuned to the Big Show for our March 9-3-5 contest…. Some lucky KIX listener and a friend is going to win a fantastic Country Music Trip to see some major stars…. Somewhere in CANADA!….. but you will have to stay tuned!!!  Thats it for now…. talk to you later.

Big G

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What a month! However thought that putting 28 days in February would make it go quicker and spring would come did not see the KIX team schedule for the month we are currently in. WOW! The month is going by quickly with lots happened and a lot more to come this month.

A great big thankyou to the big show friend Rick Seminuik from Waste Management for hosting us at the Rascal Flatts concert in Ottawa and at the Curling Bonspiel in Napanee last week. Then it was the Febfest week all last week at Springer Market Square and the KRC. It was bitter cold on Saturday but the NHL past stars all showed up to play along with legend Johnny Bower. What a thrill to see and talk with him. BigG and Mathews were there for Saturday morning as usual and stayed until almost noon. Man it was cold!

This week we will be DJing our spring Valentines dance at the Verona Lions Hall on Saturday from 8p-1a. Tickets are on sale at the Verona Hardware store and will be on sale at the door. A light lunch will be served and some KIX swag will be given away along with some door prizes. Proceeds will go to the Kids for Kids Organization. Come on out for a fun night in Verona.

Have a great month…. talk to you in March.

BigG

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Hi again everyone, as I sit here this morning writing my blog I look out the window on this dull, dreary, wet and windy day. Yeah, it’s raining outside and the temperature is reading plus 7, but change is in the air and a return to more winter like conditions are on the way, just in time for  FebFest.

This years FebFest runs from February 1st to the 7th featuring another fun filled week of winter events for the entire family. On the ice at Springer Market Sqaure Monday Feb.1 it’s Elvis Stojko. The Flying Canucks who were a huge crowd favourite last year are back with four performances on Wednesday Feb. 3rd. The OHL All-Star Classic is slated for the K-Rock CenterTues. Feb 2 and Wed. Feb. 3.

Tom Cochrane LIVE at the K-Rock Center on Thursday Feb. 4 and tickets are on sale now for only 45 dollars. Don’t forget your skates as there is plenty of free public skating being offered again this year. Of course one of our favourite events is the Limestone Classic Hockey Tournament that is being held Saturday Feb. 6 and you can join KIX Live on Location that day from Springer Market Sqaure. (check out some of the pics from last year) Another impressive line-up of NHL greats coming to town again this year to join local former NHL’ers Doug Gilmour, Rick Smith, Alyn McCauley. Look at some of the stars coming to town for the Classic…Pat Flatley, Doug Jarvis, Bernie Nicholls, Gary Roberts, Marty McSorley, Ken Linesman an d many more including former Leaf and legendary goaltender Johnny Bower who will serve as the NHL Alumni Ambassador.

Hope to see you at FebFest  this year. Get out with the family and beat the winter blaaa’s. You can check out the full list of events at FEB FEST KINGSTON DOT COM!

See ya’ there

Wayne

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Well, here we go… a new decade! I didn’t give it much thought until watching the annual Dick Clark New Year’s celebration from New York City. Here’s a question.. why don’t they let him go out to pasture quitely? The poor guy had a stroke over 2 years ago and here he is on national television on new year’s eve trying to countdown from 20…. he made it to 13 and then it came apart! Lord help me know when its time!!

Wayne, Jacquie, Wendy and I had a great time Saturday at the Larry the Cable Guy show at K-Rock centre. We went to the 4pm show and had a visit with Larry after the show. He was very kind to us and showed no signs of wanting to cut the visit short… he took his time with us and we had a chat for over 20 minutes. Check out the pic here on the blog.  Larry had a very successful trip to Kingston with the 4pm show more than 3/4 sold and the late show S/O. Which only proves…. there is a huge “redneck” community here in the limestone city! LOL. Git R Done!

I am hoping to see Rascal Flats and Darius Rucker in Ottawa on the 29th… that show is going to be fantastic. Wayne and I saw R F in Nashville two years ago at Fan Fare… their show is first class… (but what country show isn’t)!

I had to laugh at myself this past weekend. There I was surfing the satelite channels trying to see somehting that looked like a race somewhere… low and behold the encore movie channel was just starting the old Burt Reynolds, Loni Anderson movie… “Stroker Ace”… So there I was … watching the whole thing! Boy, what does that tell you about my addiction.  I can hear you all now saying in unison…. “Big G… Get a Life”! Well not that I am counting…. but in 4 more Sundays… NASCAR returns to the airwaves and on my favorite channel for NASCAR… FOX! I really don’t like the ABC coverage of NASCAR and in fact choose not to watch it until the summary later in the day…. If you are a race fan, there is going to be the Canadian Motorsports EXPO at the International Centre in Toronto. The 01 race team will be there with both our dirt and pavement cars…. hope to see you there.

On the same weekend in Kingston, January 22-24th, the Limestone City will be hosting the Ontario parasport winter games. The games will be held at the Kingston Military sports centre, the Invista Centre, The Royal Kingston Curling club,  and the Little Cataraqui Creek Conservation Area. Wayne and I will be MC’ing the closing ceremonies and the Abrams Brothers will be performing for the competitors at the K-Rock Centre.

I want to thank you again for your participation with the KIX “Operation Christmas Teen”… we went over the top thanks to all who attended our annual lucheon at the Confederation Place Hotel…. over $18,000 was raised for underprivilaged teens in the Kingston area.

Well, that all for now…. thanks for tuning us in every morning…. we really appreciate all of you for keeping it country!

Big G

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It truly is a great time of year with Christmas just around the corner, the hustle and bustle of the season, the look of excitement and anticapation on the children’s faces and to top it all off my Maple Leafs are turning it around. Not such a joyous time for Big G though as evidenced in the picture of him wearing (do you believe it) YES my friend…a Tornoto Maple Leafs hat. He managed to lose yet another bet to the Mighty Matty. For some reason he actually thought that the Ottawa Senaters would triumph over my Leafs at the ACC on Monday nite…fat chance buddy. Now he has to wear the Leafs cap for losing the bet. Just look how happy he is to finally be a part of the Leaf Nation (the world’s team).

Seriously though, we have some pretty exciting events coming up for the Christmas season including our 3rd annual Operation Christmas Teen Luncheon at Confederation Place Hotel on Thursday with a wonderful meal, a live and silent auction and entertainment provided by Jimmy Patterson and Ricky Storms. Proceeds will support the Salvation Army Christmas Teen program which helps under priviliged teens in the Kingston area. We’ll tell you all about next week.

Speaking of the Salvation Army the Kix Krew was out in full force on the weekend at the Cat Center to try and help raise money for the Christmas Kettle Campaign. Here’s a pic of Big G, Mathews, Jacquie and Mr. Goodberry who donated over a hundred dollars in coins to the Salvation Army’s Kettle Campaign.

I understand we’ve got some very cold weather coming our way in the next few days. That can only mean one thing…Yeah, baby…ice fishing is just around the corner. It truly is the most wonderful time of the year and in the words of Big G…Go Leafs Go

Talk to you next week

Wayne

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Well, I ceretainly hope you escaped the H1N1 flu that’s been going around lately. I understand Kingston and area was considered to be one of the hot spots. At any rate, I wasn’t so lucky. I had all of the symptoms except for the high fever and this darn flu and cold has been hanging on to me for about three weeks now. I’m sick of being sick. Thank goodness I’m beginning to feel much better now and a reminder to get your H1N1 flu shot now that they are available for everybody. Yeah, tis the season for flu and colds.

It’s also the season to be jolly with Christmas just around the corner. The Kingston Santa Claus Parade was a huge success this year and special thanks to all of the organizers, volunteers and particapants. It’s estimated over 25,000 people lined the parade route this year. The weather was fantastic and everyone was in great spirits. The downtown core and the malls will soon be filled with the hustle and bustle of Christmas shoppers, I’m sure to run into you sometime in the next few weeks. It truly is a wonderful time of year.

I don’t hear anybody complaining about the weather lately. We didn’t have a very good summer but this fall has been unbelievable so far although the weather is supposed to take a turn by this weekend and snow is in the forecast for next week, so brace yourself.

Tis the season for deer hunting as well. Our Dead End hunt camp did okay this year. We harvested three deer over the two week period( I didn’t shoot anything by the way, never even saw a hair) and nowI’m looking forward to the controlled hunt that’s coming up next week. I will tell you all about it and post some pictures for you when I get back.

Think I will head home and put some Christmas liights up around the house while the weather is still on ther mild side, might even take one last spin on the Harley. Everything’s coming up roses. Hey, my Leafs even won a game Saturday night. The Sens have turned it around and seem to be heading in the right direction and I wonder if Carrie Underwood calls Mike Fisher her “Cassanova Cowboy”. Big G will be happy to hear that his Saskatchewan Roughriders are in the Grey Cup this year against the Montreal Allouettes. A true east west rivalry. Should be a heck of a game.

Tha’s all I got for now…take care and I’ll talk to you soon.

Wayne

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So many reasons why this is my favorite time of year. I love being in the outdoors enjoying the beautiful fall colors, (not to keen on raking the colors though) the warmth and  smell of the woodstove on a chilly autumn  night, the harvest moon, the happy smiling , scary faces of the children going door to door on Halloween night, sitting in front of the TV with remote in hand watching a wide array of sports. Football is in full swing, the hockey season is under way, the baseball play-offs are on, the race is still on for Big G, Chris Raabe and the 01 Team as they try to capture another Mr. Dirt title and the Nascar boys are going to the wire. Tiger, Mike and Phil are still swinging the clubs and basketball is teeing up for another season. It’s truly an exciting time of year for the sports fan.(talk to you in a few months Honey)

You know why I’m smiling these days, well it’s because fall is the traditional start of the hunting season and it’s something we hunters, guys and gals alike look forward to each and every year with great anticipation. Had a chance to go Goose hunting last weekend with my buddy Bruce Wallace of Wallace Beef and I got to meet some new friends too, Ron, Bill and Max. We even downed a few geese which was a nice bonus. I think I even got one. Thanks guys, it was a fun day. My back is still sore though from that blind we laid in, in the middle of the corn field. Always willing to try something new though and hope to do it again real soon.

Hey, I’m going moose hunting this weekend. Well, we’re heading to the Mazinaw Friday but the actual moose hunt for our area doesn’t start until Monday morning October nineteenth. Our gang got a Bull tag this year and last year we were fortunate enough to harvest a Cow shortly after the hunt began. Looking forward to seeing all of the guys again. And guess what’s just around the corner…the Deer hunting season, well it’s already started for the bow hunters. Keep it on the KIX website www.kix935.com for the annual Big G and Mathews…. A Hunting We Will Go contest (details coming soon).

It’s not all good news this time of year though, because as I’m writing this blog I can feel a chill in the air and they,ve already had snow in some parts of our region and that means I have to hang up the leathers and dock  my beloved Harley for another winter. Had a wonderful year on the motorcycle got to meet some great folks and made a lot of new friends. Jo-Ann is real enjoying the bike now too, I can’t get her off the back of it now. I think she might be getting some chaps or boots for Christmas. Wel, that’s all I got for now. Talk to you when I get back from Moose hunting. Wish me luck!

Luv ya all

Wayne

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If you are a racing fan… and a DIRT racing fan… this is your week! It all starts Wednesday night at Can AM Speedway in LaFargeville NY with two DIRTcar series races for 358 small blocks and modified Sportsman. The it is off to Syracuse for the rest of the week. Thursday night there is racing at Brewerton Speedway, Friday night at Rolling Wheels and Saturday and Sunday at the Moody Mile in the Syracuse Fair grounds. Thousands of dirt race fans congregate at one of the three tracks, camp in their Rv’s and head to the races each of the days…. it is a site to see!

The 01 race team has had some great runs lately and currently lead the Mr. DIRTcar Modified Sportsman series by 52 points over Ryan Susice. Ryan and Chris are friends off the track so it is hard to watch when the two of them are running close to each other. Ryan and his father let us use their shop to set up our car when we run in the western Ontario series races.  If we lose the series… it would be great to see Ryan win it! But, with just 5 races that count left, it is ours to lose! Chris Raabe is a fabulous driver and like I have said many time is the past… he has a fantastic team around him!

KIX radio is having a lot of fun with our KIX IT UP promotion. Ken O’Connor and his staff at Gananoque Home Hardware is the sponsor and I have to tell you that his new Home Hardware store is a fantastic place to shop for all your home and garden needs. What a huge store… the biggest Home Hardware store in Canada! Congratulations to Ken and Linda…. they are the greatest! Make sure you shop there for all your home and renovation needs.

The George Jones concert is coming up…. I can’t wait to see the ole’ possum again. I had the pleasure of meeting him in Watertown many years ago and he and his wife Nancy were very nice to me and our listeners who won a “meet and greet”.  There are still some tickets for sale… just think, and I hate to say this… but we are all getting older… this could be the last time you will be able to see a true icon of country music “live”… so don’t miss this show!

Well, I guess that it for now…. have a great week and see you at the track…. hopefully in the winners circle!!!

Big G

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Well, I don’t know about you but I had a very good summer this past year. The weather was not so great in the beginning but it is making up for it now. When I went to England in June the weather was great and very hot, unlike here in Kingston.  For my second week I went to Myrtle Beach with the kids and grand kids. Again we had very hot and sunny weather there and it was just fantastic. They all loved the ocean and we spent every day for a few hours down at the beach enjoying the waves and warm temperatures of the water.

I have put two pics on this blog. One was with me and my sons-in-law Derek and Chris sitting in the shallow part of the ocean. Then as the tide came in the waves got stronger…. and then a big one wiped us out knocking us ars over tea kettle. The grand kids loved to see Papa heading backwards over the chair! I love Mrytle better than Florida but you have to go there in the off season or it is very congested. The camping is cheaper but you can get everything in Myrtle you get in Florida and it only take 16 hours and a lot less fuel!

With the fall comes another race season coming to an end for the 01 race team. Our regular season ended on a very high note with the winning of the Season Championships at Can Am and Thunder Alley race tracks and the Northeast points Championship. Now its on to try and win the Mr. DIRT Modified Sportsman Championship for the second time. The compition is very strong again this year but we are holding our own and should be able to end up in the top 3. That will take a great team effort and some good racing luck! Chris Raabe is a great driver but he has a very good team behind him. His dad Mike is our crew chief, Greg and Chris Hale handle most of the mechanical maintenance and repairs with Greg an expert on the chassis maintenace and upgrades. Dave Brunet is our tire expert and keeps a record of every tire its number of runs, stagger size and replacement dates. Then there is Dave and Don Raabe who look after the decals on both dirt and pavement cars… they do a fantastic job for us. At the track, uncles Pete and Todd always show up if they are not racing their street stock and we really appreciate that. It take a whole team to win as much as we do and any other team does in all motorsports. We have 17 wins in just 40 starts this year and we trail the points leader for the Mr. DIRT title by about 20 points so we have our work cut out for us!

This week is the Kingston Fair and I hope all KIX listeners get over to the Memorial Centre for day atleast to support our rural people. They need our help to keep this 179 year tradiditon going.

Well thats it for now…. thanks for listening to KIX… see you all soon!

Big G

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Well, it was certainly nice to finally get some summer weather and it arrived just in time for the Havelock Country Jamboree. As Big G mentioned in his blog last week the temperatures were extremely hot and humid and it was so nice to have access to the pool in Debbie’s back yard. It was a welcome relief from the heat as you can see in the picture.

Another fantastic line-up this year for the 20th anniversary and I’m sure it’ll be even bigger and better next year. Sort of a working vacation for me, heading to Havelock on the Wednesday prior to the show and staying till Sunday and then off to the cabin for a week of relaxing and fishing and recovering from the Jamboree. It’s always great to meet a lot of our friends in Havelock every year and the contingent from the Kingston area seems to be getting bigger and bigger every year. The Havelock Honeys were at the Jamboree in full force again this year and as always they proudly showed their support for KIX. They managed to draw quite a bit of attention from the Havelock faithful with a couple of pretty familiar characters lounging around at their campsite…namely, two blow-up dolls…me and Wendy B. Check out the pic.

It’s always nice to get away from it all for a little while but it’s good to back too after recharging the batteries. We’re all set to go now for a few more months and I look forward to hunting season which is just around the corner. Talk to you about our week at the cabin in a few days.

Take care

Wayne

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