http://www.mountainfm.ca

Most of the time, a political party’s riding nomination race doesn’t attract a ton of attention.  But this is Alberta, and these are the Progressive Conservatives.  I’ve heard arguments that this race is more important than the election itself, and I can understand that.  Not to disparage any of the other parties (anything can happen in an election) but the Banff-Cochrane riding has been a PC stronghold for many years, and the reality is that barring a strong surge from another party the person who wins this nomination has a good shot at being our next MLA, replacing the outgoing Janis Tarchuk.  This type of political carrot tends to attract strong candidates, and we have five people with really strong credentials running for the nomination.

This past Saturday, all the candidates attended a Meet & Greet at Rafter Six Ranch.  Each was given 5 minutes to speak on whatever they wanted.  It was nice to see a pretty good turnout to hear what each of them had to say.  I had a chance to speak with each of them individually after the formal portion of the afternoon, and this past week I’ve been airing one of those interviews per day.  In case you missed some, or want to hear them again, here they are in the order they aired (which was based on the order in which I managed to corner each of them at the meeting)

Download Ron Casey

DownloadTruper McBride

DownloadJohn Fitzsimmons

DownloadJon Bjorgum

DownloadRob Seeley

Voting takes place Saturday, January 28th locally at the Caribou Lodge in Banff and the Holiday Inn in Canmore from 10am to 7pm.  You have to be a PC Party member to vote, if you’re not it’s $5 to join and memberships can be purchased at the polling stations.

For a 1000 Locals VIP Club Bonus Code, enter the last name of the outgoing MLA for Banff-Cochrane.  The code will work until the end of the day Tuesday, January 31st.

Seven random observations from last night’s Jim Cuddy show at the Banff Centre:

1. At 56 years of age, Jim Cuddy is still a pretty good-looking dude.
2. Jim Cuddy has one of the nicest singing voices I’ve ever heard.  He sounds just as good in concert as he does on his albums, and his tone is so clear and pleasant to listen to on any song.  I’d be happy listening to him singing the phone book.
3. My favourite song from the show was the Jim Cuddy Band’s version of Blue Rodeo’s “5 Days In May”, a sprawling, jammy take on the song with an awesome violin solo courtesy of Anne Lindsay.
4. The phrase “awesome violin solo” is not one that is commonly used, and that’s a real shame.
5. Crowds at the Banff Centre tend to be very sedate.  People tend to only stand up towards the end of a performance during most shows I’ve seen there.  A performer who isn’t used to it might be looking at all the people sitting there, maybe bobbing their heads a little, going “Are these people enjoying this?”  Yes!  They are!  My theory is that locals prefer to do their hooting and hollering hanging off or hurtling down the side of a mountain, and enjoy live music sitting politely and listening.
6. I just learned last night it’s entirely possible for a person to lose all circulation to their buttocks while sitting politely and listening to a show at the Banff Centre.
7. Playing for a little over two hours, showcasing his great solo material andsome of the best from the Blue Rodeo back catalogue, along with a killer 7-piece band, last night’s Jim Cuddyshow was highly entertaining.  Whatever band he shows up with, you’re always guaranteed a great show when Jim comes to town.

If you missed my interview with Jim on Saturday afternoon, or want to hear it again, here it is in its entirety.

Download Jim Cuddy Interview

For a Locals VIP Bonus Code worth 1000 points, enter the name of Jim Cuddy’sother band (you know, the one he’s in with Greg Keelor).  The code will work until the end of the day Sunday, January 22nd.

Banff Winter Festival organizers were faced with a problem.  Approaching it’s centennial year, the event was at risk of fading away, with declining interest and attendance.  Last year, the Competitiveness Initiative was released in Banff, and it called for a renewed winter festival, bigger and better than ever.  Banff Lake Louise Toursim jumped on board, and SnowDays was born!

Think of SnowDays as a big snow-covered tent, encompassing pretty much any activity going on in Banff National Park over the next month.  From January 14th to February 12th, there are an unbelievable number of events taking place.  Some of the best holdovers from previous Winter Festivals are back, like the Mountain Madness Relay, and some events that were formerly stand-alones like Ice Magic are part of it as well, this year bigger than ever spanning two weekends.  There are also some new events, like this weekend’s Mountain Adventure Festival featuring a free ice climbing wall in Banff Avenue Square, and a new ball hockey tournament in February that I hope becomes a huge success!  You can learn to curl, be a photographer, stargaze, geocache…the list goes on and on!

For more details on SnowDays, check out their website at www.banfflakelouise.com/snowdays.  With such a massive lineup of events you’ll be hard-pressed to not find at least something you’re interested in.  You can also listen to my interview with Micaela from Banff Lake Louise Tourism here:

Download Title

And to celebrate this new festival – a Locals VIP Club Bonus Code!  Enter “SnowDays” for 1000 points.  The code will work until the end of the day Sunday, January 15th.

At this time every year, while we’re busy shopping for our loved ones and dreaming about upcoming family get togethers and festive feasts, we should also take time to think about those less fortunate.  To that end, we have two fantastic campaigns in the Bow Valley.  The Bow Valley Christmas Spirit Campaign serves the Canmore community and Santa’s Anonymous takes care of Banff.  At Mountain FM, we support both through our annual Toy Mountain campaign.  Drop off a new toy at the FCSS office at the Canmore Civic Centre or the lobby of Banff Town Hall.  Those toys will go straight into the hampers and under the trees of local kids in need this Christmas.  Please keep in mind that they need ‘toys’ for kids of all ages, from newborns to teenagers.  The older crowd tends to get somewhat forgotten – a gift certificate is never a bad idea if you’re stuck!

The fundraising goal for the Santa’s Anonymous campaign in Banff is $55,000.  A large portion of that money will be raised this Saturday.  Make sure you bring some change to the Santa Claus Parade of Lights, beginning at 5:30.  Watch for the Santa’s Anonymous float and donate!  Then stop by the Banff Legion for the annual Santa’s Anonymous Auction & Dance.  I’ve never been to it personally (I always seem to have something else going on the first Saturday night in December!) but I’ve heard from a lot of people that it’s a blast.  Live music from SUDS and Friends and one of the biggest silent and live auctions in town!  Some other Santa’s Anonymous events…the Re/Max Skate with Santa will be held earlier and during the evening this year, 5 – 8pm on Thursday, December 8th.  This is weather dependant – I guess it’s been too warm for good ice at the Fairmont Banff Springs Waldhaus Skating Rink, so the fall-back date is December 19th if things don’t get any better.  You can also stop by the parking lot across from Nester’s on Saturday, December 10th.  A Brewster bus will be there collecting donations – Stuff A Bus and support Santa’s Anonymous!  And grab a ticket for the annual Community Christmas Concert, December 14th and 15th at the Banff Centre.  Tickets are free but you need to call the Banff Centre Box Office to reserve.  For more details on the campaign, you can listen to the interview I did with co-ordinator Alison Milroy.

Download Title

Tonight, the Mountain Patrol and I will be joining dozens of other volunteers for the annual Christmas Spirit Food Drive in Canmore!  We’ll be going door-to-door collecting food donations all over town.  It gets going at 5:30 from the Christmas Spirit Office beside Lifeworks Gym – if you want to volunteer to help you can call Debbie today at 403-678-5113.  Otherwise, if you’d like to donate food, have it ready by your front door for the volunteers and if you won’t be home, you can leave it on your front steps with the porch light on and someone will grab it.  Please check expiry dates, all expired food ends up in the garbage!  As for other Canmore events, the Brewster Stuff-A-Bus campaign comes to the Sobey’s parking lot all day December 11th, and the annual Re/Max Skate with Santa happens 5 – 8 on December 15th at the Canmore Pond.  Here’s my interview with Christmas Spirit Toy Coordinator Sally Caudill about the campaign.

Download Title

Please support these two awesome campaigns that help out the less fortunate in town and make sure everyone has a fantastic Christmas!  And an early Christmas present to you…another Locals VIP Bonus Code!  For 1000 points, enter the name of the band that’s playing

As many of you know, I’m pretty involved in the local community theatre scene.  It’s been a ton of fun being involved both on and behind the stage for the last number of years with local productions.  This weekend will be my 3rd show with the Rogue Players.  Most of the cast is made up of kids and youth but there are usually a couple of big kids to anchor the show, and I was asked to play Mother Goose in the production of the same name!  I love doing children’s shows like this because you can go totally over the top with a character.  Plus the costumes are awesome!

That picture was not meant to scare you away!  LOL  If you have kids they’ll love it.  The show’s tonight at 7 and Sat and Sun at 1:30 during the Artisans Market at the Canmore Collegiate High School Theatre.  Tickets available in advance at Cafe Books and HiJinx Toys.

Have you ever wanted to be involved in local theatre?  Have you watched a production and wished you could be up there having fun, or even had the slight urge to give it a try, but maybe you were a little afraid or didn’t know where to start?  There are a couple of things going on this week that you might be interested in!  The Pine Tree Players are holding auditions for a series of four one-act plays.  With the rehearsal commitment being less, and each part being smaller due to the fact that the shows are shorter, this is a great opportunity to give theatre a try!  Auditions are happening Monday and Tuesday night at the Miner’s Union Hall, 7pm both nights.

I would also recommend a fantastic acting workshop taking place locally.  It’s being put on by Pine Tree and run by local professional actor Joe Morris.  I’ve had the pleasure of working with Joe at various times over the last couple of years and he is indeed a master of the craft.  After all, he’s the guy who’s played over 3o characters at the same time with the “One Christmas Carol” show over the last couple of years – if you ever get a chance to see him do that show it’s really something to watch!  The two-day workshop December 3rd and 4th is essentially Acting 101 crammed into two days, great for beginners and veterans alike.  The best part is it’s only $35 – normally this type of workshop would cost hundreds.  Visit www.canmoreactorsstudio.com to find out more!

I’ll leave you with an interview I did with Joe and Jodie Russell from the Pine Tree Players about auditions and the workshop.  I’ll also leave you with a Locals VIP Bonus Code!  Enter the name of the latest Rogue Players show (also the name of the character I play in the show) for 1000 points.  The code will work until the end of the day Monday, November 28th.

Download Title

On this morning’s program, I invited Sean Krausert back on the show to talk about his massive undertaking – That Poverty Project.  Sean’s a Canmore guy who is making huge personal sacrifices to undertake a year long exercise with three “poverty experiences”.  He just finished living in a tent in his backyard for three months to simulate homelessness, and next week will begin the next phase living like the working poor.  He’ll have a roof over his head but barely anything to cover day-to-day expensives, including the necessities like food.  He’ll then be sharing his stories online.

I really admire what Sean is doing.  He’s making huge sacrifices (especially with the third phase where he’ll basically be starving himself) just with the hope that people will listen and maybe change their views on homelessness or even do something to help make a tangible difference.  Sean’s message has been that the current situation can only go on for so long before something has to give, and we’re starting to see some of that pushback with the spirit behind the Occupy movement, which we discuss briefly in the interview – people who have worked hard their whole lives and still find themselves destitute, or barely making it, and don’t think it’s fair or right.  Sean’s voice is one of many right now raising that awareness and hoping to affect positive change.

Here’s the interview, it’s a little long but a good listen!

Download Title

To read Sean’s blog and follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, visit his website at www.thatpovertyproject.com. And you’ll have to visit the website for today’s Locals VIP Bonus Code!  From the front page of his site, complete the sentance “2 billion people without proper water & _______”  The code is worth 1000 points and will work until the end of the day Sunday,

Yesterday morning I popped by the Canmore Nordic Centre for the announcement of the 2011 Canadian Cross-Country ski teams.  This year’s World Cup teams will be made up of Devon Kershaw, Alex Harvey, Ivan Babikov, and Len Valjas for the men, and on the women’s side it’s hometown hero Chandra Crawford and Perianne Jones, with Banff’s Daria Gaiazova competing on the circuit as a member of Canada’s senior team.  They also announced the Senior and Junior development teams, making for a nice photo op!

No, your eyes aren’t deceiving you.  In the middle of a sunny October day, with not a speck of precipitation around, those skiers are standing on snow!  They call it Frozen Thunder, and it’s an incredibly unique project the Canmore Nordic Centre has undertaken since 2009.  They saved up snow from the previous winter, stored it over the summer, and were able to create a nearly 2 kilometre track this year.  From my understanding, there are only two places in the world that do this, and we’re the only place in North America that currently has available cross-country skiing.  This gives a huge training advantage to our ski team, and it also gives a huge advantage to local skiers because the trail is open to anyone (with trail fees in effect, of course)!  The Nordic Centre staff and the athletes were all thrilled to have it – click the link below to listen to the interview montage I aired on my show this morning, featuring interviews with the Nordic Centre’s Michael Roycroft, team coach Justin Wadsworth, and athletes Daria Gaiazova and Chandra Crawford.

Download Title

The ski season is now officially here!  Yay!  Well, the Nordic season anyway.  Still waiting for the alpine season to begin.  Tentative Lake Louise opening day is November 5th – only a few weeks to go!

For 1000 Locals VIP Club points, enter the name of the early season cross-country ski track at the Nordic Centre.  This code will work until the end of the day Sunday, October 23rd.

The fall is always a challenging season for TV watchers.  So many new shows vying for your attention with splashy promos and ads.  I always find it a challenge because I, like you, don’t have unlimited time every weeknight to watch TV.  This year, Lauren and I have gone through the new TV schedule and have picked a few to watch that sound promising.  We’ll give each show at least 3 or 4 episodes before we decide whether to commit to the full season.  I thought it would be fun to share my viewing experiences in my blog.  Maybe it will help you decide what to watch this fall too!  Again, this isn’t a full guide to every new show, just the ones we’ve picked out.  If you are enjoying a new show I’ve missed out on, feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of this post!

Mondays

2 Broke Girls – Citytv, CBS

We probably would have given this one a pass were it not for its lead star, Kat Dennings.  She was great in Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist, The 40 Year Old Virgin, and other offbeat comedies.  So I was very surprised to see her in a formulaic sitcom, complete with a laugh track turned up to full volume!  Not to knock shows like this - the old-style sitcom can be fantastic if the writing is snappy (ie. How I Met Your Mother) but I found the jokes pretty lame and the supporting cast to be typical stock sit-com stereotypes (like the Asian restaurant manager, who in stereotypical fashion is short and nerdy.  Oh, and his name is "Bryce Lee".  In case you didn't get the joke, it's repeated about 10 minutes later and the laugh track howls just as loud).  The story involves Dennings as a sass-talking, no-nonsense waitress who ends up working alongside a former billionaire heiress who's now broke after her father was involved in some sort of scandal.  By the end, the heiress ends up moving in with Dennings' character.  Oh, and she brings a horse.  Yes, it's the first episode and they've already introduced a horse that lives in their backyard.  If the horse starts talking, I'm seriously outta here.  Not sure if we'll be sticking around very long anyway!  A couple of genuine laughs kept me from giving this show a D.

Rating: C-

Tuesdays

Camelot – CBC

Lauren and I have really enjoyed shows like The Tudors, Game of Thrones, Pillars of the Earth, The Borgias, and Spartacus.  While some of those are based in history and others are fantasy, the common thread they all share is a Middle Ages-type theme with the violence and sex cranked up a few notches from your typical network program.  The show Camelot takes treats the legend of King Arthur in a similar fashion with similar results.  While we both agreed that the actor they've chosen to play King Arthur seems a little skin-and-bones for the part, and the actress who plays Morgan has a somewhat annoying growly "evil voice", overall the show seems really well-paced and the story has sucked us in so far.  No question about watching the full episode and we'll likely stick around for the season if the rest of it is as good as the pilot!

Rating: A-

Ringer -  CW, Global (Fridays)

We're watching this one mostly because Lauren's a big Buffy fan and wanted to check out Sarah Michelle Geller's latest show.  The premise - Brigitte (played by Geller) is the key witness for the murder trial of some nasty scary dude.  Obviously not really thinking it through, since her lack of testimony allows the guy to go free, she escapes her police escort and flees to New York to hide out with her long lost twin sister Siobhan (also played by Geller).  The producers seem to have run out of budget at this point because the boat scene where Siobhan disappears looks really fake and goofy, but Brigitte decides to take on Siobhan's identity, complete with a loveless marriage, a lover, a pregnancy (wonder how she's going to fake that one?), and an element of mystery.  Lauren loved it!  I thought the pilot was sort of average but the premise is interesting and I'm curious to see where it goes.

Rating: B

Wednesdays

Up All Night – NBC

As a huge Arrested Development fan, I've been really rooting for Will Arnett to find a vehicle that really showcases his talent.  His post-AD movie track record hasn't been fantastic, and last year's Running Wilde was a huge disappointment.  So I was thrilled to really enjoy the pilot for Up All Night.  He seems to have great chemistry with Christina Applegate as an urbane couple who have a baby and have to deal with the major changes to their lives.  Maya Rudolph plays Applegate's boss, a sort of weird Oprah Winfrey clone.  I didn't really warm up to her character in the first episode but Rudolph has the chops to change my mind.  Perhaps it's because, as new parents, Lauren and I can relate to the situation, but there were some big laughs during the entire half hour.  Definitely looking forward to seeing where this one is going!

Rating: A

Free Agents - NBC

What happens when you have a one-night stand with your co-worker?  How does it change the office dynamic?  That's the premise behind this show.  Sort of.  I think.  This one is full of stock supporting characters who work around the office that we've all seen before - the nutty, somewhat inappropriate boss, the dorky shut-in, the ladies man, the friendly but odd security guard.  I didn't enjoy this one as much as I hoped I would - the only laughs came courtesy of Hank Azaria, whose characterization and delivery showed him to be a competent TV comedy lead.  I wasn't as sold on Katheryn Hahn's character but I'm willing to give it a chance. 

Rating: B-

That's it for now!  Check back next week for reviews of New Girl, Terra Nova, Pan Am, The X Factor, and Person of Interest.

Locals VIP Bonus Code time…enter the name of the new show on CBC about King Arthur for 1000 points.  The code will work until the end of the day Sunday, September 25th. 

Hi everyone!  I’m getting ready to walk in this year’s Walk A Mile In Her Shoes event again this year.  Although it’s not a race, I’m still hoping to do better than last year, when my difficulty navigating in high heels caused now-Banff town councilor Grant Canning and me to arrive back in Central Park much later than everyone else!  I really should have spent the last year practicing but really, when else but the Walk A Mile event can a guy get away with walking around in heels on a public sidewalk and not be forced to answer a lot of difficult questions?

This event is a great annual fundraiser for the Banff YWCA and all the fantastic work they do in our community with domestic violence prevention.  It’s been very active and successful in its first two years and I hope this year is just as good!

My fundraising efforts have been fairly pathetic so far so I’d love it if you made a tax-deductible donation and supported me –  you can do so here.  The opposite of that has been the stellar individual fundraising efforts of some other local guys, including my friend from the Banff Sign Co. Larry Whan who currently leads the pack, having raised nearly $4000 as of this writing.

There’s still time to sign up and make a pledge!  Visit www.banffwalkamile.ca for all the info.  You can also click below to listen to the interview I did with two of the ladies at the YWCA about the event.

Enter “Banff YWCA” as a Locals VIP Bonus Code for 1000 points – it’ll work until the end of the day Sunday, September 18th.

Download Title

Once again I apologize for my lack of blog postings lately.  I’ve had an idea to turn this blog into more of an extension of my show.  Since I tend to have a fair number of special guests on the program and also try to get out in the community with my microphone as much as possible, I wanted to be able to share that with everyone who may not have had a chance to tune in at the specific time each of those segments originally aired.  So…I now have the ability to post audio to my blog!  Yay!

My first audio post is a two-parter about the Alberta Winter Games.  Yesterday, our MLA Janis Tarchuk announced that the 2014 Games will be held in Banff and Canmore!  Thousands of athletes aged 11 to 19 from all over the province will converge on the valley to compete in some traditional (and a few non-traditional) winter sports.  It will be a pretty huge event and a boon to tourism in the Valley, while also giving us a chance to show off some of our great facilities like the new Fenlands Rec Centre in Banff, the upcoming new Canmore Multiplex, and our always great Nordic Centre which still remains one of the top facilities of its type in North America.  I can see this event being a huge feather in our cap if we pull it off successfully, and with the team behind the bid so far I’m pretty confident we can.  Kudos really needs to be extended to the local Games Bid Committee, who were commended by our local town concils on the incredibly professional and thorough presentations they made to get our civic governments on board.  Co-chair John MacIsaac has been tireless with his energy and enthusiasm, popping by the station on multiple occasions to make sure we were aware of what was going on and making sure we were able to attend some of the events surrounding the bid.  The first part is a segment I put together a few weeks ago when the Winter Games Selection Committee was in town touring our facilities and meeting our people.

Download Title

The second part aired this morning from interviews I did when the official announcement was made yesterday.

Download Title

It seems like a long ways away (I suppose it is, actually) but I’m getting excited for 2014 already!

For 1000 Locals VIP Points, enter the name of the new Rec Centre in Banff