EDITORIAL: Winter Carnival – what we're all about
By Rossland Telegraph
Our ice rink may be running the risk of defrosting, our schools may be on the verge of failing, and even our post office may be on the way to the dead letter office, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have anything to celebrate this Winter Carnival weekend here in the Mountain Kingdom. This year is the 113th edition of the Carnival and it’s a time when Rosslanders gather to celebrate what it means to be resident of the Golden City: a love of snow, good times, and community.
Government cuts of any and all sorts can’t extinguish the spirit that has sustained our town from Gold Rush through Gold Bust, through the Great Depression, the Second World War, and even the elections of Stephen Harper and Gordon Campbell and their apparent loathing for small town Canada.
As the organizers of the Winter Carnival note, this event “has been the highlight of winter in Rossland for over a century”. This year is a mind-bogglingly varied and crowded event. So many things are going on around town that a poor editor can only offer a list [deep breath]. This year Rosslanders will be joined by the CBC’s Rick Mercer and by the great granddaughter of Olaus Jeldness, founder of the “royal sport of skiing” in this part of the world. The Olympic Torch relay will be incorporated into the festivities, as will the annual Blizzard Music festival and the Canadian Open Freeskiing Championship, presented by Stikeman Elliott. All your old favourites will be present and accounted for: the Sonny Samuelson Bobsled Race (with Mercer taking part!). [Please note that the bobseld race and the Carnival Cup Kid’s GT Race have been moved to Sunday January 24. The John Heintz Cup Relay has been moved to Saturday January 23]
Other events include the Rossland Winter Carnival 2010, the return of King of the Mountain, the Carnival Art Contest Display at the Credit Union, and a special exhibit on the history of the Carnival at Pro Hardware, presented by Friends of the Rossland Museum.
Beer gardens, parades, luge lessons, an ice palace (see the picture attached to this article), a Legion Mardi Gras, the annual Variety Show at RSS, the Firefighters’ Pancake Breakfast, the Game Rail Jam, the John Heintz Relay Race, the Children’s Art Exhibit & Silent Auction. It’s frantic. It’s nuts. It’s great. It’s Rossland. See you out there!
For more details, please consult the Rossland Winter Carnival website.
