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Wildcraft Forest
Lumby Pilot Wins Hang Gliding
Competition In Sicamous
On Saturday September 24th aprox. 60 Hang Glider pilots and friends from all over BC and Alberta re-united in Sicamous to talk about past flying and compete in a spot landing contest on the beach and to give remembrance to fellow friend and pilot Dano Saunders who recently suffered a fatal heart attack.
16 of the veteran pilots took the plunge from the 2500 foot vertical drop off from a ramp to the beach beside the Trans Canada Highway.
Local Lumby Airforce member Randy Rauck landed within 2 feet of the bulls eye to secure the first place trophy.
The Sicamous wooden ramp overlooking town was newly resurfaced by volunteers and sponsors for the event and should last another 20-30 years now.
Flyers packed up their wings and headed for the old Cambie hall for a huge dinner and celebration followed with a long flyers slide show, jam and dance.
According to Rauck, Hang Gliding has been getting a lift of interest as of late. The Freedom Flying School and Raven Aviation in Lumby offered an email marketing promotion in late August and 100 new students signed up for an introductory hang gliding course that sold out within 24 hours. Most of the new students are located near Kelowna. Lumby and area have become a hang gliding and paragliding destination for flying tourists over the last 36 years as well, since the Lumby Air force started organizing and promoting flying from the mountains and landing at the Freedom Flight Park near Lumby.
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Lumby Air Race Results
The Lumby Air Races ended Sunday June 12th at the Freedom Flight Park in Lumby BC. This annual event was held again in conjunction with Lumby Days. Hang Gliding competitions have been running in Lumby since 1976.The weather was not great for all days however Saturday was good and most of the competitors from Alberta, BC and the USA raced around the Village of Lumby's 10 and 20 km triangles. Some of the foot launched gliders were in the air for over 3 hours on course. Hang Glider and Paraglider Pilots launched from Coopers Launch overlooking Lumby. They all carry GPS navigation equipment to mark their scores and computers calculate the top speeds after the race is complete.
Prize money was awarded in each category and the winners are as follows:
Hang Gliders Open Class
1st Gary Braun Seattle Washington USA
2nd Rob Clarkson Calgary Alberta
3rd Ian MacArthur Kamloops BC
Hang Gliding Sports Class
1st Ralph Herten Vancouver BC
2nd Stewart Trowsdale Vancouver BC
3rd Steve Parson Vancouver Island Canada
Paragliding Open Class
1st Andrew Berkley Vancouver BC
2ndRobin Sather Abbotsford BC
3rd Claudio Mota Victoria BC
Paragliding Sports Class
1st Peter Spear Burnaby BC
2nd Claudia Schwab Burnaby BC
3rd Bill Goglin Williams Lake BC
For more detail about this event please visit www.LumbyAirForce.com
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October 17, 2013
Bullish on the real news in the Monashee
Online Community News for Lumby, Cherryville, Rural Coldstream and Highway 6
We update this website on a regular basis. We are eager to receive your news, events, advertising and letters by email at: mediaservices@uniserve.com
Enjoy a Fun Flight !
Gift Certificates Available
We also do Aerial Photography
Hang Gliding & Ultralight Lessons
Call Raven Aviation at 250.307.7553
August 8, 2012
Vernon Search and Rescue successfully deployed a rescue mission in the Twin Lakes area high in the Monashee Mountains.
The rescue marked the second time in a month that a hiker had to be resued from difficult terrain. This time a 52 year old man from Coldstream found himself in a tough situation. According to witnesses who had talked to the man they said he had been trying to take a photograph when he lost his footing, or some rocks gave way. He then fell and badly twisted his ankle and was unable to walk.
The man had been hiking alone but was in constant communication with his wife through the use of a GPS Spot Beacon however shortly after noon on Sunday the man fell so he the beacon’s panic button, which set off a long but successful rescue attempt.
Leigh Pearson, search manager with Vernon Search and Rescue told local media, “We weren’t notified about the man until about 4 p.m. Sunday by the RCMP.”
An RCMP helicopter was sent in and despite assistance from other hikers at the site trying to signal the exact location of the injured man the attempts failed, because of the thin air and the high temperatures, which prevents the RCMP chopper from lifting off.
Vernon Search and Rescue then sent a crew in by foot to tend to the injured hiker.
“It took about three hours and 15 minutes to reach him,” said Pearson. “Once the crews got there, they stabilized him and spent the night with him.”
In the morning, a Penticton Search and Rescue helicopter was brought in and was able to land within 50 feet of the hiker and crew. The injured man was loaded onto the helicopter and flown to a waiting ambulance in Cherryville, then taken to Vernon Jubilee Hospital for treatment of a possible broken ankle.
The helicopter returned to the site to pick up the search crew.
Pearson said the hiker was well prepared to spend the night and then praised the role that technology played in the rescue. He said the spot beacon played a key role in getting the search crew to the injured hiker.
“You can pick these things up at Walmart, Canadian Tire or any sporting good store - they have a built-in GPS (Global Positioning System) but the one complaint we’ve heard about them is that, sometimes, the GPS is not very accurate. In this case, it was absolutely right on and everything about the rescue was beautiful.”
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50 year anniversary
of Monashee Provincial Park
July 10, 2012
Cherryville is getting ready for celebrating the 50 year anniversary of the Monashee Provincial Park on Saturday July 14th during the Cherryville Farmers Market.
B.C. parks will be set up educating about the parks with maps and handouts. The feature artist in the Cherryville Artisans' Shop will be Ernest Laviolette, he was instrumental in developing the park.
In conjunction with his show at the Farmers' Market, Ernie will have an open studio on July 14th at his house located 10km from the market on Sugar Lake Road., this will be held from 9:00am to 1:00pm.
“Ernest Laviolette's photography is surely one of our treasures in Cherryville. I will also be showing the movie Ernie created about his experiences titled "The Call of the Monashee," said event coordinator Helen Kovacs.
“In the "Emerging Artist Showcase" we will feature artwork about the park from the students of Cherryville and Marie-France Ladouceur will be showing her photography.”
The Farmers' Market is in full swing with lots of produce, artists, wagon rides, fresh food, live music and entertainment.
“There is lots of new glass, pottery, jewelry and paintings in the shop! Hope to see everyone out this summer come and enjoy Cherryville for the day,” added Kovacs.
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Backcountry patrols active
in the North Okanagan
May 29, 2012
The province claims the May long weekend was very successful when it came to enforcing rules and safety in recreational spots.
The Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations patrolled the north and central Okagnan recreational areas, campsites and forest service roads on May 18 and 19.
According to Kyle Beadman a supervisor for the Ministry, officers were joined by members of the RCMP and conservation.
"The patrols covered about 800 km of roads and officers met with approximately 200 members of the public."
Beadman says while most people were co-operative, seven violation tickets were issued or are pending.
They included:
- Four $345 tickets for using an ATV on a forest service road without the required insurance (three issued, one pending).
- One $115 ticket for failing to comply with an order to vacate a site.
- One $173 ticket for unauthorized use of a forest service road.
- One $115 ticket for excessive vehicle speed (greater than 20 km/h) in a recreation site (pending).
Several warning tickets were also issued, including:
- Failure to maintain a vehicle.
- Cutting, removing or damaging Crown timber.
- Use of a forest service road without the required insurance.
Another warning ticket was issued under the Wildfire Act for blighting fuel or using fuel in violation of the regulations.
Beadman says ignoring B.C.'s campfire regulations can result in a $345 fine.
"Anyone who causes a wildfire through arson or recklessness can be fined up to $1 million and/or spend three years in prison."
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Photo- Event Organizer Brian Dodd from Calgary (right) presents winner Randy Rauck The Eagle Hang Gliding Trophy and a Texas Mickey for 1st place
Twin Lakes:
Another tough rescue
Spectacular Twin Lakes in the Monashee
The long weekend brought backcountry crowds out in full force. The trail to Twin Lakes was busy all weekend. The trail is good but is still in mountainous terrain. Both the experienced and novice hiker should be well prepared and cautious.
BC Hang Gliding Reunion Winners
September 17, 2012
The BC Hang Gliding reunion was held at the Freedom Flight Park near Lumby September 15th and 16th. The event was organized by the Sicamous Airforce. 25 pilots from around BC showed up to fly from Coopers Launch overlooking Lumby and compete at a spot landing competition while reminiscing about the past and talking about the future of flying Hang Gliders. Pilots had the opportunity to score 3 landings over the weekend. The lift was good at Coopers launch and many pilots had good flights over 2 hours while reaching altitudes of up to 9000 feet both days! Many plan on returning to fly here again next season for the Lumby Air Races and the Wild Salmon Festival.
The first place trophy, $300.00 and a Texas Mickey went to Shafe Mohammad from Burnaby. 2nd place gift and $200.00 went to Larry Croome from Tappen and 3rd place gift and $100.00 went to the defending winner of 2011, Randy Rauck from Lumby.
Other Lumby pilots that entered were Leo Salvas, Tim Stall, Garth Hemming, Luc Maillous and Rick Hunt
More information about Hang Gliding around Lumby can be found at www.LumbyAirForce.com or www.RavenAviation.ca
In The Photo - The first place trophy, $300.00 and a Texas Mickey went to Shafe Mohammad from Burnaby. 2nd place gift and $200.00 went to Larry Croome from Tappen and 3rd place gift and $100.00 went to the defending winner of 2011, Randy Rauck from Lumby.
