Games hectic, but worth it all
by DON MOKHERG nnd AL IRWIN Citizen Staff Reporters
An athlete's comment of, “I met a lot of nice people, had a great time and had a lot of good competition,” summarized the 1978 Northern B.C. Winter Games.
The 4,100 visiting athletes have gone home; but their impact and the impact of the four-day Games remains in the city.
To participants, the Games meant a chance to meet new friends and a larger scope for competition.
The hosts who billetted the competitors became involved in the Games through their guests.
To the organizers the Games were the culmination of more than one year of planning, and to city businessmen and service people it was perhaps the busiest four days this year.
Almost everyone was impressed by the spirit of hospitality, friendliness and co-operation that pervaded the events.
Don Hounsell, 18, of Prince George, a CNC student and basketball player, said the Games had shown everyone "we can get together with friendship and good sportsmanship in mind.”
Joyce Annis, 15, of Port Clements, a member of the Queen Charlotte junior girls basketball team, said she had "met a lot of nice people . . had a great time, and had a lot of good competition here.”
Prince George region which includes all the Fraser-Fort George Regional District, took first place in the regional aggregate points competition.
Peace River-Liard took second and Cariboo was third. At the Games closing ceremonies, it was incorrectly announced Kitimat-Stikine was second and Prince Rupert-Queen Charlotte Islands was third.
In the communities competition, Prince George had the highest aggregate points total with Prince Rupert second and Kitimat third. The points were determined by the individual athletes final standings in each event.
The trophies were awarded at the Games’ closing ceremonies Sunday at Prince George Senior Secondary School.
The ceremonies ended four days of both fierce and friendly competition among the 39 participating communities in 38 sports ranging from chess to volleyball to dog sledding.
Greg Peters, 25, a curling coach from Smithers, said the Games offered competition among northern athletes, an opportunity he said had been lacking before.
Peters’ only criticism of the organization was that
CHIx*n pho4o by Dave Milne
Frantic Games weekend was just a bit too much for Terrace curler Ingrid Metzmeier.
while banquets and receptions were put on for officials and dignitaries, nothing similar was offered the competitors.
A concert, attended by many athletes, was not part of the Games organization, and charged admission.
Judi Konrath, a secretary for the Games society since June, said that the highlight for her was the arrival of the out-of-town participants Thursday.
‘‘People were being so nice, coming in at 2 a.m. asking if we still needed billets. It was really exciting, I made a lot of new friends, the volunteers were just fantastic. I would do it all again, twice, 10 times over.”
Charlotte Lapp, who provided billets for two volleyball coaches from Whitehorse, said her enjoyment of the Games was enhanced by her guests presence.
“We have been very involved in their activities. When you take billets you find out how their Games are going.
John Ohrainec, 44, of Fort
St. John, whose son Steven, 12, was playing badminton here, said he thought the Game;, were "fantastic.” "Everyone is enjoying themselves, hospitality is good, and the weather has co-operated.” I think the Games are good for the community, both for youngsters and adults.” For city businessmen the influx of visitors was a -
Full coverage of the Northern B.C. Winter (James on pages .‘J, 8, 5), i:i-i(i.
“boon to business’ said Colm Foley, catering manager at the Inn of the North Coffee Gardens.
“If you had been in here half an hour ago this place was absolutely packed with kids," Foley said Sunday.
He said this weekend had been one of the busiest this year.
Terry Barclay, 22, a city taxi driver, said his business had increased by "about 25 per cent” over the weekend, and most of his fares had been going to
events associated with the Games.
City RCMP Const. Anne Horseman who was on patrol day shift during the event, said the weekend had been no different than any other.
"We were prepared for the influx of people, but there were no problems at all.”
Const. Horseman said most of the competitors were young and were accompanied by their coaches, or parents. "It was almost as if they weren’t here,” she said.
The main social event for the young athletes was a dance with the Vancouver rock band Stonebolt.
Some concern had been e x p r e ssed a f t e r t r o u b 1 e wa s reported at the last civic centre dance; but Saturday’s dance had no re-|>orted trouble.
About 550 people, most of whom were Games participants, gathered for the dance. At 11:30 when the dance ended, buses were waiting to take the visiting athletes back to the homes in which they were staying.
B.C. TEL STRIKE-LOCKOUT
WEEK-LONG SIEGE ENDS
Prison hostages face charges
NEW WESTMINSTER, B.C. (CP) - Two women charged with attempted murder and permitting or assisting escape in connection with an abortive escape attempt at the troubled British Columbia Penitentiary made a brief appearance in provincial court here today and asked for more time to consult with their laywer.
Betsy Wood, 47, of North Vancouver, and Gay Hoon, 31, of Vancouver, were among 13 persons held by five prisoners at the maximum-security prison after the escape attempt failed. They were taken into custody Saturday when the incident ended, two hours into its eighth day.
The two entered no plea and were to be back in court at 1:30 p.m. PST today.
Inspector Ed Cadenhead of the New Westminster city police Said Sunday it is possible that other charges will be laid against other hostages, and that charges will be laid against the five hostage-takers.
The incident, believed the longest in Canadian penal history, began Jan. 28 with an escape attempt by convicted murderer Andy Bruce, 29, Ste-
ven Albert Hall, 28, Richard Wright, 35, Ralph Saumer, 27. and David Bennett, 29.
They used a sledgehammer to break through a glass partition in the visiting area near the maximum-security prison’s main entrance.
Police said the escape attempt failed when a guard locked a door that sealed them in the visitor’s area. During the attempt, guard Roy Yasuda, 32, was stabbed twice in the neck and twice in the side.
Yasuda’s jugular vein was severed, but he managed to gel
out of the area under his own power. Authorities said he had 30 seconds to live when a prison nurse reached him and stopped the flow of blood.
He is recovering in hospital.
The five prisoners then took 13 persons in the area, including two other prisoners, hos-tage.
RCMP Superintendent Bruce Northorp, one of the chief negotiators, said Saturday he was pleased the hostage-taking ended without bloodshed and credited a team effort by RCMP, city police,
Return to work seen next week
by JAN-UIH) WENZEL Citizen Staff Reporter
Pickets continue to surround B.C. Telephone Co. facilities in Prince George and union spokesmen say an eye is still being kept out for any work carried out by supervisory personnel in spite of a tentative agreement reached Thursday to settle the 10-week strike lockout.
Both the company and the Telecommunications Workers Union feel it will take until ny.xt Monday to resume normal operations. Negotations for a return to work are being held in Vancouver, but the 10,000 TWU members still have to ratify the tentative agreement. Details of the p?.ct have not been released pend-
ing the ratification vote, but it is believed the agreement is based on the recommendations of Mr. Justice Henry Hutcheon, industrial inquirer appointed by federal Labor Minister John Munro.
Hutcheon recommended the contentious issue of contracting out of work be settled by a compromise solution.
The union had accepted continuation of a single arbitrator in case of objection to contracting out, while the company wanted a joint board under-a-chairman who wouldcast thedecidingvote ina tic. Hutcheon recommended the joint board under an independent chairman whose decision is binding.
The recommendations also included wage increases for a two-year contract of 45cents in the first year and 35cents in
the second, while increases for the third year were to be worked out.
Munro told the House of Commons Friday he would assist in the final steps to settle the dispute and a B.C. Tel spokesman said the company wants to move all supervisors back to the place they usually work before the employees return to work.
The union in turn wants all its members to return to work at the same time.
The ratification vote will be set after the return to work conditions are agreed on.
There are about 500 B.C. Tel employees involved in the dispute in the northern region which centres around Prince George.
^Citizen 1L
»____t___ ________ c inrro oo. oe Prin^o Clnnraa flritich Pnliimhia
Monday, February 6, 1978 Vol. 22; No. 25 Prince George, British Columbia
FAST RECOVERY FEARED
'Secret' paper shows gov't economic goals
OTTAWA (CP) — A confidential discussion paper prepared by the federal government for use at next week’s federal-provincial premiers’ conference warns against policies which could stimulate "too fast” an economic recovery.
The draft paper, made public today by Ed Broadbent, New Democratic Party leader, says rates of real growth faster than 5.5 per cent over the next few years could accelerate inflation.
Broadbent called the paper, which was the basis for a speech made by Finance Minister Jean Chretien 10 days ago, disappointing.
It reveals no move toward serious economic planning for the country, he said.
The discussion paper includes the following targets for the economy:
—A jobless rate dropping toward 5.5 per cent by the end of 1981. The rate now is about 8.5 per cent.
—An average increase in real economic growth of 5.5 percent over the period. The growth rate in 1977 was between two and three per cent and Chretien predicts about five per cent for 1978.
—An average increase in wages falling to about six per cent by 1981.
—An average inflation rate falling to 3.5 per cent by 1981. The 12-month inflation rate in December was 9.5 per cent. Copies of the 103-page discussion paper had been leaked to the press but government officials had said the final documents would not be made public until Wednesday. It will be tabled in the House of Commons.
prison warden Herb Hey nett and his Canadian Penitentiary Service staff.
In particular, he said that if it hadn't been for an unnamed member of the penitentiary staff “those inmates would have been on the street."
"Although it was a highly-volatile incident for us for many days 1 don’t know what the consequences would have been had it been out on the street in less controlled conditions.”
See also page 2
The discussion paper says in some ways the projections for economic recovery are "quite conservative. If it is possible to do better, this would clearly be desirable.”
"Nevertheless the recovery path must be one which simultaneously achieves the goals of reducing unemployment and the rate of inflation,” it says.
"Too fast a recovery would endanger the target of reduced inflation and undo the gains in employment.
‘‘The wage-price scenario is critically important to the recovery. A continued deceleration in the rate of inflation is a continuing objective of government policy and a requirement for the achievement of the real growth targets.”
The government is to begin dismantling its anti-inflation program April 14 but will set up a monitoring agency to publicize excessive wage-and-price increases in the hopes this will deter inflation.
Federal authorities have recently been calling for wage restraint, especially pushing for a holding down of public service pay increases below those granted in the private sector.
Broadbent said he hopes the provincial premiers will take the same position they did at their conference in St. Andrews, N.B., last year, when they advocated more capital works projects at the municipal level and more publie-sector spending.
He said he agrees with the conclusion of a finance ministers’ conference here 10 days ago that it is impossible for governments to spend their way out of economic difficulties.
Gov't to list fast-rusting vehicles
OTTAWA (CP) — The federal government will publish in a series of advertisements next fall the names of automobiles that rust fastest, says Don Murphy of Consumer and Corporate Affairs Canada.
He said the campaign will give the names of automobile models that do not comply with a federal anti-corrosion code announced last month.
The code requires 1978 automobiles to
remain free of surface rust for one year and from rust holes in the body for three years. The time limits for rust will be increased, begining with 1981 models, to 18 months and five years, respectively.
Murphy said rust information will come from consumer complaints and monitoring programs in Toronto and Montreal by the Canadian Automobile Association.
"In mid-April, we’ll be advertising for
owners of 1978 cars whose automobiles have gone through a full winter and experienced rust problems to let us know,” said Murphy.
"We’ll combine this with data obtained from cars going through the CA A inspection facilities, and publish the results just prior to the new model year so consumers will be informed of carmakers’ compliance with the code when making purchase decisions.”
'Friend of both sides'
WASHINGTON (AP) -President Carter ended Sunday a weekend of talks with Egyptian President Anwar Sadat by saying he has a better understanding of Sadat’s concerns, but he also reaffirmed the U.S. role as that of "a friend of both sides” in the stalled Egyptianlsraeli peace talks.
Carter and Sadat returned to the White House from Camp David, Md., as dusk settled on Washington. Initially, the two were scheduled to return earlier in the afternoon but Rex Granum, White House deputy press secretary, said they decided to delay their departure "because of a desire to have additional time to talk."
However, no details were given as the administration maintained a virtual news blackout on the talks.
Psychiatry
problem
solved?
A proposal by B.C. Health Minister Bob McClelland that three psychiatrists be brought to Prince George on a contract basis has been termed an "attractive offer” by medical spokesmen.
McClelland said at a news conference here Friday following a negotiating session with medical and hospital representatives that his ministry is considering such a scheme.
He said it would mean two psychiatrists would be working all the time with one always on holidays. This would allow the psychiatrists a holiday period of four months a year — a period of rest required in their line of work.
"If he can pull it off, it’s excellent. That may be an attractive offer,” Dr. Larry Brec-kon, president of the Prince George Medical Society said.
"It’s a reasonable system. They’re trying,” he added.
Prince George’s only psychiatrist, Dr. William Kyne, resigned in November citing 16-hour days and lack of remuneration. Since that time an advertising campaign has netted one application from a South African psychiatrist working in Toronto.
See also page 3
TODAY
FEATURED INSIDE
9 The Vancouver Canuckscontinue to fade fast. Page 13. Curling takes over the sports spotlight in Prince
George this week. Page 13.
...........20 Entertainment..... ......29-30
.............6
City, B.C..........2, 3, 8, 23, 25
Classified............... .....17-22
Crossword............. ...........19 Sports.................... ......13-16
Editorial................. .............4 Television............. ...........29
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THE WEATHER
A strong flow of moist Pacific air over the Central Interior is expected to bring Prince George cloudy skies with mild temperatures today and Tuesday.
The forecast high today is 7, the low 1. The high Sunday was 7, the low 2, with .2 mm of rain. On this date last year the high was 2, the low -5.
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NOW HEAR THIS)
#Who says all motorists in this area are without courtesy? Saturday three cars stopped to ask a hiker if he was in trouble. The man had just walked away from his own vehicle, which had run out of gas...
• A silver lining turned up for a local bachelor, whose housekeeping leaves much to be desired, when an assigned billet for the Northern B.C. Winter Ga.-nes failed to show up. He says the anticipated arrangement motivated him to clean up his house for the first time in six months.
• The 41-page brief presented by the hospital board and local doctors to the minister of health Friday is a lesson in irony. On one hand it speaks frankly of "nit-picking” bureaucrats and being treated like "a bunch of inept do-gooders” while referring to Forest Minister Tom Waterland as "your learned colleague".
• The "show must go on” spirit of show business had a set-back Saturday afternoon when a French theatrical group from Vancouver was unable to perform at the Playhouse Theatre for the French-Canadian Club. It seems someone forgot the space on stage had already been taken up by a stage set for the play Oliver which is now in the production stages for this spring. There was no room for the French show to go on.
• A local man who’s six feet tall, was conversing with some Yukon athletes who are here for the Games. The shortest towered over him by about six inches. "Are you the basketball team?” he asked. “No, we’re wrestlers,” he was told. "How big are your basketball players?”
9 Iona Campagnolo, minister responsible for fitness and amateur sport, practised what she preaches while hosting the reception for Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau here. The refreshments were alcohol-free fruit juice.