BREAKING: Martin Sets Standard; Wins 400 Metre Title

It was a night to remember for Jenna Martin. The Bridgewater native is going to the London Games after reaching the Olympic 'A' standard time of 51.55 seconds. Martin, ran in lane four and crossed the finish line at 51.53 seconds, breaking the standard time by only two hundredths of a second. CKBW and HANK-FM spoke with Martin after the race. She says it was an emotional finish.



The 24-year-old also set a personal best time and defend her 400 metre title. She says there's no greater reward than to be recognized as an Olympian.



Martin wasn't sure but believes she will head to Germany around July 18 for pre-Olympic camp until roughly a week before the London games begin.

In case you missed the race, here's CBC Sports with the call.

South Shore Artist Takes Spotlight In NB Gallery

If you're heading to New Brunswick over the summer and are looking for something different to do - the Whirligigs exhibits may just be the answer. The Beaverbrook Art Gallery in Fredericton and Kingsbrae Garden in St Andrews have various pieces of the wind driven whirligigs artwork by Atlantic Canadian artists on display from now until September 15th. Locally – South Shore artist Bill Shaw is one of the artists with a piece of whirligig work on display. The Kingsbrae Garden exhibit opened earlier this month while the Beaverbrook Art Gallery held it's official opening of the exhibit last night. Acadia Broadcasting Limited - the parent company of CKBW and Hank FM - is a proud sponsor of the exhibits.

Acadian Games Underway In Yarmouth

The Acadian Games have kicked off in Yarmouth and Argyle.  The annual event runs right through the weekend. More than 1,100 young Francophone athletes from across the Maritimes and Newfoundland are taking part. Games co-ordinator Gwen LeBlanc says sporting competition is the focus, but showcasing the local French culture also plays a role. She says the event is also a business-booster with lots of people attending.



This is only the second time in the 32 year history of the games that a Nova Scotia site has been awarded the finals- and the first rural Nova Scotia location. In 2008 the City of Halifax hosted the finals. The Games wrap up Tuesday afternoon with the closing ceremonies at the Yarmouth Mariner Centre.

ER Closure At Fishermen's Memorial

The emergency room at Fishermen's Memorial in Lunenburg will be closed beginning Canada Day. The ER is expected to close at 4pm Sunday afternoon until 7:30 Monday morning. South Shore Health says the closure is due to lack of physician coverage.Anyone requiring emergency services is advised to call 911 or visit South Shore Regional Hospital in Bridgewater.  

Liverpool's Whalen Set For Javelin, Shot Put At Nationals

It's the first of many national experiences for Chelsea Whalen. The Liverpool athlete is competing in her inaugural senior Track and Field Championships in Calgary. Whalen opens up competition Friday night in the women's javelin final. She says she's a little nervous.

But, Whalen admits it will be a good learning experience to compete against the country's best.

The 19-year-old will also compete in the shot put on Saturday.

Lunenburg/Queens Transition Team Moves Foward

Lunenburg/Queens Transition Leader Ron Smith

The recently-created Lunenburg-Queens Community Transition Team is on its way to finding ways of filling the economic gap left when Bowater Mersey closed almost 2 weeks ago. Former financial executive Ron Smith is heading up the team.  He says he and his group will be spending the summer months, meeting with community and business leaders and Lunenburg and Queens residents who have ideas. In an interview, he tells us smaller industries, reliant on forestry, will likely be the key to the industrial future of the area.  However, Smith says the pulp mill itself is likely history. Other aspects of the forest industry will figure prominently in the future.



The Transition Team will have its website up and running sometime next week, its Liverpool and Bridgewater offices fully functional and toll-free numbers will be established. Ron Smith believes recommendations will be ready late in the summer and in government hands.

Gasoline Prices Drop Along South Shore

Prices at South Shore gasoline pumps are down this morning.  The utilities and review board gave the OK overnite to lower the price of regular self-serve by three cents a litre.  That makes the new price .... $1.18.7.  Thats the first time in about a year that the price has dropped below a dollar-20.  The price has been dropping steadily in recent weeks as the world price of oil lowers.

McIntosh Achieves PB, Finishes Fourth In Heptathlon

(Photo Courtesy of Dave Holland)

It was a narrow miss on the podium for Rachael McIntosh. The Bridgewater heptathlete placed fourth after finishing with a personal best of 5,477 points. McIntosh is very satisfied with her results, saying in an email "to be able to put it all together in front of a home crowd at such an important meet is as good as I can ask for." McIntosh, who was competing in her third senior Canadian Championships adds "the week was a test of my ability to focus on the task at hand and perform as if no one was there at all." The 21-year-old improved on a sixth place finish in 2011. McIntosh will now travel to Mexico and Holland over the summer to represent Canada at international events.

BREAKING: Martin Misses Standard, Qualifies For Final

It's down to one more race for Jenna Martin to get an Olympic 'A' standard time. The Bridgewater native missed the time in Thursday night's semi-final heat at the Canadian Track and Field Championships. She won her heat with a time of 52.25 seconds but needs 51.55 in her pursuit of the Olympic games.  After the race, Martin remained optimistic it will happen.



Martin says she learned a lot about herself after Thursday night's race and is ready to give it everything she's got in the final.



The 24-year-old qualified for Friday night's 400 metre women's final, giving her a chance to repeat as Canadian champion.

Power Outage Affecting Over 2,000 Along South Shore

Roughly 2,122 households and businesses in parts of Lunenburg and Queens County are without power at the moment. Communities such as Brooklyn, Port Medway, along Hwy #103 to Hebbs Cross, Mill Village and Italy Cross are affected. Nova Scotia Power says a tree fell on power lines outside Mill Village, which caused the outage. The utility anticipates power to be restored by 6:15 this evening.

SSRSB Removes Catchment Option For Mill Village

A school review option to include Mill Village in the Petite Riviere catchment area has been taken off the table. Petite Riviere's school advisory council proposed the option to the school board last month. Consultants with Deloitte. Inc looked into the option and reported back to the superintendent with their recommendations. Board member Judith Sullivan-Corney says she decided against the proposal because students would eventually become part of the Park View feeder system.




Sullivan-Corney also decided against the option because it would mean students at Mill Village would be picked up an hour earlier for school. 

Chester Wants To Stop Screening Operation

The Municipality of Chester will seek a court order to stop an illegal screening operation within the village. Officials have been wrestling with an individual for over a week because large piles of earth and rock are being processed in an area next to the Old Stone Bridge. The individual is allegedly using the area to process the material but doesn't have a permit for the operation. It's also in violation of municipal bylaws in Chester. Warden Allen Webber says their bylaw officer has instructed the individual to cease work at the site on numerous occasions. Council will begin the process of gaining a court order next week. The operator is being fined $227.00 per day while the work continues.

Province Should Buy Bowater Woodlands: Wildlife Group

Liverpool, N.S.

The Canadian Parks and Wildlife Society wants the provincial government to buy all the Bowater Mersey land that's for sale in the province.  The 220-thousand hectares of woodland is considered by many to be some of the most productive forest in the region, as well as an important habitat for species at risk.

There are fears a foreign company with a lot of cash might buy the land from Resolute Forest Products and ship the wood out of the province.  The head of the newly formed Lunenburg-Queens Community Transition Team, Ron Smith, says there has to be a plan quickly put in place to prevent that scenario from happening.



Smith says the provincial government is hastily exploring possibilities on what to do to prevent a foreign sale of the Bowater woodlands.

Skilled Trades Centre To Be Built At Forest Heights

A skilled trades centre will be built at Forest Heights Community School. Director of Operations with the regional school board, Steve Prest, made the announcement during Wednesday night's meeting. The province has given them $140,000 to renovate two classrooms for the program. Prest says they are filling a community-need for the Chester school.




The centre is expected to offer courses around skilled trades and construction. Prest says renovations could start as early as this summer and be finished by early February.

Martin Runs Semi-Final Race Tonight

The day has finally arrived for Jenna Martin. After eight months of training in Florida, the Bridgewater native gets down to business at the Canadian Track and Field Championships in Calgary with the Olympics on her mind. The 24-year-old says she's ready for her semi-final race.



Martin will run in the first heat Thursday night. She says she has a strategy to set the Olympic 'A' standard time.



Martin will try and break the 51.55 second barrier and qualify for Friday night's final. She is the defending 400 metre Canadian champion.

Track and Field: McIntosh Fourth After Day One Heptathlon

Rachael McIntosh

Bridgewater's Rachael McIntosh is off to a good start in the heptathlon at the Canadian Track and Field Championships in Calgary. McIntosh sits fourth overall out of 13 competitors after accumulating 3,199 points Wednesday through four of seven events. Among her results were a fifth place finish in the 100 metre hurdles, fifth in high jump, fourth in shot put and fifth in the 200 metre sprint. She rounds out her competition Thursday with the long jump, javelin and 800 metre events.

Osprey Ridge Golfer Wins Junior Tournament

Ryan Nowe

It's the perfect start to the golf season for Ryan Nowe. The Dayspring native fought back nerves after holding the 18 hole lead to shoot a 3-under 69, good enough for a two day total of 2-under 142 and a six stroke victory at the 2012 East Coast Junior Boys Championships in Bouctouche, New Brunswick. The 16-year-old credits his short game for the win.



Nowe had five birdies, including three in a row on the back nine along with two bogeys. The Osprey Ridge member says the win gives him a lot of confidence for the rest of the year. Next up for Nowe will be provincials, to see if he can qualify for the Canadian Junior Boys Championships being held at Osprey Ridge July 30 to August 3. 

Pennies For Protection: Campaign Hits Final Stretch

It's down to the home stretch in the 'Pennies for Protection' competition. Fourteen fire departments from across the province, including 10 along the South Shore are collecting the coin to raise money for volunteer departments. The one that collects the most pennies will be named 'King Penny 2012.' Deputy Chief of the Liverpool Fire Department, David Payzant, says there's more to it than just winning the competition.




Port Medway Fire Department has at least 75 pounds of pennies while as of Monday, Port Williams had 104 pounds. Payzant says they don't have a tally on their pennies yet.



Officials with each department are expected to bring their coin to Liverpool for a weigh-in Saturday from 1am until 1pm. A ceremony to announce the 'King Penny 2012' will be held right after.

South Shore: Officials Concerned For RDA

 

A letter from municipal leaders on the South Shore is now in the hands of the Nova Scotia government. They are hoping the Lunenburg Queens RDA will get a break when the province begins to review the funding model for regional development agency's. Each council wants the local RDA to be exempt from the review due to the stress created by the closure of the Bowater Mersey paper mill. Executive Director of Regional Planning Development for the province, Holly Boston, says the government is not prepared to comment on the request.




Boston says the government needs to look at the model due to a loss of $2 million dollars in core funding through  the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency.



The review has not yet started but Boston says they'll look at meeting with stakeholders in the near future. Core funding from ACOA will cease as May 21, 2013.

South Shore Athletes Compete At Track and Field Trials

Olympic dreams come to the forefront Wednesday as South Shore athletes begin their trek to the London Games. The Canadian Track and Field Championships open in Calgary. Bridgewater's Rachael McIntosh opens things up in the heptathlon. She will compete in the 100 metre hurdles, high jump, shotput and 200 metres Wednesday evening, with three other events planned for Thursday. Meanwhile, another Bridgewater native, Jenna Martin opens defense of her Canadian title Thursday in the women's 400 metre semi-final. She is also entered in the 200 metre event Saturday. Liverpool's Chelsea Whalen will compete in the women's javelin and shotput, held Friday and Saturday.