NB Sport Spots Hit Count

The website traffic has been picking up lately. It looks like most of the traffic has been directed toward the Ice Arena listings. That makes sense because the ice arenas were the original data set and the only data set for the first year or two. It also makes sense because it is the season for Ice Arenas. I am hoping that some of the ice arena visitors will turn into Golf Course visitors when the weather turns warmer. But while it is still freezing cold in New Brunswick don't forget about the Curling Rink listings and Ski Hill listings. The graph to the right shows the website traffic for the last 12 weeks. Click on the graph for a larger view.

Fredericton Honours Willie O'Ree

On January 16th the City of Fredericton renamed it's new ice arena complex. The Northside Sport and Leisure Centre opened only one year ago. It houses two ice surfaces, an indoor walking track, three rooms for community use, canteens operated by the Nashwaaksis Y's Men Club, the Fredericton YMCA Northside Wellness Centre, and a seasonal youth centre and indoor skateboard park. It is the finest ice arena I have ever visited. The NB Sport Spots ice arena map can be viewed here.

Yesterday it was renamed in honor of Willlie O'Ree - the first black man to play in an NHL game. The new name of the facility is "Willie O'Ree Place" or "place Willie O'Ree" en francais. I like to abbreviate the name to "WORP" when I am writing down my son's hockey schedule.

Willie O'Ree was called up to join the Boston Bruins in Montreal in a game aginst the Canadians on January 18th, 1958. Despite being nearly blind in one eye Willie played a total of 45 NHL games and he played in the minors until the age of 43. Willie grew up in Fredericton and was the youngest of 12 children. There were only two black families living in Fredericton at the time.

Check out more information on Willie O'Ree at Wikipedia.

When to drive and when to stay

Winter driving conditions have placed many of us in the very same situation as the coach of the Bathurst High Phantoms Men's basketball team. Sometimes staying off the road and finding accomodations for the night is the best choice.

I will be taking my sons to several out-of-town tournaments over the next few months. The fateful accident in Bathurst will be heavy on my mind as I am planning our travel. Here is a new link to help you make the best winter driving decisions:

http://nbsportspots.googlepages.com/home26