Those logs don’t just chop themselves.
The Squamish Days Loggers’ Sports Festival has been one of the Sea to Sky Corridor’s most popular attractions for over 65 years now, and much of its success is due to the army of devoted volunteers from six local service groups who come out each year to make it possible.
“The way it’s structured every year is each service group takes care of a different portion of the festival, or hosts an event. There are so many awesome events, and not always a lot of people to volunteer, so this makes a huge difference,” organizer Jacqulin McNicol told The Squamish Chief.
“The groups we have are phenomenal. We couldn’t do this without them.”
The festival routinely relies on approximately 250 volunteers to run successfully. Funds raised over the course of the event are then funnelled back into the community via the six local service groups.
“Many of these people have been involved long-term, or who have families who were involved right back at the start. They keep doing it until it becomes this multi-generational thing to look forward to every year.”
Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue Station 4 on parade
When they’re on the water, they save lives. On land, they’re more likely to throw a parade.
Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue Station Station 4 Squamish consists of over three dozen volunteers who are prepared 365 days a year to rescue boaters in distress on Howe Sound. Doing that kind of work requires gasoline, but their financial support from the Coast Guard only covers approximately eight months’ worth. Everything else needs to be fundraised locally, which is why they made the decision to become the latest service group to support Squamish Days.
Making sure the parade runs smoothly is their way of showing gratitude for the support they receive.
“It takes a lot of organization to ensure the floats are lined up properly and in order, a lot of co-ordination between different people. Then you have to communicate with the District of Squamish about closing the street, and make sure all the floats are registered. You have to meet with the loggers’ sports people and make sure everyone’s on the same page,” said station leader Rob Walter.
“There’s a lot of details to think about.”
Walter grew up in Squamish, and has been attending Squamish Days since he was a toddler. These days, he knows people from the logging industry, and even has friends who compete in loggers’ sports. He loves watching the clowns perform at dizzying heights. But most of his attention is consumed with the parade he’s chaperoning along with around 20 of his teammates. He has members deployed to each intersection to monitor the progress and ensure everything runs smoothly.
“No matter what, it’s always a fun afternoon.”
20 years with the Howe Sound Curling Club
Curling and logging may seem like radically different pastimes, but there are plenty of people in Squamish who are passionate about both.
The Howe Sound Curling Club has been intertwined with Squamish Days for two decades and has become an integral part of the operation.
According to member Hal Hughson, their volunteers cover three things for the festival: parking, gate security, and ticket sales. That requires 44 people per day. And though it may not be the most glamorous work, Hughson said his team operates like a well-oiled machine.
“For some people, that’s their August long weekend every year. It’s what they look forward to, making this event go. We’re so busy that half the time, we don’t get to see the events, or the parade, because we’re there at 8 a.m. in the morning getting to work,” he said.
The curling club has been running since 1983. Besides league play, it hosts bonspiels and charity events. In recent years the building has begun to deteriorate, requiring maintenance, which is what the funds from Squamish Days will go towards.
“We use the money for upkeep. We’ve replaced our cooling systems and made our lights more eco-friendly. This money helps the club keep running.”
Bed-racing, Legion-style
Nobody does bed-racing quite like Russ Robertson.
As the president of the Squamish Legion #277 and a loggers’ sports board member, he wears multiple hats in bringing everything to fruition. But the funniest part of his job is concocting elaborate obstacle courses for the annual bed races, a project he’s been spearheading since 2015.
“I spent 29 years in the military, so I know all about obstacle courses. When I took over, I completely changed how the race worked. My whole goal was to make an exciting race, and the crowds have been growing.”
During the competition, five racers gather around a hospital gurney that they will manoeuvre through the course. They begin at the crosswalk outside Cleveland Meats and then go through elaborate challenges. The winners take home trophies made by Robertson and his father.
Recently, the funds from Squamish Days went towards ripping out all the Legion’s carpeting and completely replacing the flooring.
“I’m not just there for the T-shirt. For the few hours I volunteer, the Legion gets paid really well and the members respect that.”
Running concession with the Squamish Valley Equestrian Association
When Stephanie Golder first moved to Squamish, she’d never even heard of loggers’ sports—now she’s been running the concession stand for seven years, pleased to have her own little niche amidst all the action.
As a board member of the Squamish Valley Equestrian Association, she’s pleased to see two of the Sea to Sky Corridor’s oldest institutions working together.
“The horse club has been volunteering since the early ‘60s, and in the past, we’ve organized events like a kids’ movie night in the park. As it’s evolved, we’ve done different events, and now we do the concession stand. As well, two years ago, we took over the invitational axe throw,” she said.
“We provide between six to eight volunteers per day to run the concession, and another six for the axe throw. One of the things I love about this festival is it’s a great way for non-profits to help each other out.”
The money they receive each year goes into their property, which is right next door to Squamish Days. It’s also used to keep their membership fees affordable. It is the only public riding arena in the Sea to Sky Corridor, and they want to keep it that way.
“We feel honoured to be one of the six service groups that get to be a part of Squamish Days. Community engagement is very important to us.”
Barbecue beef by Rotary
It’s a lot of hungry people to please.
When hundreds of logger sports fans swarm the venue in August, they will be looking for something to eat. That’s where the Rotary Club comes in, offering up a beef barbecue at all of the shows. It’s a crowd favourite, and its quality is thanks to the volunteers devoted to their signature motto: “Service above self.”
Rotary has been supporting the festival since the 1960s. Its volunteers are regular fixtures in a variety of local capacities, putting in time at the food bank, the women’s centre, the hospice society and the hospital to name only a few.
The funds Rotary receives from loggers’ sports go towards its mission of providing community service, including embarking on community projects.
Elks bring a big breakfast
Who doesn’t like syrup, butter and fluffy flapjacks?
The Squamish Elks Lodge #119 is one of the oldest continually operating organizations of any kind in the Sea to Sky Corridor, and man, can they make pancakes. It may not be the most complex task they’ve tackled in their 88-year history, but it’s one they know how to do well.
The Elks have a special connection to Squamish Days, because they played a key role in B.C.’s first community tree-planting project from 1939 to 1941, in the area just north of Brackendale. Involvement in loggers’ sports days began in the 1930s and 1940s, when contests for spectators were held behind the Elks Hall on 2nd Avenue.
The Elks Fund for Children is a primary cause for the local lodge today. The fund offers medical support (including eye care and dental work) for those who cannot afford it, equipment for special needs children, and support in case of emergency needs.
The Loggers’ Pancake Breakfast hosted by the Elks for the past 57 years is the lodge’s biggest and most important fundraiser, for providing these community services.
