FROM PAGE B1 in the NHL Calgary Flames and was prepared to sell the Vancouver Canadians of minor league baseball. The Alouettes experience was enough to shake anyone's faith in the sports business, but the team was a continuing comfort to the Western Division of the CFL and to those who love platitudes like “money can't buy a winner.” - Vince Ferragamo was hot in LA, but he bombed in Vancouver, Regina, and in Montreal. His high-priced imported help performed with varying degrees of success but they were human, after all, despite the NFL ltabel. Skalbania, rushing off to new windmills, was asked if this was the worst in- vestment he ever made. “I think the highs and lows were the most acute,” he said. The CFL, that rugged underdog of sports :cagues, forever promising the: it will make money tomorrow and, if not tomorrow, next week, or next year but sometime surely, survived Skalbania's experiment with NFL-North. In the final weeks, it finally emerged with the hardest last laugh of 1981. The Grey Cup. battle petween the Edmonton Eskimos and Ottawa Rough Riders was belittled as a Goliath - versus - the - ants stomping contest. But the Rough Riders, replete with players other squads rejected, shocked and very nearly beat the omnipotent Eskimos. @- B2 - Wednesday, December 30, 1981 - North Shore News Shocked Teammate Ken Read, on crutches after tearing knee ligaments in the second race of the season, called the ‘final race one of the world’s most memorable downhills. The women’s World Cup ski team looked as promising as it has since the days of Nancy Greene. With the retirement of veteran Kathy Kreiner, the nation’s dominant female skier of the 70’s, there were at least two skiers, among a talent-laden crop of youngsters, ready to move into contenders’ ranks. Gerry Sorensen of Kimberley, B.C. won the downhill at Haus, West Germany and Diana Haight, from Fruitvale, B.C., displaying. surprising competitive maturity for a 17-year-old, captured the Europa Cup combined championship, which is the level just below the World Cup. Por the first time, Canada emerged as a power in Nordic events as Ottawa's Hofst Bulau finished third in World Cup ski jumping. ROWING WINNERS The ‘women’s rowing team from Upper Canada College won a gold medal at the venerable Henley Rowing championships in England. In 1981, it was also becoming difficult to comprehend the magnitude of Alex Baumann’s talent. The downhillers stunned the Europeans and many of their own countrymen, but Baumann shocked almost everybody in the world of swimming. =skimos an unusual kind of dislocation. Alex Baumann had broken a world record with ‘a dislocated shoulder. At year's end he was still recovering, but the prognosis was good—with rest. Canada’s stature in swimming was also bolstered by the presence of Peter Szmidt, whose world record set 18 months ago in the 400 meter freestyle was still unmatched. ' Tracey Wainman turned 13 in 1981, grew a couple of inches and gained a pound or two, but she was still the smallest bundle of steel nerve in the nation. The pixie-like skater became the youngest Canadian skater ever to win the national senior women’s crown. In September, the Toronto native won the St. Ivel competition in Rich- mond, England, then took the Skate Canada title just five weeks later. Brian Orser, of Penatanguishene, Ont., became only the second skater ever to complete a triple axel in competition when he won the men’s senior title in Halifax. Though he still lacked a little showman’s polish, his stature was rising steadily. He also won at St. Ivel and placed second in Skate Canada. DOMINATION No Canadian in recent times has dominated a sport so completely as Edmonton's Susan Natrass. The 30-year- old shooter has won the women’s world trap shooting NORTH SHORE High School 1981 football stars: top-offence. Back, left to right: Jim Pearce (Handsworth), Steve Loufe (West Vancouver), Todd Fortin (West Van- couver), Bob Siegmann (Carson Graham}, Reid Flemons (Sentinel), Matt McLeod The Sudbury, Ont., high championship every year it (West Vancouver). Front, left to right: Jason Hartley (West Vancouver), Richard Robertson (Sentinel), Ken Lim (Windsor), Tony Kristopaitis (West Vancouver), Craig GREAT UNDERDOGS Cheers for the Riders, the year's great underdogs. Canada's World Cup downhill teams continued to serve as one of the nation’s chief resources of athletic school student slashed his heat times by 10 seconds, cut the world best time on the 400 meter individual medley by six seconds, and, in a meet with the Soviet Union in July, smashed the 200 meter IM world record. has been held since 1974. She won her sixth straight this past season in Argen- tina. Toronto's Shawn O:Sullivan slugged his way to Foster photos) CONTINUED ON PAGE B4 Keen (Handsworth), Bottom-defence. Back, left to right: Jon Clark (Windsor), Richard Gilbert (West Vancouver), John Martin (Carson Graham), Kent Molgat (Handsworth) Garry Speranza (Windsor), Dave Duffus (Handsworth), Alastair Sutherland (West Vancouver). Front, left to right: Russ Roper (Carson Graham), Doug Charles (Windsor), Brad Stephen (Sentinel), Geoff Davies (Handsworth). (Ian g class. Later in the year, it was Steve Podborski, the discavered that what doctors articulate Torontonian with had diagnosed as tendonitis the scemingly permanent of the shoulder was actually smile, drew as close as any North Amencan male has ever come to winning Europe's treasured world series of skiing. He began the season on recovery from a knee injury and hoped merely to make the top 15. Three straight victories vaulted him to the’ top, but after a bout with the flu, delays because of bad weather, and a bruising auto accident, he lost the overall title to Austman Harts Weirather by 28 100ths of a second on the final day of the‘scason =~ aN = NSTV 10 Saturday January 2 9 30 am YOUR OPERATION Information about Marine Merchants WATER SPORT SALES, REPAIRS, AND RESTORATIONS admitting procedures, what to bong to the hospital, visiting hours. who can visit and when, pre-and-post: operative procedures A pre sentation for anyone coming to Lions Gate Hospital for surgery If you would like to advertise in this section, Take The Plun 20 Fey please call Iriss at: 980-05 11 Christmas Gift Ideas Depth Sounders trom $199 OO Sou westerns $6 45 Compasses trom $25 OO Books from $50 Water Skies trom $99 OG 980-1510 _. SUSHI, SUKIYAKI, ;. BEEF - TERIYAKI »>MANYO Scuba diving is an adventure! 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