SIDELINES EQUIPMENT SWAP... The annual Irwin Park school sports swap is being held on Thursday. Sept. 15. at the West Vancouver school (2255 Haywood Ave.). If you have sports equip- ment (from bikes to hockey gloves to water skis} that you no longer use bring it to the school from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on the day of the sale. The sale itself takes phice from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. Call the school at YSt- 1240 for mare details. GORDON STRUTRIDGE FOOTBALL LEAGUE... Registration for the fall foot- ball season in the GSL league is currently taking place at Norgate Park. Registration nights for boys and girls ages six to 16 are being held tonight and tomorrow night from 6:30 to 8:30 p.tn. League games are played on Sundays. and begin on Sunday, Sept. 18. Players from Squamish to Deep Cove are included in the venerable league. For more information call Susie at 985-7050, or Miriam at 984-7746, SENIORS’ GAMES... Master = runner Hans Weickarcdt picked up four gold and one silver medal on the track at the 1994 B.C. Seniors’ Games fast weekend in Prince Rupert. Weickardt, competing in the 80-84 age division, won gold medals in the following events (his time is in brack- ets): 200m (39.63): 400m (1:26.5): 1.500m (7:16.0), He also won gold as part of the medley relay team. His silver medal came in the {00m sprint. where the North Vancouver native posted a time of 18.21. During the 200m event. Weickardt re-injured a nag- ging hamstring that kept him from competing last year. “f barely made it.” Weickardt said of the race. but added “Now I have lots of ime till the spring of ‘95 to bring it back into shape. TENNIS... North Vancouver's Sonya Jeyaseelan. one of Canada's most accomplished junior players. will be competing in the = $25,000 — SunLife Challenger. beginning this Saturday at the Vancouver Lawn Tennis Club. The 18-year-old reached the singles final at the under- i8 French Open in May, and was voted Canada’s most improved female player in 1993, Also schedtiled to conipete at the challenge tournament is Toronto's Rene Simpson- Alter. a consistent top-3 ranked player in Canada. Vickets for the vight-das iournament range from $2 te S1Q. and a series Geaet iy S35. Tickets are available by c.tl- ig 737-3110 Photo submnitiad THE BURDETT Beavers of 1962, the year they were Mainland Champions. They are (standing, left to right): Art Bryant (manager), Neil Todd, Ron Stewart (assistant manager), Gerry Macey, Russell Bruce, Clarence Dickson, Danny Buchanan, Gary Dresen, John Barker, Terry Kremisaker, Fen Burdett (the Boss) and Jimmie Wardlaw Sr. (coach). Front row, left to right: Denis Coombe, Donny Lutz, Bob Patterson, Gary Surine (captain), John Dyer and Greg Melnechuk. onoring a legens North Vancouver stadium to be named after well-known North Shore builder THE NAME Fen Burdett was once synonymous with ama- teur baseball and soccer on the North Shore. By A.P. McCredie Sports Reporter After a Friday evening ceremo- ny at Mahon Park. the sportsman’s name will once again return to the foretront of the North Shore sport- ing coramunity. North Vancouver City will honor the long-time baseball and soccer couch by naming the stadium in Mahon Park Fen Burdett Stadium. It is a most fitting tribute toa man who devoted much of his life — and a good deal of money — to the bays who played on the fabled Rurdett Beaver teams of che “50s, “60s and °70s. The venerable man passed away in the lite “80s. “He was the greatest sports fin Ive ever met and Pye met dozens.” says Jim Wardlaw of the man he spent aniny rainy mormings with on soccer pitthes throughout the Lower Mainhind with Wardlaw started or tie ground floor with Burdeto im P9S6. as the iwo embarked on forming a bows’ sucere team consisting ef North Vancouver players. No league wits in piace on the North Shore. and the tirst few years of operation were financed by Burdett's construction company. The First year’s team was such a success that enough kids showed up the next year (1957) to start another team. At the height of their league play. ES icams wore the Burdette strips one year. “Inio about the third year, we decided to form the Burdett Soccer Club, and charge the kids six dol- Jars a piece for the season.” Wardlaw remembers. Noi only did Burdett and his devoted coaches and managers offer places for players who couldn't play elsewhere. they fos- tered an atmosphere of clean com- petition that included a number of Lower Mainland and provincial championships. A visit to the Burdett famibs home on Grand Boulevard reveals just how accustomed the Beavers became to winning. “As Fen used to say. "Once you getimvelved. you're hooked for life’ says Fen’s gracious wife Audrey, another integral part of the Burdett sport dynasty. The kitchen aleove of the family home ts Closer tow high school to- phy case than an eating area. The Hoglden Traphy here. Four Babe Ruth baseball trophy’s over there. Faded biack-and-white team photos fill in the precious few open areas. Although his success on the soc- cer field is legendary, it was per- haps local baseball that will forever be indebted to the tireless man. Burdett was one of the prime Movers in bringing Babe Ruth hase- hall to the North Shore, inching leagues ia Deep Cove and Squamish. At the height of their lavolvement in baseball, three out of their seven teams were compel ing inthe prosineral finals. Fen and Audrey iho logeed thousanas of miles travelling with teams Co inter National campetitiens throughual the Pacific Northwest, including a legendary voyage to Alaska for the Little League World Series. In 1982, Burdett was installed in the B.C. Baseball Hall of Fame in the builder category for his dedica- tion to the sport. Audrey has many tales to tell about the hundreds of games and hundreds of players that comprise the Burdett’s history. In one, she recounts the day that theie next door neighber — an elderly judge — took umbrage to Fen's small. but noisy, construction project being undertaken in the Burdett driveway. After telling Fen that construc- tion without a permit was forbidden in residential areas. the judge off- handily asked Burdett what in damnation he was hammering together. “A backstop for my baseball team,” came the reply. According to a stil-delighted Audrey. it was the last inquicy that came over their shared fence. despite the fact that construction of all manner of sport ing equipment continued on the Burdett property The stadium: dedieation ceremo- ny will begit at S30 pam. at the Mahon Park stadium: this Friday (Sept The publig rs inere than wel- come te attend