a

wan |Novel a
= | classic
‘roman
noir

_ SHANGHAI

A

By John Moore
Contributing Writer
SHANGHAI Alley: a
short, narrow strect .

| trenchcoats shifting
~-}on mysterious and
-| dangerous errands.
risty-does ‘for’ V
t Dashiell Hammett and
Raymond.Chandler did for

San“ Francisco"’and’ Los:

Angeles,’ Set in 1936,

‘cgainst the background of

‘domestic, Jabor unrest and

the isternational ; overtures’

to. World War. TT being
played in Ethiopia, China
"[fand Spain, Shanghai Alley is
classic “roman “noir,” full
‘of. moral, ambiguities that
have plagued this century.
;."” Eugene, Castle, Christy’s
marginal ‘privatecyc, hired
ostensibly ‘to recover the
“missing 20 grand strike fund,
of the blatantly communist
‘Workeis: Union » Alliance
(the “One |. Big Union
“Wobblies”) is pure Bogart:
t Sam Spade from’ the
film .of Hammett’s The
Maltese Falcon,..part Rick
‘Blaine from Casablanca. _
' Shanghai Alley “must
‘have been fun to write,
-because it's so much fin to
read. Part of that pleasure is
¢ glimpse of the seedy and
: eh history of our own
metropolis, (which has tried
to sanitize its image through
“rapid re-development and
adian reticence).
Shanghai Alley is a relax-
ing genre romp for Christy,
but. don’t expect him to

chain himself to a typewriter.

and spend a decade crank-

ing out a series of “Gene

Castle Mysteries.” A poet,

song writer and jazz per-

former who always has more

ideas than time, Christy is

one of those guys who

wakes up to the sound ofa

train whistle at night and,

* instead of turning over,

bs his bundle and legs it
or rails,

ma
. “4
Tess

Wednesday, July 16, 1997 ~ Narth Shore News — 94

dining arts business

‘

“NORTH SHORE | JFE

% NEWS photo Cindy Goodma n

MEMBERS of the West Vancouver Thunderbolts Swim Club grin and bear It during a Sunday morning open |
water training session at Bachelor Bay. Members pictured here include: Nancy Harper, Barrie Street, Len
Chaston, Mick Rushton, Mark Andrew, Tom Ollis, Brent Hobbs, Hugh Wilson and Reid Carter. 4 week this

Saturday, a number of club members wi

Cove Ir West Van to Kits Beach.

ilt take part in the Bay Challenge, a 10-kilometre swim from Sandy

e swim of thing

North Shore swimmers :

je 9

set for Bay Challenge

_ By Andrew McCredie

Associate Editor

andrewOnsnews.com

A 66-year-old tradition hits the —

water at Sandy Cove in West”
Vancouver on Saturday, July 26.

The Bay Challenge is a 10-kilometre
(six mile) open water swim from West
Vancouver to Kits Beach in Vancouver, It
is a true test’ of swiniming endurance.’

.. Cold, and sometimes rough water greets

swimmers as they leave the North Shore
and embark across the yawning maw of
Burrard Inlet.

Not for the faint of heart or health,
the swim requires each competitor to
have a support boat and crew along for
the ride. The race starts at 8 i.m., and the
first finishers will run (crawl?) onto Kits
Beach approximately two hours later at
10 a.m. ; ‘
<.!The Bay Challenge is the third in the
four-part 1997 Realty World Open Water

Swim series, and will feature a number of:

North Shore athletes.

The series itself is organized by the
Vancouver Open Water Swim Association
(VOWSA). According to VOWSA com-
mittee member Hugh Wilson, the associ-
ation reflects the desires of both new and
experienced open water swimmers in that
it encourages competitors to swim at a
pace and distance that they are comfort:
able with. .

“That’s why we let people know that
it is fine to wear wet suits — because it
allows greater participation,” says Wilson,

\ * 7 . os
“We don’t believe-there is any sort of
‘pure’ approach to the sport; just get out
there in the chop and enjoy tne feeling it
brings.” a

Wilson is also a member of the West
Vancouver Thunderbolts Master Swim
Club, a long-standing program.at the
West Van Aquatic Centre’ but only
recently a club: “We decided to become a
club to more actively promote swimming
on the North Shore,” reports Wilson. In
addition to using the West Van pool, the
club meets on Sunday mornings at

“ Just as the swim began,
we spotted a family of
harbor seals swimming
out in the bay, crossing
our planned path, It
struck me as a delightful
and peaceful scene. ”

Bachelor Bay in West Vancouver for open
water training.

Those accustomed to swimming ‘in a
pool or splashing about a few feet from
the shore at Ambleside Beach no doubt
can’t understand why someone would
want to brave the big waves.

“Obviously, there are many reasons,”
replics Wilson to the “Why?” question.
“The swint a few Sundays ago summed it
up for me. Ten of us swam that morning
in Bachelor Bay. I was one of the last in
and was struck by the double line of
bright swimming caps and splashing arms
heading out towards Bird Islet at the
head of the bay. The water was calm and

_sun just beginning to break through the

clouds. Just-as the swim began, we spot-

ted a family of harbor seals swimming out

in the bay, crossing our planned path. It

struck me as a-delightfhit and peaceful «

scene.”

In the first race of the series — the
July: Ist Canada Day Challenge at
Sasamat Lake — eight North Shore

swimmers posted top-three _finishes.,

North Van's Andrea Donahue was first

in the female under-15 category, covering |

the 2.5 kilometre distance in 29 minutes
and 33 seconds, Les Stolarski, also of
North Van, placed first in the male 50-
and-above category, with North. Van's
Barrie Street in third; in the female 50-
and-above division, North. Van’s Ruth
Rodger was second; Pru Moore, of West

_ Van, finished second in the 40-49 female

category; North Van’s Craig Mullen was
third in the male under-15 division; and
Andy Andrew was third in the one-kilo-
metre overall race.

Over 180 competitors took part in the

July 1 race, despite lousy weather arid

very cold water.
The second race of the series, the

Safest Challenge, took place last Sunday:

in English Bay. The first open water
ocean swim of the four-race series, the
2.5-kilometre event is a moderate tune-
up for the Bay Challenge.

The fourth and final race of the Realty
Open Water Swim Series is the 2.5 km
Kitsilano Beach Challenge in Vancouver,
set to hit the water on Saturday, August
9

The West Van Thunderbolts Masters
are always on the lookout for new mem-
bers. For more info call Wilson at 926-
9329, or Thunderbolts president Mark
Andrew at 921-1324,

Around :

NOW that mankind has
staked out Mars, you'd
think we as a race had’

‘done. it all. Turns out —

we haven't.

Shane Collins hit the water
this "morning té add another -
“been there, done that” notch’

to his swim cap, The. West .

Vancouver swimmer plans to

be the first person to solo swim
around Bowen Island. 0 *

Collins ‘is no -stranger to
making his mark in the water, -

— ‘he is one. of only 12.

: Canadians

to success-

fully com:

fete © the’

Snglish

a Channel}

crossing, —

and he sees

‘the Bowen

Istand’ «3

swim as a
‘challenge
nor to be
taken
lightly.
“The dis-
tance is
similar to

: other’ clas-
sic courses and tides and cur-
rents will make ‘for unpre-
dictable conditions, particular-
ly at Cowan’s-and Hood" -
points,” he remarked recently
of the 21-mile route. :

Collins planned to enter the

water at Cates Beach this
morming at 6:30 a.m., and
swira clockwise around Bowen
with a planned finish back at -
Cates Beach at approximately
4 p.m. Collins’ friend
Cameron. Calder will handle...’
the support-boat driving
duties, with wife Debbie and .
son Stephen also on board. |

. = Andrew McCredie

Shane Collins