No need to be a couch potato during winter

BY MICHAEL PIASETZKI

As the dog days of summer rapidly approach, it might be difficult to imagine what it would feel like to be outside on a frosty winter day.

However, just as sure as the moon will be in the sky tonight, the cold temperatures will be upon us before we know it. If you would like to know how take advantage of the winter season by getting yourself or your children involved in various indoor and outdoor activities, here is a brief look at what the West Island has to offer.

The most popular winter activity on a participatory level is ice hockey. The Lac St. Louis Hockey Association oversees 12,000 house-league and inter-city players, 3,000 coaches and 500 on-ice officials. From Dorval to Hudson, boys and girls take to the ice at arenas located in zones representing Hockey West Island, Lakeshore, Deux Rives, Dollard des Ormeaux and Trois Lacs. Meanwhile, youngtimers play in Dorval, intermediate players in Pointe Claire while oldtimers raise money while playing games in Dorval, Pointe Claire, Beaconsfield, Kirkland and Pierrefonds.

Figure skating clubs and lessons are available through the recreation departments of: Beaconsfield, Kirkland, Lachine, Pierrefonds, Dollard des Ormeaux, Dorval and Pointe-Claire while ringette is offered in Pointe Claire, Beaconsfield/Kirkland, Roxboro, Pierrefonds and regionally under the Lac St. Louis banner. Finally, the Dollard des Ormeaux Speed Skating Club offers you or your children the chance to don the long blades and cut into the ice.

If your child prefers the hardcourt instead of the ice the Pointe Claire-based West Island Lakers Basketball Association (WILBA) along with the Pierrefonds-based Brookwood Basketball Association offer boys and girls the chance to play house-league and inter-city hoops from novice to juvenile.

“From our perspective, it’s really all about the kids,” said former WILBA president Mike Gaudin. “Everything our organization does is geared towards them.”

If you or members of you family would rather take to the water instead of ice or court, indoor swimming clubs can be found in Pointe Claire, Dollard des Ormeaux and Beaconsfield. Masters swim clubs are available at Pointe Claire and Dollard, while Pointe Claire offers a diving club. Synchronized swimming clubs are found in Dollard and Beaconsfield.

If sweeping hard is your sport of choice, curling clubs can be found in Pointe Claire, Dollard des Ormeaux (Glenmore), Baie d’Urfé, Ste. Anne de Bellevue and Hudson, while the Riverdale and Pierrefonds badminton clubs offer children and adults the chance to whack shuttlecocks.

Finally, you can cross-country ski at Morgan Arboretum and West Island golf courses, and at three large West Island parks: Cap St. Jacques in Pierrefonds, Parc de l’Île Bizard and Bois de Liesse in Pierrefonds and Dollard.

For more information on West Island winter activities, go to www.westisland.ca