Every evening last week Chris came home and I promptly left carrying a very large and heavy bag packed with all 'the gear' for ice hockey including a long stick which apparently I am going to be able to hit a puk with in the right direction of my opponents net. On Monday night after half an hour of huffing and puffing I was finally ready to hit the ice. There was approximately 20 nervous girls ready to take to the ice and learn the tricks of the trade for playing ice hockey. We had a very good trainer who came up from Medicine Hat for the 5 nights to give us training which was a lot to take in in such a short space of time. Before having all the training I would have said I could sk
ate however when trying to skate with so much padding, wheelding a stick and trying to stay upright at speed has been very entertaining. The one hour lessons went with surprising speed, some nights more positive than others as I often found I was stronger on one leg and when I tried to do the same move on the other leg soon fell flat on my face. But it has been a great week, very very tiring, but I am so looking forward to playing during the winter. At the end of the month I have another weeks lessons on the actual game of ice hockey and learning all the rules etc. Then on the Friday night we all go to the pub to find out if we are playing for the White or Red Devils which are the 2 ladies teams for Ralston. Then the season starts and we have to train every Wed night with a game every other Thursday. Once I know what team I am in I get my own shirt with my number and name on - I might frame it in 2 years time if it is still in one piece.Saturday night we attended a Progressive Supper around the village. For those of you who do not know what this - there were 17 couples who were all told where to go for their starters with one couple in each group making a starter, but you do not know who your guests are going to be. Then during the first course you open an envelope which tells all the couples where to go for main course each couple being sent to a different house, then the envelope opening is repeated for dessert and finally everyone met up at the Com
manders house for liquors and coffee. The weather Saturday night was perfect for wondering around the village from house to house with people steadily getting louder and merrier as the night progressed. Chris, myself and Sam T (Andy had gone back to the UK) were doing the starter at our house. So Sam sorted out the food and Chris was incharge of cocktails - as you can see by the picture it involved a very large melon which was hollowed out and filled with vodka, orange juice and a bottle of champagne. The other rule of the supper is that all opened bottles are taken along with you to the next house, so Chris had to 'griz it' round the village carrying a melon which kept being topped up at each house - needless to say by the end of the evening there was a potent mixture being consumed by the foolish! It was a great evening with a lot of merry people leaving the Commanders house at 1am, unfortunately Chris had to be on the prairie early the following morning as the final Medman of the season started - I think it was a long and painful day for him.
Hi Clare - I just stumbled across your blog and read it with great interest. As it happens I lived in Ralston from 1950 to 1963, (age 3 to 18), in 10 - Detrick. Your house would be on the other side of the alley facing Pendine I believe. I think it had bright aluminum siding back then. There's a large evergreen tree in front of #10 that my dad planted. I well remember heading down the back alley on my way to school, just as your children do now I'm sure. Ralston as it now stands was built mostly between 1948 and 1952 with a few minor additions after that. It was built to house the families of personnel working at Suffield Experimental Station, located north of the village. The basic purpose of the station was secret scientific research into various types of warfare, (chemical, biological, neurological and so on). Remember, this was the height of the Cold War. There were also all kinds of support staff as well as the scientists. I went to Ralston Village School from Kindergarten to Grade 9, graduating in 1962 - there used to be pictures of all the classes hanging in the school hallways - if they're still there, my likeness probably is as well. The British Bloc was used for conducting practical testing for the scientific theorizing, and was located on the other side of a barbed wire fence behind the school. Captured German military equipment and uniforms were used in much of the testing and of course this proved irresistable to little boys. Despite the fact we were forbidden to set foot on the other side of the fence of course we conducted several forays looking for souvenirs. The centre of social activity for the village was the Recreation Centre although I'm not sure what it's called now and much of it seems to fallen into disuse. There was a Post Office, grocery store, Coffee Shop, Movie Theatre, Swimming Pool, Doctor's Office, Barber Shop, Bowling Alley, Gymnasium, Teen Club, Library, Club and Meeting Rooms and so on. The village was pretty much self-contained and social life flourished as I recall. Of course the village's purpose evolved over the years and it's now basically used for military training I believe. This of course means residents are continually turning over, making it probably one of the strangest home towns on the planet. All the houses, roads, infrastructure are still there but nobody that I would have known from my childhood still resides there. I keep in contact with a few old school friends from those years and there are still a few old-timers living in Medicine Hat, but each passing year sees fewer and fewer. Anyway, thanks for giving me the opportunity to take a stroll down memory lane. Regards, Bill Holdsworth.
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