What a weekend in Parksville Qualicum Beach.
Jammed with events and, for the most part, great weather, it's not difficult to see why we want to live here and why people come here from all over the world to spend hard-earned vacation time.
This was a special weekend in our region. With the fantastic markets and other ongoing events, every weekend in the summer is special here, but this one added some world-class happenings.
It started Friday when a 15-year-old named Nolan Thoroughgood became the youngest person to ever win the B.C. Men's Amateur Golf Championship. It's a 114-year-old tournament, so that's saying something.
The 150 golfers and their families raved about the course, Pheasant Glen Golf Resort. They will come back and they will tell their friends about the course and the town and the region. That's valuable stuff for the town and its future. One would think a municipality would encourage, or at least get out of the way of, expansion plans for such a world-class facility such as Pheasant Glen. Alas, we are talking about Qualicum Beach here, so Pheasant Glen gets no love.
Saturday was busy and happening and we do not have the space here to list all that was happening, so we jump ahead to Sunday.
Beach Day was a hit on Qualicum Beach, attracting perhaps thousands to this gem on the shores of the Salish Sea. We were excited by the number of families on the beach and impressed with how this event allows for so many hands-on experiences, especially for the youngsters.
Those who set up both fun and educational booths, the entertainers, the many corporate sponsors and all the volunteers that make this event happen, we salute you. And what a treat to have food options on that beachfront for a change.
Sunday was also a big day on Parksville's beach. It was awards day for the sand sculptures, and the Quality Foods Canadian Open Sand Sculpting Competition attracted more than 14,000 visitors through the gates, a record for the event's first weekend. Last year's record of more than 104,000 seems set to fall.
The sculptors are the rocks stars of this event. The best come here because they are treated well. That's the work of president Cheryl Dill and the rest of the Beachfest society board, who all deserve a pat on the back.
You can check out photos from most of the weekend's action on our website and Facebook page. We were busy this past weekend, that's for sure, but it was a fun kind of busy. — Editorial by John Harding