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slopeasheslides downwithhis 14WWIMM«22: ll,aStouffville Imagine your home, totally organized! STAFF PHOTUSJOERD WITTEVEEN “We've been going pretty much non- stop,” said Kerry Keller, a partner in Prime Time Services. ‘jlt’s not letting up.” sarily {bliiiaitfi Mthehon'se explained. “Withfhe 5PM we're SUPPOSEd ‘0 get this There were 74 snow events during the week. we “8 dunking we're not 80mg ‘0 have 2007-2008 season. to make any more,” Ms Lum said, noting the The town normally cleans the Main Sweet resort has a lOS-cm base on its hills, most of snow banks twice a year. So far, the work has “him is all natural. been done four times this season, accord- ‘ mm files/mm 70mm News Sen/ice The Town of Whitchurch-Stoufl’ville’s pub- lic works department has used 50-per-cent more man-hours clearing snow this winter compared to the same time last year. “I don’t have the final number for 2008. but needless to say, we’ll be over budget,” said director of public works Paul White- house. “Mother Nature is not letting up on us; she’s not going to break us, but maybe our budget." So far this season, which runs from mid- November to mid-April, the municipality has responded to 44 storm events. A storm event is a “call out to do maintenance, not neces- sarily a blizzard," Mr. Whitehouse explained. The retailer sold out of all its snowblowers in the third week of December, despite a 20- per-cent increase in inventory. “People remember how bad it was last year," Mr. Bortolossi said. While you are out of luck when it comes to getting your hands on a snowblower, unless you have a neighbour nice enough to lendyouhisthiswinter. flieretailerstillhas lotsofelectricsrwwtluowersinstockbut theyareonlypodforsmallareasandsmall amounts of snow. ' [fin a futile attempt to live in denial you haveusedyour4x4trucktocarveapath throughyourdn'vewaysoyoucangetinand out, itmaybetimetowakeup to realityand use your shovel, ‘or in many cases, actually buy one. Ifopening your wallet to pay for a shovel isliketryingto breakinto Fort Knox, thecost ofa standard shovel can beas little as$10. So go ahead, part with the lOâ€"spot, it will help you survive the remaining months of winter a little easier. If you are just so fed up with the whole concept of snow blowing. shovelling and trudging along the sidewalk, but can’t afford a trip to the sunny south for the next six months, you can always hire a snow plow company, although they're so busy it might be tough to find one. When shopping for shovels, which are still available at many area retailers, buy one that is ergonomic with an aluminum shaft because “they enable people to stay more upright when shovelling" and they’re lighter. Mr. Bortolossi noted. weather gods and global warming every time we put on our winter battle fatigues, some are womhipping the snmblowers they man- agedtogettheirhandson. “We saw a huge demand right from mid- September. As soon as they were here, they started to fly” out of the store, Stefan Barto- lossi, manager of Stoufl‘ville’s Canadian Tire The ergonomic shovels cost between $20 and $35 on average. weight loss” clinic Mother Nature pounds town’s snow budget From up 1. Saturday, January 24th For More Information See Our Advertisement on the Dagmar. like other GI‘A ski hills, can typi- cally build a base of snow that. combined with some assistance from Mother Nature. enables them to open a few runs on weekâ€" ends right before Christmas In an effort to help keep home safe in cas of an emergency, the Whitchurch-Stoufi’ville Fire and Emergency Service wants to ensure everyone -â€" homeowners and businesses â€" keep fire hydrants clear. “By keeping hydrants clear in your neigh- bourhood (it) will allow firefighters to do their job effectively when seconds count," lefl Bignell, the municipality’s fire prevention oflicer said. . While drivers, pedesuians and home owners curse the snow, the operators of Dag- mar Ski Resort and its patrons are all smiles. “Our ski season is great,” Dagmar's oflioe administrator Christine Lum said. This season, however, Dagmar made some snow in November and December but had half of its runs open on weekends as of Nov. 22. ing to Mr. Whitehouse. iiodrqisplayedindoorsthiscerMbmfliat doesn'tmakeitinnmefromweadier. flieWhitdiurdi-Stouflviile MinorHockey Assodafionsdiedukdflgamesduring a 10 dayperiodstartinglastweekendit’sthestart of the Ontario Minor Hockey Association's three-month playdowns. Sixteen ofthe asso dafion’sisflipperreptearnsareinvoived flietwoyoiuigestteamflietykesmlayarea piayoflsthatbeginlater. Sunday'sstonn didn't cancel any games,but onebiizzardcanwreakhavocontraveland sdiedules.Ali available ice has been rented to squeezeinfliegarnes. 'ltwilibea Ioteasierwhenthenewtwinâ€"pad arena opens a year from now,” said WSMHA administrator Chariene Mason. ThenewrinksareunderconstructiononWelâ€" donRoadbetweendieoldSobeysstoreand StoufivilieDistrictSecondarySdiootheSZ4â€" miliionprojectalsoindudesafirehail. Stouflviiieinperteamswonatownâ€"record threeOMHAAdiarnpionshipslastyear. For playofi sdieduies,go to omha.net/p|ayâ€" downs/ For more on Stouffville minor hockey, go to wsmhaxom Weathercanplayhavoc wiflIhodlenlavofis MARKHAMSPRING HOMESHOW M‘,7‘., 905.294.2200