Gateway to the North

Coldsnap is one of Canada’s premiere winter music festivals, and one of the top cultural events in British Co-

lumbia. From its beginnings in 2008 it has been featured as a Globe and Mail top pick, a Westworld destination, a CBC concerts series, and the centrepiece of “Coldsnap Week” as declared by the mayor and council of the City of Prince George.

Coldsnap has also earned a reputation

as the place to see “the next big thing”, bringing in artists like Dan Mangan, Said the Whale, Aiden Knight, Brasstronaut, Hannah Georgas, Delhi 2 Dublin, Linda McRae and Hey Ocean! shortly before they’ve gone on to critical and international success.

Things kick off on Jan.18 at the Ramada Ballroom with an Indie dance night featur-ing summer festival favourites Shred Kelly, rising Vancouver music stars and 2011 Peak

Performance winners Current Swell, as well as Prince George Idol winner Chazz Amos.

This is followed on Jan. 19 by an eclec-tic funky Celtic Ceilidh featuring Prince George singer Andrew McFayden, the raucous King Crow and the Ladies From Hell hailing from Terrace, and multi award-winning East Coast musician Troy MacGil-livray and Friends.

On Sunday, things move to the PG Play-house for an intimate evening of Aboriginal Artists. Don Amero is a star in the Winnipeg music scene, described as John Mayer-meets-Toby Keith. Also performing that evening is the fabulous Diyet and her band from the Yukon. Diyet is an amazing con-temporary aboriginal artist who is focuses on removing the barriers and stereotypes that face modern aboriginal people.

Monday and Tuesday will once again showcase local talent at the ArtSpace, with a lineup still to be finalized.

On Wednesday, Jan.23, the festival will stay at the ArtSpace and will see the return of past festival favourites Dala, and the ar-rival of the YouTube finger-picking guitar sensation from Toronto Ewan Dobson.

We return to the singer-songwriter vibe on Thursday, Jan. 24, again at ArtSpace, when

UK musician Jake Morley arrives to share his soulful funky sounds and then Matt Epp from Winnipeg takes the stage to bear the torch of past Canadian songwriting greats like Gordon Lightfoot and Joni Mitchell.

The folk festival gets folksy when hus-band-and-wife duo Pharis and Jason Romero of Horsefly, B.C. share their captivating sound at the PG Playhouse, followed by the lively and genre-busting Daniel Lapp Trio, marking a return to Prince George for the show-stealing fiddler but the first time he has performed at Coldsnap.

Things finish where they started at the Ramada Ballroom when Coldsnap partners with Le Cercle des Canadiens Francais de Prince George for “Danse, Danse, Danse”, an evening of French-Canadien folk music with Vazzy and the Quebecois musical treasure Yves Lambert. This evening will be the finale for Coldsnap, but the big kickoff for the FrancoFun Winter Festival presented by Le CCFPG.

There will also once again be workshops around town, along with additional perfor-mances, with details to be announced. For more information or to purchase tickets visit http://coldsnapfestival.com. You can also find Coldsnap on Facebook and Twitter.

2 w w w . p g c i t i z e n . c a | W e d n e s d a y , J a n u a r y 2 3 , 2 0 1 3

ColdsnapWinter Music Festival

Located on Highway 16 beside the pris-tine Bulkley and Telkwa Rivers, Telkwa is a thriving little community that invites you to visit this winter. Stay in the village at Eddy Park Lodge or the Cointe River Inn. Walk or ski our community trails, access the scenic backcountry and skate on our outdoor ice rinks!

Cheer on the players at the 4th Annual Dockrill Memorial Hockey Tournament Feb. 16 and 17 at our outdoor rink beside the beautiful Bulkley River and join in the Telkwa Volunteer Firefighters Family Fun Day on Feb. 23.

Visit www.telkwa.com for more information on our community and our upcoming events.

2012 was a great year - Telkwa received a WordWorks award for our large tim-ber framed outdoor stage, Telkwa was recognized by Riders West Magazine for most challenging ATVing area (bronze) and favourite scenic ATVing area (silver), and Telkwa won a silver award at the LivCom Awards, International Award for Liveability Communities.

The word is out that Telkwa is a great spot to visit, live and invest in! Be sure to watch our awesome video on the website www.telkwa.com to see why we LOVE Telkwa!

Village of Telkwa, ph. 250-846-5212, fax 250-846-9572, www.telkwa.com

W e d n e s d a y , J a n u a r y 2 3 , 2 0 1 3 | w w w . p g c i t i z e n . c a 3

Get ready for a fun-filled, energetic outdoor winter experience at the annual Valemount Winter Festival Feb. 9 & 10, 2013.

Whatever your winter snowmo-bile pleasure, you will find it here. A snowmobile poker run in the lower elevations: Ride for a cause!

Bring your family and friends and experience the thrill of riding in the beautiful mountain trails of the Lower Westridge area, while raising funds for the BC Lions Society for Children with Disabilities. Complete the day by enjoying hotdogs and beverages by the bonfire, while you share stories of your snowmobiling adventures.

Snowmobile Drag Race: Saskatchewan Snowmobile Racing Association, Tourism Valemount and VARDA present the second annual Snowmobile Drag Races in Valemount, B.C. (this is an ISR Sanctioned Event). Come out and try your luck at the different classes: Stock, Improved, Mountain, Pro, Amateur. There is even a class for local racers. For the kids we have Jr. Amateur and Mini Sled Class. After the races kick back, relax and join us at the Awards Ceremony.

For race day event information email [email protected] or call 250.566.3335

For Technical Racing Information contact Dale 306.236.3187 or go to www.racessra.com

ValemountWinter Festival


Mardi Gras Snowdaze events Feb. 8 to 24, 2013Jan. 11 to Feb. 24 – Snowman Building ContestEveryone in the Community is welcome to join in and build your creation, make it whatever you like. You can enter as an individual or a group, it’s up to you. Each week a winner will be chosen by a panel of judges and awarded a cash prize of $100.

Feb. 8 – Mr. Prince George Pageant “Bringing Back the 80’s Theme”Coast Inn of the NorthDinner/Show Tickets - $50, Show only Tickets - $30Tickets available at Mardi Gras Office - 1529 8th Avenue or from the Contestants

Feb. 9 – No Limit Texas Hold’em Tournament Days Inn Hotel - Charlies Banquet Room, Doors open at 5p.m., Tournament starts at 6 p.m. sharp, Tickets $60 - only 100 tickets for sale, Start with $2500 in chips. Tickets available at Mardi Gras Office or Days Inn Hotel front desk. $2000 in cash prizes - 1st Prize being $1000 cash. Lottery Licence #49988 “Know your limit play within it”

Feb. 9 – Seniors Fun Fair Days “On Centre Stage” 2nd Annual Battle of the Seniors Idol Contest Elder Citizens Recreation Centre. Show Time 7 p.m. Come out and listen to some of Prince George’s finest Senior Entertainers. Prizes for the top three winners

Feb. 10 – Seniors Fun Fair Days at the Hart Pioneer Centre6986 Hart Highway, 10a.m. - 3p.m. No admission fee and all games are free - prizes awarded to winners of all games. Crib, Whist, Carpet Bowling, Floor Curling, Shuffleboard and lots more. Lunch at noon for an affordable price. Live entertainment from 1p.m. - 3:30 p.m. Complimentary transportation from your Seniors Centres courtesy of Northern Health Connections for those that need rides.

Feb. 12 – Snowdaze Got Talent at the Westwood PubDoors open at 6p.m. Show time at 7p.m. Come out and support our local talent. There will be a total of 20 acts. Tickets are $10. Grand prize for 1st place winner is a trip for two to Vegas (airfare & accommodation) and $500, courtesy of the Westwood Pub

Feb. 14 – Murder Mystery Dinner “Murder at Mardi Gras” Valentines DinnerThere will be mystery afoot in thWe Treasure Cove Show Lounge. Doors open at 6p.m., Cocktails from 6p.m. - 7p.m. Dinner - 1st course to start at 7p.m. Must be 19 years of age to attend this event. Everyone is encouraged to wear a mask, if you don’t have one Mardi Gras will have some for sale at the door. Tickets $40. Tickets for sale at Mardi Gras Office or Treasure Cove Casino

Feb. 15 – Wendy’s Kids Fun Fair “Super Hero’s Theme” at the Connaught Youth Centre from 10a.m. - 4p.m. No admission fee, game and food tickets only .50 each. Games, face painting, craft table, balloon art and a whole lot more. Hotdogs, chips, water and pop available. Mascots will be in attendance. Come dressed in your favourite Super Hero’s costume and you could win a prize for best costume. Everyone who comes in costume will get a free game ticket.

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Feb. 23 – Snowdaze Curling Funspiel at the Prince George Golf & Curling Club - $160 entry fee for a team of four - Includes Roast Beef Buffet starting at 5:30p.m. Teams start playing at 3p.m. Mardi Gras Snow Daze Cash Lottery Draw at 10p.m. Awards pre-sentations right after draw. Grand prize package TBA

Feb. 24 – Snowdaze Family Fun Day at the Prince George Golf & Curling Club from Noon - 4p.m. We will have music and your favourite Mascots will be in attendance as well. Compete in the final leg of the Snowman Building Contest and you could win a fantas-tic Grand Prize (TBA)

Mardi Gras Snowdaze presents Snowdaze Cash LotteryDraw Prize is $1000 cashLottery Licence No 47878Tickets are $2 each - available at the Mardi Gras Office or watch for us around townDraw to be made at Prince George Golf & Curling Club on Feb. 23 at 10p.m.

n MARDI GRAS SNOWDAZE EVENTS




Winter Activities In Quesnel

International Gourmet Ski in WellsWhere: Start at the Bears Paw Café on Highway 26 in WellsWhen: Saturday, Feb.23, 2013 Time: 12 noon start; registration opens at 11 a.m.Difficulty: Easy 6.5 k or slightly more techni-cal & adventurous 8+ k. Longer routes also possible.Après: Bon Fire, Dessert & Hot Chocolate Social to follow at the Bears Paw Café. 7p.m. at the Wells Community Hall enjoy films from the Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival. $12 – tickets avail-

able at registration or at the doorPrizes: Best Poker Hand, Best Dressed (cos-tuming is encouraged) & moreCost: $45 for adults (12 and over)$20 for children (7 – 11)Children 6 and under freeHow to Register: Registration is on a First Come/First Served basis. Register online www.wellsbarkervilletrails.com or call 250.994.3330 for more information. There are 100 tickets available. This is usually a sell-out event.

There is so much to do in the winter here in Quesnel with lots of great activities for all ages.

Here are some ideas for your winter excursions, great for taking with the fam-ily or a group of friends. Public skating, curling, snowmobiling, cross country ski-ing, downhill skiing, snowshoeing, and dog sledding with Northern Star Sled Dog Adventures.

Take a stroll on the Riverfront Trail, tour the “Little People” painted fire hydrants, or explore the various hiking trails surround-ing the City. Quesnel has many beautiful

parks to explore. The West Fraser Timber Park, LeBourdais Park, Pinnacles Provincial Park, Ceal Tingley, and many more are with-in minutes of the city.

Quesnel has excellent ice fishing oppor-tunities, and with many other surround-ing Lakes in Quesnel there’s sure to be a choice to fit your unique needs.

With this many choices in the Quesnel area, winter will never be boring. Take up a new hobby or explore them all. The choice is yours! Want more information? Contact the Visitor Center at 250-992-8716 or email [email protected]




The Central B.C. Railway and Forestry Museum in Prince George is celebrat-ing their 30th Anniversary this spring. The Museum was incorporated in March 1983. It grew from the efforts of six local residents who restored a 1903 wooden Russell snowplow which had belonged to Northwood Pulp & Timber Ltd. In 1984 the present 2.6 hectare site near the CN yards and Cottonwood Island Park was granted to the Museum Society by the City of Prince George. The official opening was in July 1986 which coincided with Expo ’86 and the 150th anniversary of rail travel in Canada.

Today you can see the plow and dozens of other train cars, a vintage steam engine, indoor displays and numerous railway and forestry artifacts at the site. Beginning in February, an indoor display in the main gal-lery will feature a walk through the last 30 years, depicting various milestones in the Museum’s development. Museum staff will also be sharing stories from past and pres-ent supporters and volunteers.

The Museum’s winter hours are Tuesday to Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and they’re located at 850 River Road in Prince George. Call 250 563-7351 for more information or visit www.pgrfm.bc.ca

Railway & Forestry Museum celebrates 30 years


The Fort St. James Annual Poker Ride on Feb. 9 is a family friendly all day event that has been running for over 20 years. At $20 a hand buy

in, over 300 sleds participate each year competing for cash prizes. Covering two routes of 50-70km, this is an outdoor event not to be missed. Contact Craig Houghton at 250-996-7159 or email [email protected] for more information or to register.

This year hosts the 16th Annual Caledonia Classic Dogsled Races on the beautiful Stuart Lake in Fort St. James. The Caledonia Classic is the only race in

Fort St. James

Photo & story by Ruth Lloyd Canada that combines sprint, mid-distance, and long-distance races into one exciting week-end Feb. 22 to 24. Mushers come from all over North America to race in the Caledonia Classic and Fort St. James is home to the most dog mushers per capita in British Columbia. Last year’s purse was $14,500. Saturday races include the Politicians Race, Kid ‘n Mutt Race and the Classic Community Connector Race. Visit www.cale-doniaclassic.fsjames.com for schedule details.

To book your career ad in Gateway to the North or

The Prince George Citizen Classifieds call 250.562.2441 or 250.562.6666


Christine HINZMANN | Citizen staff

The host of television’s Til Debt Do Us Part and best-selling au-thor, Gail Vaz-Oxlade, comes to Vanier Hall Feb. 9 to discuss the

10 Biggest Mistakes People Make With Personal Finances, presented by John Beverley & Associates and The Prince George Citizen.

“Ultimately this is an area where people are starved for information and they don’t know who they can trust and they’ve come to understand they can trust me,” said Vaz-Oxlade, who also hosts the new series, Princess. “My message is consistent and I tell everybody the same thing all the time. So they say ‘OK, let’s ask Gail what she thinks’.”

There’s a very simple reason why John Beverley, certified management ac-countant, wanted to bring Vaz-Oxlade to Prince George.

“Gail is well respected, as she is realis-tic and her directions are easy to follow,” Beverley explained.

“Budgeting doesn’t have to be compli-cated. The money-jar concept really works because it is simple.”

It is important to hear Gail’s take on personal financial matters. By following her advice, she said you can reduce your debt load dramatically, increase your sav-ings and get more from your hard-earned income.

The countdown to the biggest mistakes looks like this:

10. You haven’t planned like a pessi-mist – you don’t have insurance and you don’t have an estate plan.

9. You don’t know what you’re invest-ing in or how to do it.

8. You don’t have an emergency fund.7. You don’t account for planned

spending.6. You’re trying to keep up with the

Jones.5. You don’t save enough.4. You’re spending money you haven’t

earned yet.3. You don’t know what you’re making

or how much you’re spending.2. You haven’t learned to prioritize or

how to make choices.1. You have no system for tracking your

money.“And this is the one that blows my frea-

kin’ mind,” said Vaz-Oxlade. “People bust

their furry behinds to go out to work, in snow, rain, sleet – you name it – to make money and they won’t even spend one hour a month managing it. You can just shoot me in my head right now.”

When Vaz-Oxlade tells people about using a spending journal and then post-ing it to a cash-flow budget, she gets many reactions.

“People say things to me like, ‘well, this is what you’re good at, you like doing this stuff’ and I go really? You think I like sitting down and posting my spending journal into my cash-flow budget every month? I frickin’ hate it! It’s a stupid job but it’s like cleaning your toilet – you gotta do it.”

Another irritating habit that irks Vaz-Oxlade is when people try to keep up with the Joneses.

“We find it so easy to delude ourselves,” she said.

“Let’s say we move into a new neighbourhood and we look at all the cars and they’re all late-model cars and now the car we’ve been driving quite happily for the last three or four years is looking like a piece. The car is still running just fine but we’re just not keeping up with the Joneses. Or we go to our sister-in-law and she’s got a brand new refrigerator. Re-frigerators seem to create a lot of envy. People walk into people’s houses and they go all drooly over stainless steel refrigerators with lots of shelf space and then when we go home we open up our regular refrigerator and we look inside and say ‘ew!’ It’s got nothing to do with the refrigera-tor. It’s the same refrig-erator we had when we left the house. It’s all in our heads. So one of the things we have to rec-ognize is about making choices. You choose to buy an expensive refrig-erator and you choose to save less money. You choose to save money and not have the expensive refrigerator. You have to make a choice. You can’t

have it all at the same time.”She said credit cards are a tool that

have allowed us to delude ourselves even further and to be aware of that downfall as well.

Vaz-Oxlade talks about her hosting duties of Til Debt Do Us Part, a show where she takes a tough-love approach to getting couples in financial crisis to face reality.

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Setting prince george straightTil debt do us Part host brings countdown to city





With a combination of therapist and chief financial officer, Vaz-Oxlade asks hard questions and pushes couples to face each other and reality. Some couples are on the verge of bankruptcy, others just getting by and headed for disaster. Either way, they all learn how to work their way out of debt and get the skills they need to plan for their financial future.

“Very often what it boils down to is lack of knowledge or an unwillingness to face up to reality,” said Vaz-Oxlade. “We had this one couple, he’s a plumber and she was in a job with a significant income. They had one child, she was pregnant with another.

The family was appalled they were having a second child so quickly, so nobody was even acknowledging that she was pregnant. He had a big truck and smoked and so to get my point across I lit up fake money and said ‘really?’ I did everything I could to get through to them. I made them make bud-gets, do all kinds of interesting challenges and I’m going there on the last day having just shaken my head and thought to myself ‘OK, you’re just too stupid for words and this is never going to work’. Nobody knows how much I am giving before I give out the cheque (up to $5,000 to get them on the right track.) But I have said to the office that we need a really nice ‘Gail gift’ to offset the pain that I’m about to inflict, so let’s

give her a really big baby basket.”The thing is, she said, they failed during all

the challenges of balancing their budget, get-ting rid of the truck, having a plan for debt repayment. They had come up with nothing.

“I get there on the last day and they start to talk and they’re bubbling,” said Vaz-Ox-lade. “They’re showing me the bill of sale for the truck, and they show me their financial plan and I say, ‘what the hell happened?’”

They told her they had a huge fight after the television host last left them and when they were finished fighting they had decided they wanted to fix it.

“And so they did everything I asked,” said Vaz-Oxlade. “So they got the money and they got the big baby basket, too. So some-

times it’s knowledge and a lack of wanting to deal with reality.”

She said she’s had other couples where it doesn’t matter what she says to them, she can’t get through to them and it’s all played out in front of the camera.

“We don’t shoot anything twice,” she said. “If a train goes by I will do a pick-up line but every scene we do, we do it once. There is no script. So this is about people’s reality and sometimes hurling them into their real-ity is really, really hard.”

Tickets will be $29.99 for Citizen sub-scribers and $39.99 for Citizen non-subscribers.

Tickets are available at The Citizen office and online at www.ticketweb.ca.

n TIL DEBT DO US PART





PRINcE GEORGEJan. 23 - Prince George Cougars vs. Prince AlbertThe Prince George Cougars are facing off against Prince Albert for a game of intense WHL hockey at CN Centre. 7p.m. - 10:30p.m. For ticket information call Ticketmaster.

Jan.25 - Prince George Cougars vs. EverettThe Prince George Cougars will be facing off against the Everett Silvertips in two back-to-back games of WHL hockey in CN Centre. 7p.m. - 10:30p.m. For ticket information call Ticketmaster.

Jan. 26 - Mystery Dinner and Play with a 1950’s ThemeCome out for a four course sit down dinner and play. Advance tickets are only $12 per per-son. Doors open at 4p.m., dinner and play at 5p.m.For more information call 250- 561-9381 or email [email protected]

Jan. 26 - Prince George Symphony Or-chestra, featuring Lord of the Dance. From rousing ensemble numbers to solos showcasing the group’s well-known style, “Out of Alba” with the PGSO will perform pieces from across the Celtic music spectrum

– traditional and contemporary. Vanier Hall 7:30p.m. - 10p.m.

Jan. 26 & 27 - Spruce Kings vs. Co-quitlamWatch as the Prince George Spruce Kings face off against the Coquitlam Express in weekend double header action. 7p.m. - 10p.m.Tickets available at the Spruce Kings office located in the Prince George Coliseum.

Jan. 26 to Feb 2. - Festival d’Hiver FRANCOFUN Winter FestivalFor each activities attended, people can entered the draw for a trip for 4 by Via Rail to Prince Rupert.

Jan.31 - Spruce Kings vs. SurreyWatch as the Prince George Spruce Kings face off against the Surrey Eagles. 7p.m. - 10p.m. Tickets are available at the Spruce Kings of-fice located in the Prince George Coliseum.

Feb. 1 - Prince George Cougars vs. VictoriaThe Prince George Cougars WHL hockey team will be facing off against the Victoria Royals in two back-to-back games. 7p.m. - 10:30p.m. For ticket information call Ticket-master.

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PG & area upcoming events




Feb. 1 - Spruce Kings vs. NanaimoCome out and watch as the Prince George Spruce Kings face off against the Nanaimo Clippers. 7p.m. - 10p.m.Tickets are available in the Spruce Kings office located in the Prince George Coliseum.

Feb. 6 - Prince George Cougars vs. Red DeerThe Prince George Cougars WHL hockey team will be facing off against the Red Deer Rebels. 7p.m. - 10:30p.m. For ticket informa-tion call Ticketmaster.

Feb.7 - Theatre North West presents “Privilege” by Paul Weitz.Weitz’ heartfelt comedy is a charming and pointed look at the impact of greed on the modern family—and at the ties that bind two brothers facing a harsh reality with love and laughter. Theatre North West 8p.m. - 11p.m. Tickets are available at Theatre North West or Books and Company.

Feb. 9 - Gail Vaz-Oxlade: Author and TV HostJoin us for a special live presentation with Gail, TV Host of “Til Debt Do Us Part”. During the show Gail will give information on how you can work towards becoming debt free

forever. Location: Vanier Hall from 2p.m. - 4p.m.Tickets are $29.99 for Prince George Citizen subscribers. For non-subscribers, a ticket costs $39.99. Tickets for subscribers are available ONLY through the PG Citizen, 150 Brunswick St. Tickets for non-subscribers can be purchased both at the Citizen office and online at www.ticketweb.ca

Feb. 9 - CFIS-FM Community Radio FundraiserHear the sounds of Fats Domino with Kenny ‘Blues Boss’ Wayne and his band. Featuring Justin Frey on sax for a great evening of mu-sic. Tickets available at Books and Company. Location: Kinsmen Community Complex from 7:30p.m. - 10p.m.

Feb. 10 - Prince George IcemanAll are invited to take part as an individual or a team in the 26th annual Prince George Ice-man at Otway Nordic Ski Centre from 10a.m. - 6p.m. Ski 8km, Run 10km, Skate 5km, Run 5km, Swim 800m. For more details contact by email [email protected] or phone 250-640-0019

SMIThERSThe Bulkley Valley Farmers Market is indoors for the winter at St. Joseph’s School at 4054 Broadway Avenue. Jan. 26; Feb. 9, 23; Mar. 9; April 13, 27

n UPcOMING EVENTS



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Gateway to the North