IHF fans arrive in Windsor

By Jennifer Hoegg

The Hants Journal/NovaNewsNow.com



Hockey madness has been drawing tourists to town this spring. Many participants and fans attending the International Ice Hockey Federation’s world championships in Halifax have taken a side trip to Windsor – “the Birthplace of Hockey.”

Windsor’s Hockey Heritage Museum was bursting with busloads of hockey fans from around the world.

“An international smorgasbord” of visitors had been by, says Hockey Heritage Society president Paula Lunn. “We’ve had to bring in double staff, plus volunteers.”

By mid-week, the visitor book was filled with signatures of not only Canadian and American visitors, but also Latvian, Slovenian, German, Swiss and Finnish guests. So many visitors, Lunn said, that it is difficult for staff to keep track of attendance.

Museum manager Carole Peterson was kept busy greeting the influx of fans. The museum extended its hours and committed to opening for tour groups when necessary.

She was cheerful about the extra work. “I can’t say enough nice about all these people. We’ve had fun. We’re getting a geography lesson as well as their friendship.”

Fans have also brought gifts, including jerseys, banners and hats. “Our aim is to have a jersey from all of the teams,” Peterson said.

As well, Peterson hosted a film crew from Slovenia May 3. The group, who hailed from a densely-populated eastern European country, was thrilled to see that a key part of the game’s history -- Long Pond on the Dill farm -- had remained in its original form.

Even CBC Television’s The National news show had been by to speak to Lunn, referring to Windsor as the “Birthplace of Hockey" in its May 2 broadcast of the interview.

The traffic was seen as a great way for the museum and the society to begin tourist season. Merchandise sales and donations to the society were way up, and the week may lead to even more visitors in the future.

“We’ve been making contact with tour bus operators” Lunn said. “There are a couple of tour companies looking to put us on their regular tours -- a spin-off directly attributed to this event in Halifax.

“There’s more than we could ever have anticipated coming out of this,” Lunn added. Calling the attention “fabulous for Windsor, fabulous for hockey, fabulous for all the volunteers who have worked to keep this going for all these years.”