So the race to become Hockeyville 2010 is on, and it is going to be a tough race my friends. There are a few towns out there that have really gotten an enthusiastic start to the contest. The Hazelton's nomination has nearly 300 stories in support of it!

Although in our hearts we have no doubt that Cranbrook is Hockeyville, to show it to everyone else we're going to have to put our stories and experiences out there for everyone (including the panel of judges) to read.

This is the town where everyone checks the Kootenay Ice hockey schedule before planning a social event of any kind. It's usually best not to make people choose between a hockey game and something else because hockey almost always wins. There are hundreds of parents that drive their children to hockey practice, both early in the morning and late at night, every week. It's doubtful there are more than a handful of people here that don't have a hockey memory/experience/opinion.

Our love of everything hockey brings us together. You don't have to play hockey to share an experience. Do you remember when the Kootenay Ice went to the Memorial Cup? How did that make you feel? Do you have a child in hockey? How did you feel the first time you strapped his or her skates on? How did you feel when they scored their first goal? Are you a volunteer with any level of hockey in Cranbrook? What makes you do it? As a player, how do you feel when you first step onto the ice and what makes Cranbrook such a great place to play? Have you ever made your backyard into an ice rink? What was that experience like?

The answers to these questions and many others would all make great submissions to the Hockeyville web site.

Submitting a story is very simple. Go to www.cbc.ca/hockeyville and follow the links to submit a story. Can you imagine two NHL teams playing an exhibition game right here in Cranbrook? How exciting would that be? Submit your stories and help make it happen!