Oak Bay News, August 14, 2013

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Noelle’s news

It takes a village to raise a guide dog pup. Page A6

COMMUNITY: Tour de Rock is more than a ride /A3 ARTS: Spend time with an old squeeze /A8 SPORTS: Local climbers take on the world /A11

OAK BAYNEWS Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Offer Expires Aug 23, 2013

BY15 vicnews.com

Oak Bay still safe according to Stats Can Oak Bay one of the safer communities on the Island Danielle Pope News staff

like Marks aim to get up to 12 adults hooked on the activity that is often misunderstood as an expensive and elitist sport. And while this month’s classes kicked off Aug. 5, the group may be offering a September session due to higher than usual demand. “We are very lucky because, in Victoria, you can sail year round and for a city that is very environmentally conscious, it’s a sport you can do without impact, so it’s a very different way to experience the coast,” says Marks, who doubles as the aquatic programmer for Recreation Oak Bay.

Oak Bay residents can take a deep breath – the area is still considered one of the safest communities in Canada. Statistics Canada released the results of its 2012 crime severity statistics study, and Oak Bay’s total crime severity index rated 264 out of 297 communities in Canada. The study, which looked at communities in Canada with populations of 10,000 or more residents, also pinned Oak Bay with a violent crime severity index ranking of 279 out of 297. Meanwhile, the non-violent kent Thom crime severity ranking saw Oak Bay take 248 out of 297. “The results for 2012 are consistent with where Oak Bay has placed in past years, and we are confident that we provide the best service we can with the resources we have,” said Oak Bay Police Deputy Chief Const. Kent Thom. “That said, we’re always out to improve and it’s a real credit to the community because we get tremendous help from the community here … What other communities might consider to be inconsequential and insignificant issues often give us positive results in solving investigations and crime.” The departments’ clearance rate, which is a measure of how many criminal code investigations were solved in the previous year, increased by 5.8 per cent over the previous year’s results. Oak Bay Mayor Nils Jensen, said he is pleased with the results.

PleASe See: A boat for everyone Page A3

PleASe See: Oak Bay second in region, Page A7

Danielle Pope/News staff

Meghan Mathias, left, aquatic coordinator for Recreation Oak Bay, learns how to steer a sailboat with the guidance of Alana Marks, a lifelong sailor, instructor and aquatic programmer for the rec centre. Recreation Oak Bay offers monthlong sailing lessons for adults and youth, in an effort to prove that everyone can access the sport.

HOOked ON SAIlINg

Sailing lessons make the sport available to anyone, no matter your age

T

danielle Pope Reporting

here’s always a breeze of nervous excitement on the day new sailors will practice capsizing their boat. It’s the very thing that most people are scared of when they begin sailing lessons, says west coast sailing guru Alana Marks, but it’s also what gives them the greatest sense of accomplishment: beating that fear. “First, they find out how hard it is to actually get a boat tipped, then they see how in-control they are of the situation and feel really proud of bringing it back up,” she says. Capsizing is one of the first training elements participants learn when taking their CANSail Level 1 course through Recreation Oak Bay’s Adult Sailing Lessons. For an entire month, instructors

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