MEMBERSHIP
Member Letters
A service vehicle operator secures CAA Member Ross O.’s bike to the back of a flatbed tow truck for easy transport. | PHOTO: COURTESY OF ROSS O.
AS EASY AS RIDING A BIKE
I’ve been a Member for years and have enjoyed the peace of mind that CAA brings. I was pleased to see Bike Assist® as part of our membership as I’m an avid outdoor cyclist. Last summer, I was out for a ride on a hot sunny day when I blew a tire. I had no one to pick me up and I was too far from home to walk, so it was the perfect opportunity to try the Bike Assist® program. After a short call to help the driver locate my whereabouts, this is what showed up (see photo, above). I had to laugh as I told the CAA driver, “you know I just have a bike?” Needless to say, after my bike was secured, I was on my way home in an air-conditioned vehicle, drinking a cold bottle of water, courtesy of my driver. Thank you, CAA, for saving the day! –Ross O.
CELEBRATING INDIGENOUS LANGUAGES
I’m writing to thank you for the wonderful article titled “Words to Live By” by Sara Kae, which celebrates the revitalization of Indigenous languages in communities and shares information about opportunities across the country for this re-learning. It’s very important to learn about this good work and celebrate these efforts. I was particularly happy to see this article in a car-centred, travel-centred magazine — presented as a part of all Canadian lives, which it is. –Carolyn C.
Jordan Lachler, the director of the Canadian Indigenous Languages and Literacy Development Institute — one of the organizations featured in “Words to Live By” — gives a lecture. | PHOTO: COURTESY OF CILLDI
“I’ve been a Member for years and have enjoyed the peace of mind that CAA brings.”
PHOTO: COURTESY OF CAROLYN R.
WHERE IN THE WORLD?
Cement Cemetery
We’ve been here (see photo, above)! There are quite a few names for it: Stonehenge, Pilehenge and even Cement Cemetery.
–Carolyn R.
The concrete jungle, also known as the Concrete Cemetery, was built in the 1960s by the British-American Construction and Materials Limited (BACM). The piles have a series of numbers written into them, indicating the dates the piles were made, so workers could identify when they could be safely pounded into the ground. I immediately recognized this landmark from the Manitoba 150 Explorer App contest in 2020. –Melanie B.
The Cement Cemetery is a favourite haunt of many Winnipeg and Manitoba photographers. It was a mystery to me for a long time and still is to a degree. I’m not sure of the actual story surrounding it, but I assume they are piles that were driven for an abandoned construction project years ago. –Jon K.
The answer to these cement pilings is the British-American Construction and Materials Limited cement plant. My friends and I took the Prairie Dog diesel train to Grosse Isle and my friend Kathryn spotted them across the way! They are so distinctive once you know they exist. We’re planning to go out again by car and see them up close. –Shelley S.
Have a story or comment you’d like to share? E-mail us and you could be featured in an upcoming issue.
Letters may be edited for length and clarity.