THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, September 25, 1996 TAG: 9609240148
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 08 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MARK YOUNG
STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 57 lines
How far is it from Rudee Inlet to the North Pole? For June Lebeau it was only as far as her lunch table was from the ballot box of the Molson Ice Polar Beach Party contest.
Lebeau, a professional event planner, stopped by America Rocks Restaurant early last month to look over its facilities. While discussing her ideas with the owner, she heard a disc jockey announce, ``Two more minutes before our drawing.'' She decided to give it a try, filled out a ballot for the nationwide sweepstakes, dropped it in the box and the rest is history.
``Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I'd be spending my Labor Day weekend at the North Pole,'' said Lebeau.
Almost before they could take it all in, Lebeau and her husband, Ernie, of the local band, Ernie Lebeau and the Beach Blasters, were on their way to Toronto. At the Intercontinental Hotel they met the other 69 sweepstakes winners and their guests from across the United States. The next day a charter plane took them to the remote town of Resolute, on the Arctic Circle.
The group's presence caused quite a stir among the largely Inuit population of about 150. A party was held for the guests in the local school gymnasium. The Inuits are the most far-flung indigenous people in the Northern Hemisphere, inhabiting regions from Greenland to Alaska.
``They used to make their living whaling and selling furs, which they can't do so much anymore, so they were excited to have people come in and spend their money in their little town,'' Lebeau said.
The reception was warm, despite the air temperature which reached a high of only 25 degrees each day. Every winner received a certificate recognizing them as members of The Order of Arctic Adventurers signed by the mayor of Resolute. Villagers demonstrated the nearly lost art of ivory carving, also known as scrimshaw.
From Resolute the group took Zodiac boats to rendezvous with the luxury Russian ice breaker, Kapitan Dranitsyn. In addition to the usual cruise ship features of fine food and heated pool onboard, the guests enjoyed the surrounding scenes of icebergs and whales.
``The sky was turquoise and the water was teal. At night, when we cruised around break ice, the sky was pink and orange - it never really got dark,'' said Lebeau, who has dozens of slides and two new fleece coats by which to remember her adventure. An American Labor Day picnic/beach party was created for the group, complete with barbecue, beach ball baseball and other games.
The villagers of Resolute were introduced to American music when severe weather forced a scheduled live concert indoors. Inside a nearby barn villagers and contest winners reeled to the sounds of the Violent Femmes and Red Hot Chili Peppers.
``Everyone had such a great time. We've all vowed to get together again.'' Lebeau is working on a reunion of contest winners next year that Molson Ice has agreed to help put together. ILLUSTRATION: June Lebeau and her husband, Ernie, have fun at the
North Pole. They also cruised the area aboard the Russian ice
breaker, Kapitan Dranitsyn, below. by CNB