Track and Field
While team competition has dominated the sporting life of Long River, some competition among individuals has also occurred. In the old rink in George Cousins’ woods summer time sports were held. There was keen competition in jumping, pole vaulting and running. Partici- pants from Graham’s Road and French River competed in these track
meets.
One Long RiVer athlete who was able to establish a name for himself in the area was Jack Campbell. He was the recognized champion in the shot put and the fifty-six pound air weight in this area. Un- fortunately he did not get an opportunity to compete on the provincial level.
In 1961 a cross country team was formed in Long River. They finished third in Charlottetown at the provincial cross country run on November 25. Members of the team were Fred Doughart, Clair MacLeod, George Doughart Keith Sudsbury, Garth Caseley and Hillard Bernard. The inexperienced boys competed with approximately fifty runners from the schools and colleges of the Island but were beaten only by Prince of Wales College and Montague High School.
Two weeks later the team challenged Kensington High School and Prince of Wales College to a run in Long River. Prince of Wales did not come after accepting the invitation. The race was held and Long River won it with a team composed of Fred Doughart, Buddy Clark, Jackie Cole, Harold MacDonald and George Doughart, who won the race after placing second in the provincial race on November 25. The North County Line Junior Farmers sponsored this 2% mile race and presented prizes to the winners. The course took the runners from the school to the hill behind Christie Johnson’s and back to the school again. A large crowd of residents turned out in the cold weather to watch their
team win.
George Doughart also competed in long distance running the following year. He won the three—mile event at the Maritime Invitational Track held in conjunction with the Summerside Lobster Carnival. In this class he defeated runners from Antigonish, Amherst, Truro, New Waterford, Summerside and Charlottetown. In the mile event he placed
second to a Truro runner. Tug of War
Long River had a fine tug of war team in the early thirties. The members of the team were similar to those on the baseball team with the exception of the lighter boys. Alton Bell proved to be a fine coach for the team that was regarded as the best light division team in the area. Long River competed against such teams as the Stanley Bridge Club. The competition was held in the local rinks during the summer months. The highlight of the team’s history came to Kensington when they challeng- ed the heavy team from Graham’s Road and was able to hold them to
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