Rock On Rock Retires

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address: 100 Princes' Blvd.
Date: September 2017
Website: www.rockonrock.ca

  One of the highlights of the Canadian National Exhibition for the past 18 years has been the amazing skill of Darryl Maddeaux.  Somehow he manages to take rocks of varying sizes and shapes and form them into the towers you see above.

  He performs in front of large crowds during the C.N.E.  He selects a rock, feels its weight and lifts it to the top of one of the towers.  He holds it in place making minor adjustments until he is satisfied with his placement.  He pulls his hands away and the rock balances there defying gravity.

  The towers of rock, sometimes as high as 10 rocks, can stay standing for hours.  We have watched Darryl many times through the years and we have never once seen a rock fall.  Sadly, this year he has chosen to retire.  We will miss his magic.

  We chatted with Darryl and he told us a story. He said that when he was young he played guitar and put out an album of music. Shortly after that he put out a second album of music. He said he then attended a concert featuring four young men with mop top haircuts from England. After seeing The Beatles he declared, "This is what I want to do. I want to be a rock star." He turned and pointed to the perfectly balanced rocks behind him and stated. "I just wasn't specific enough."

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Map of Our World
Direct Energy Centre

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Post # 189

The Polar Express

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address:  210 Princes' Blvd.
Date: August 2014
Website: theex.com

  Do you wanna go faster ?   YEAHHH !!

  The Polar Express has been a part of the Canadian National Exhibition midway for as long as we can remember.  The ride spins backwards as the riders are pulled away from the center of the spin by centrifugal force.  A ride operator blasts music and asks the all important question.  Even if you don't want to go faster no one will hear your screams of protest.

   We had not been on the ride for many years when we decided to give it another go.  We had forgotten a few of the basic rules of riding the Polar Express.  Each car holds several people in one big seat.  The first rule is that the bigger people should sit on the outside edge of the car.  Once the ride starts to spin, everyone gets pulled towards that outer edge and small riders could find themselves getting crushed by their seat mates.

  Another important rule is that you should not bring items onto the ride with you.  They also risk being crushed as the ride spins faster and faster.  This particular year at the CNE, Coca-Cola was printing special cans with your name on it.  We had our cans printed and then put them in a bag right before lining up for the Polar Express.  Next we proceeded to sit on the ride with the smaller person on the outside and our bag in between us.  The music pumped away and the ride picked up speed.  Soon we found ourselves pulled against the far wall of the car with big person pushing on Coke bag against little person.  We feared that now not only did the Coke cans have our name on them, but so did the contents inside.  This ride is always a blast.

Do you wanna go faster ?   Always !!

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Map of Our World
CNE Midway

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Post # 188

Canadian National Exhibition

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address:  210 Princes' Blvd.
Date: August 2013
Website: theex.com

 The Canadian National Exhibition (C.N.E.) is one of the largest fairs in North America.  It started in 1879 as the Toronto Industrial Exhibition and later the name was changed.  The C.N.E. only runs for 18 days each August until Labour Day weekend where it finishes off with the air show.  It is a great place for rides, food, music, shopping, farm animals and entertainment.  We almost never miss making a visit to the fair each year.  Below are some of our favourite things from The Ex.

The Princes' Gates

  If you enter the fair from the east side, these gates welcome you.  Princes' Blvd. starts at the gates and then cuts right through the center of the C.N.E. grounds. (Read More)

CNE Midway

  The Midway fills Princes' Blvd. with food stands and rides.  You can use the Sky Ride cable car to get a birds eye view of it all or you can choose to join the crowd eating gooey, drippy treats and then trying to hold them down while getting spun around on classic rides such as the Polar Express.

The Food Building

  If you have not had enough to eat after leaving the Midway, you can always make your way over to the Food Building.  Here you will find rows and rows of food vendors ready to please any taste buds.

The Farm

The Farm building has your usual farm animals such as sheep, cows, horses, pigs and more.  It also has a large refrigerated container full of a collection of butter sculptures.

  There are often more unusual animals such as ostrich or alpacas.  The alpaca above had been freshly sheared and was rocking his new hairstyle.

Rock Balancing

  Speaking of rocks.  Daryl Maddeaux has been defying gravity at the C.N.E. for almost two decades.  Somehow he manages to build towers from rocks of varying shapes and sizes. Read More

Sand Sculptures

  If sculptures of butter are not enough for you, there are usually giant sand sculptures as well.  Star Wars and Star Trek have been featured in recent years along with other creations such as this woman riding a tired rhinoceros.

Agriculture

  Who has the best tomatoes?  The Exhibition also features agricultural competitions.  In 2013 the best tomatoes were these pictured above.

Performances

 

  There are always daily shows happening all around the C.N.E.  The hard part is planning your day to fit them all in.  The SuperDogs show is always popular as various breeds compete in obstacle course races.  Other acts such as the Flying Wallendas risk it all to entertain the crowds.

Mardi Gras Parade

  Near the end of the day a Mardi Gras parade passes through the grounds with floats and music.  People scramble to collect the Mardi Gras beads tossed from the floats.

Canadian International Air Show

 
  The last weekend of The Ex sees the Air Show come to town.  CF-18 Hornets rip through the sky and a sonic wave follows behind them turning heads.  The whole thing wraps up with the acrobatic formations of the Snowbirds.

Let's go to The Ex.  Oh Baby!

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Map of Our World
Canadian National Exhibition , CNE Midway
Princes' Gates
CNE (Better Living Center)
CNE Food Building

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Post # 187