The bare fact is you’ll just have to bear it

Rally against mask use in Winkler schools scores points with health minister

Manitoba Health Minister Cameron Friesen says the organizers of a recent hundreds-strong rally in Winkler against mandatory face mask rules in local schools made “some good points."

On Tuesday, a mask-less group of around 600 parents and children gathered in a closely-packed outdoor setting to voice opposition to Garden Valley School Division’s COVID-19 pandemic precautions, including mandated masks for students grades 4 and up, with doctor’s notes required for an exemption.

“My firm belief is that all directives related to mandatory mask-wearing in Canada are infringing on the rights of individual Canadians,” organizer Heather DiFrancesco said in a presentation to GVSD board trustees while the rally took place outside.

“There are many parents who believe wearing a mask may cause psychological and physical harm to their children.”

COVID-19 forces province to indefinitely suspend K-12 classes

The indefinite suspension of in-person classes may mean all Manitoba students will finish the school year via worksheets and online lessons.

At a news conference Tuesday morning, Premier Brian Pallister and Education Minister Kelvin Goertzen announced the latest measure to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus: putting all kindergarten to Grade 12 classroom instruction on hold, until further notice.

The decision, they said, was made in the interest of students, teachers, and the entire population of Manitoba.

“If, prior to the regularly scheduled conclusion of the school year, the public health officer determines that it is safe to reopen our schools, then we would eagerly welcome our students back,” Goertzen said.

Beware invasive, ‘frightening’ waterhemp

There’s a threat lurking on the edge of Manitoba farmers’ fields this fall that’s even scarier than the escalating trade war with their biggest customer.

Provincial extension advisers are warning farmers to watch for a weed known as “tall waterhemp,” which, true to its name, may already be towering above ready-to-harvest crops.

Those wispy tentacles waving in the breeze look pretty innocuous from a distance. But this highly invasive member of the pigweed family produces hundreds of thousands of seeds that are just itching for dispersal through farmers’ combines and across their fields.

Each of those tiny seeds — one small pill container filled halfway holds 44,000 — can produce plants with stems the width of saplings and heights of two to five metres. One or two plants can quickly turn into a patch. If waterhemp takes over a field, it can choke out the growing crop and cut yields by more than 90 per cent.

Paralympics open in empty stadium - just like Olympics

On Wednesday at 12 p.m. ET, Toronto Star baseball columnist and Deep Left Field podcast host Mike Wilner will answer your questions about the Blue Jays and anything else baseball-related.

Former Beer Mile world champion wins Manitoba Marathon

Corey Gallagher has won another big race, but this time, he didn't have to chug a couple beers along the way.

Gallagher is a former beer mile world champion and record holder, a sport where you run four laps around a track and have to down a beer after each lap. But no beer was required on Sunday at the 40th annual Manitoba Marathon and the 31-year old Winnipeg native still led the pack, despite the fact it was the first time Gallagher had ever ran a full marathon. But the lack of experiene was no problem, as he was the first to cross the finish line inside Investors Group Field to win the men's full marathon at 2:37:48.5.

"This is pretty high up there," said an exhausted Gallagher, ranking his marathon victory to his 2014 Beer Mile world championship. "I was always scared of a full (marathon). I'm just happy to get it done and check it off the bucket list."

Gallagher ran the half marathon at the event for years, before missing the last three or four due to several injuries. Gallagher was just happy to finally be healthy enough to be competiting again, although he's not so sure if he will defend his title at next year's marathon as he said "nothing can prepare you for (a full marathon) properly."