Dave grew up in Victoria, enjoying all that the city had to offer in the way of sports, with a special emphasis on basketball and football.

He played high school basketball under Coach and basketball icon Don Horwood. Oak Bay won the provincial championships in both 1973 and 1974, becoming the first team to win “back-to-back” in 23 years. Dave is joined by lifelong friends Rob Parris, Tim Carlson and Evan Jones as the four players to have been on both teams. He was a second team all-star in 1973 and a first team all-star in 1974.

Dave also played juvenile football in Victoria, first for the Saanich Chew Excavating Hornets and then for Farmer Construction, primarily as a defensive end.

At UBC, Dave played two years of basketball before joining the Thunderbirds Football Team which won the Western Conference Championship Hardy Cup in 1977. In the 1978 Canadian Football League (CFL) draft, Dave was taken first overall.

Dave played nine years in the CFL – eight-and-a-half of them with the Calgary Stampeders - all as a starting offensive lineman, except for his first year when he played on special teams and as a blocking tight end in short yardage situations. During his career, he was named to three Western All-Star teams and was offensive Captain of the team for three years. As their top offensive lineman, Dave was also Calgary’s three-time nominee for the Schenley Award, given by the CFL for the league’s Most Outstanding Player.

Dave’s early days as a lineman were at the guard position. After a few years of solid play, Calgary moved him to offensive left tackle, a position made famous by the movie “Blind Side” which highlighted the importance of protecting the quarterback’s blind side on passing plays.

Dave was selected as the starting offensive left tackle for the 1983 CFL All-Star game in Vancouver, the only CFL All-Star game in modern history, and scored his only professional touchdown by falling on a fumbled ball in the end zone. He still smiles when he thinks of the “skill” it takes to fall on a loose ball.

Finishing his career in 1986 in Toronto, Dave was one game short of a Grey Cup appearance. Never having played in a Grey Cup is the one thing he wishes he could change, but he has so many great memories of teammates and “leaving it all on the field” that he can get over this shortcoming (most of the time).

Dave and his wife Pam recently returned to Victoria, drawn back by everything Victoria has to offer, but most importantly because their two daughters, Erin and Hannah, and grandchildren Dylan, Ivy, Olivia, and Henry – all future hall-of-famers in their own right! - were already living on the Island. They have been fortunate to have remained well connected with their Victoria friends from “the good old days” over all these years.

A native Victorian, Brenda was raised in a family that has a long and celebrated history in Canadian speed skating.  Father Jim Shields was a National Short Track Champion and older brother David was a National Long Track Champion and National Team member competing for Canada at the world level, so it was no surprise that Brenda had a passion for speed skating.

Living in Victoria had its challenges for a long track speed skater. Without a 400m oval to train on nor the capability to train six days a week, Brenda quickly learned to make the most of her two weekly ice sessions on the hockey-sized ice surface at Archie Browning arena, using short track speed skates while training alongside her brother Dave and teammate Wilson Louie, both of whom were Canadian champions.  She usually arrived at a competition only the day before, allowing just enough time to switch to long track skates for a quick practice and adjustment to the often -20C temperatures and winds before racing began. 

By the time Brenda was 14, she was leaving home in October for training in Lake Placid, NY or West Allis, Wisconsin before embarking on a competition schedule that lasted through March each season. With those new training opportunities, it wasn’t long before podium finishes became Canadian and North American championships. 

In 1979, Brenda won her first two Canadian Short Track Single Distance Championships in the 400m and 3000m and first North American Long Track Championship in the 1500m. In 1980 as a Junior, Brenda won two more Canadian Single Distance Championships in the 500m and 800m as well as her first Canadian All Round Long Track Championship, and was selected to the National Long Track Team.

Brenda successfully defended her All Round Canadian Long Track Championship in 1981, adding two more Canadian Single Distance Championships in the 1000m and 400m. She continued to represent Canada at international long track competitions, using a pair of borrowed skates after breaking a blade in the first race of the North American Championships that year!

After several years away from competition and to fulfill a promise to her late father/coach, Brenda returned to skate in her last Canadian Long Track Competition. She won Gold in the 500m, 800m, 1000m and 1500m and claimed the All Round Canadian Long Track Championship for the third time in her career.

By the time Brenda finished her competitive career, she had been on the podium at Canadian Championships 26 times, and had won 11 Canadian Single Distance Championships, three Canadian Long Track All Round Championships plus a North American Championship and had seven international podium finishes.  

In the years since her last race, Brenda’s passion for speed skating has remained an important part of her life. Forty years later, Brenda is still actively coaching speed skating. She is the founder and Head Coach at the Peninsula Speed Skating Club and is actively involved with Speed Skating Canada.