In 1906, Victoria’s motorcycle riders banded together with local automobile enthusiasts to form an association to promote their own interests and events. That early beginning lasted until 1912 when the Victoria Motorcycle Club (VMC) was formed with a membership of 21. A news report of the day in Canadian Motor Cycle magazine contained a photo of 19 riders posed in front of the British Columbia legislature. It announced that there were 75 bikes already in use on city roads and that club membership was growing rapidly. However, it was not until 1947 that the VMC became registered under the B.C. Societies Act as a non-profit organization, as it continues today.

Since 1967 the club has owned its own 172-acre property in Metchosin, using it for observed trials, field meets and short cross-country events. For decades the VMC’s event calendar, which included an annual two-day Terra Nova Enduro on Thanksgiving weekend and several other enduros, challenged riders from the island, the B.C. mainland and western states. Over the years the club’s high level of professionalism and focus on off-road events has produced a large cohort of expert riders such as Vern Amor, Canadian Scrambles champions Tom and Don Richardson, ISDE silver medallist Harold Perepalkin, Scottish Six Days Trial competitor Martin Spriggs and former three-time Canadian Trials champions Mark Cahill and Steve Fracy.

The club has a collection of more than 40 permanent trophies, the earliest of which dates from 1913 and was donated by the old Brentwood Hotel. Another is the Kirk Trophy, donated by the defunct Kirk Coal Company, which has been awarded since 1930 to the winner of an experts-only enduro. Some of the old silver trophies are now fragile with age, but club members still compete for them in a full season of events. One of the most unusual is a chrome-plated army helmet that was worn in the First World War by VMC member Cecil Frampton and which he later donated for the winner of an all-night enduro that began in 1935 and which continues now as a daytime event.

The club’s mission has always been to promote safe, enjoyable, challenging motorcycling for beginners, families, novices and experts alike. It has maintained a tradition of community service with participation in events such as the Good Samaritan Fund and Timmy’s Telethon and, for many years, it has been a consistent crowd favourite at the Victoria Day parade. It has sponsored many events and activities, such as a drill team, stunt riding and rodeos to entertain the public, as well as trials, scrambles, hill climbs, enduros, field meets and road rides.

With close to 400 members, a century-long history and a well-managed organization, the Victoria Motorcycle Club was recognized for its commitment and integrity with induction into the Canadian Motorcycling Hall of Fame in 2010. In 2018,former VMC members the Shanks family – Richard “Pop”, Reg and Bob (all deceased) - were also inducted into the Canadian Motorcycle Hall of Fame for their contributions to motorcycling.

SPONSORED BY VANCOUVER ISLAND MECHANICAL CONTRACTORS ASSOCIATION

Wynn Gmitroski was born in Selkirk, Manitoba and grew up near the village of Tyndall. He attended Edward Schreyer School (ESS) in Beausejour and Bemidji State University (BSU) in northern Minnesota, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree majoring in Physical Education and Health. Wynn began his coaching career in 1979 at ESS, teaching Physical Education for 2 years. He decided to further his education in human performance by first obtaining a Master of Science from the University of Oregon (1982), then graduating in 1988 from the University of Manitoba as a registered physiotherapist.

Wynn was naturally active throughout his youth; it was the way he preferred to play. There was an inner drive that propelled him towards and through his coaching career. He enjoyed planning exercise sessions and then performing them from elementary school onwards. He participated in multiple sports through junior high, experiencing improvement connected to the work that he put in and feeding his motivation. In high school, track coach Bob Grant became very influential by providing opportunities that were more inviting than other sports. Wynn enjoyed the independence that an individual sport provided, rather than relying on others.

In 1990, Wynn moved to Victoria and began his collaboration with University of Victoria Coach Brent Fougner, focusing on middle distance and distance runners. They worked together through the majority of their high performance careers balancing each other’s strengths and weaknesses. In addition, he continued to receive considerable support from Alex Gardiner, an experienced coach from Manitoba who wore many different hats over the years with Athletics Canada. For Wynn, they were the right connections, providing support and encouragement to continue his path internationally.

Wynn has spent his life pursuing optimal performance and wellness and, over the past 40 years, this commitment has taken him to six Olympic Games, 17 World Championships, five Commonwealth Games and many other international competitions including the World Indoor Championships and the Jeux de la francophonie. He was the lead coach for the National Athletics Centre for middle distance running and was also a master course conductor at the National Coaching Institute. Wynn’s coaching achievements have been recognized with many awards including the 2007 Petro-Canada Coaching Excellence Award.

Wynn was the personal coach of Olympic and Commonwealth Games medalist Angela Chalmers, GVSHOF 2017 inductee Dianne Cummins, and World Championships medalist Gary Reed. The mix of Canadian athletes Wynn has personally coached still hold several national records, achieving an Olympic Bronze medal, a World Championship Silver medal, three Commonwealth Gold and aSilver medal, Pan American Gold and Silver medals along with a combination of 19 top-10 world rankings or finishes at major championships.

By integrating years of study, physical therapy practice and international coaching experience, Wynn Gmitroski has developed highly-regarded expertise for optimizing performance-enhancing functional movement, along with methods to prevent and recover from stress. He continues to be passionate about individualizing his approach to develop therapeutic programs for his current clients of all ages and abilities.

SPONSORED BY FAIRWAY MARKET