2011 Carpool Hero Winners
Thank you to everyone who took the time to enter the 2011 Carpool Hero contest - and there were many of you! The entries ranged from heart felt and sweet, to humourous, to down right scary!
Big congratulations to the following winners:
First prize
Tracey Mallinson and her HOV-er craft Heros, winners of $1000 in fuel from Chevron. Tracey and her team went all out with prose, poses, and props! Props to them for scooping the top prize.
"Mona:
Hard to find a parking space? HOV's a faster pace. Costs are rising for the fuel! Faster, cheaper - if we pool
Jessica:
My gene pool's great, check out my son! Oh, not that pool, another one? The weather's good, but might get cool, On warm days try our kiddie pool.
Tracey:
Save cash and time with my friends? I would love to join this trend. Here's my cue, and racking tool; Snooker or billiards for this pool?
Chris:
3 to 1, I like the odds. The token male for this squad. Read the stats, Vancouver rules! Love to play the hockey pool.
Mona:
It all sounds fun; we'd have a ball, but that's not what I meant at all. It's foolish to commute apart? Let's pool ourselves and travel smart. Join me in the HOV-er craft, share the ride and share a laugh. Social networking offline, Saving money, saving time.
Jessica, Tracey, Chris:
Mona, that's a clever scheme! We want to form a carpool team. You're a hero. We hope it's contagious because one per car is just outrageous."
Second prize
Christie Goode and her fellow carpoolers, winners of annual parking pass from EasyPark worth $5000. We enjoyed their funny photoshopped pic, but were impressed that each of the eight carpool companions submitted a thoughtful entry, here is one of them:
"I would like to pay tribute to my carpool for they are all heroes. We are eight people strong and together we are reducing our individual carbon footprints. We travel from White Rock to UBC and back each work day, and although we have our challenges, the payoffs are big -shared expenses, HOV travel, shortened commute time, companionship, great conversations, quiet moments, and much laughter. Our monthly charges are based on an impressive formula that includes revenue for our drivers. This gives our members incentive to drive, and eliminates the guilt for those that choose not to. Our drivers have made heroic detours when traffic is heavy, convenient drop-offs and pick-ups when someone is needy, and averted disaster when faced with a careless driver on the road. We appreciate one another for the contributions we all make, for the mutual respect we share, and for the friendship we enjoy. The benefits of a carpool are enormous--we are grateful to do our part and we encourage others to do the same."
Third prize
Michael McGreer and his entertaining team of story tellers, BC Ferries round trip passes, valued at $300. There were many entries that talked about the personal and social connections made through carpooling, and we felt that Michael said it the best.
"Our carpool is awesome because I emerge from the car with a smile on my face almost every morning. It makes the 40+ hours per month, the equivalent of a full week at work, not just bearable, but pleasurable. Everyone radiates energy and a sense of humour. Most of the time we chat, sometimes we listen to talk radio, and often we crank the music. Funny - it's our 65 year old carpooler that has the beats going most often. He's more youthful than the rest of us, who are half his age. He sets the tone. The tone is vibrant, honest and a bit cheeky.
We rant, share jokes, tease, tell personal stories about family and about love. I've learned someone's powerful story about leaving a country on short notice, settling in Canada and learning a new language. I'm inspired to live a full life and stay adventurous - doing things like learning to downhill mountain bike at Whistler after your 60th birthday.
Sometimes someone will bring coffee or muffins. But, what I think about most is the personal connections that I've made in the most unexpected of places."
Thank you to the hundreds of people who entered the contest. See below for a sampling of some of our favourites:
I carpool with my coworker who live 3 minutes away from me. Our carpool rocks because other than having my own "driver" every other week, we feel like a royal commuter. We are able to cruise down the HOV lane, ZOOM ZOOM ZOOM than the other lanes. Nobody is faster than us, except the emergency vehicles. But that's OKAY, they have very serious business to do!
The person I am car-pooling with is in the same team and we often continue our meeting in the car. This means less time at work (sstt.. don't tell my boss!). But seriously, we could have some of the best meetings in those rush hour. Especially with the nice weather nowadays, with the colourful trees, who would want to have a meeting in a four-walled room? Next thing we know, we are almost home.. Aren't you jealous?
We don't get bored listening to the same news or songs, we are able save money, save my-oh-limited time and most importantly save the limited oil resources; one commute at a time!
- Joanna Christy
Why do I like to carpool?
'cause I can...
- save cash
- cut down on vehicle maintenance and repair costs
- earn carbon credits
- contribute to a better world
- catch up on workplace chatter and get the inside scoop on what's happening
- share my troubles and receive free counseling
- laugh about the latest antics of the Canuck's
- avoid cluttering the road with another single-occupancy vehicle
- enter a contest like this!
- Heidi Hunchak
My carpool rocks because they are rarely late and they are forgiving when I am late. Nobody is uptight and everybody is really laid back. We listen and we don't judge each other. We take an interest in each other's lives and have developed friendships that go beyond work and the carpool. We know how to joke around and share a good laugh. After working in a politically correct environment all day, sometimes some humour of the non-pc variety is just what the doctor ordered! It's like therapy, but the kind that actually saves you money.
We also have a motto, "what is said in the carpool stays in the carpool." The carpool is a safe place to be myself and speak my mind. Three cheers for Lauretta, Benn, Tom and John. You guys rock!
- Wes DeLong
Top 10 Reasons My Carpool Rocks
- I have never been asked to drive.
- Every driver has at some point saved all our lives with his sharp driving manoeuvres.
- Everybody is reliable and on time.
- We play '$1000 Minute' every morning.
- I get to sleep as often as I want.
- We have a balance of 'silent' drives and 'chatty' drives.
- We get to use the HOV lane.
- I get to text, talk, and play games on my iPhone.
- We call our car Betsy.
- I get to ride shotgun as often as I want.
- Hanieh Floujeh
My Carpool Hero is Susan Bains-Grewal. Some time ago I was thinking of trading in my daily bus ride from Ladner to downtown Vancouver by driving instead. My husband suggested I try carpooling by registering with the Rideshare program. Within a few days, I was contacted by Susan who lived nearby. We met briefly, concluding silently that neither of us seemed too crazy, and decided to begin a carpool together. That was five years ago and since then the drudgery of daily commuting has been replaced with laughs, interesting discussions (we think so anyway!) and the occasional therapy session.
Susan is my Carpool Hero because she is always dependable, thoughtful, and caring. She never hesitates to be flexible, even if she occasionally has to drag herself out of bed a bit earlier to help me get to work for an early morning meeting. One time she overshot our pickup spot, parked on the side of the busy highway, and ran all the way back to my car to get me. She remembers special dates and is one of my biggest cheerleaders.
I feel very lucky to be able to call Susan my Carpool Hero…and friend.
- Jennifer Parsons
I would like to nominate Tracie Northway as my car pool hero. We have been car pooling for more than 15 years from Langley to B.C. Children's Hospital, where we have both worked for many years. Over the years we have developed a deep friendship and share lots of family stories that usually result in a good chuckle. We have had others join us for part of the time, but currently there are 3 of us. We have also developed "pooler rules" which include four wheel confidentiality so we feel free to share stories. We both love the de-stressing conversations and the extra set of eyes that car pooling provides.
We have nicknames as well which have grown from our driving personalities. I am "Hot Betty" because I drive so cautiously and Tracie is "Coach" because she can always find a detour around traffic hot spots. Tracie is so committed to car pooling that when she recently bought a new car she made her husband Bruce (who is very tall ) sit in the back seat to be sure we would have enough room ! In my eyes Tracie is my Car Pool Hero...I hope you agree.
- Donna Atkinson
I have a car pooling hero I celebrate every day, because that driver was instrumental to my very existence! Here is my true story:
Years ago, a woman and a man who were both employees of The Bank of Canada carpooled from their neighbourhood to work, in downtown Ottawa. I can easily visualize them enjoying their contact. As the carpooling continued, they became increasingly enamored with one another. Their interest manifested into a love affair which lasted years and produced a child.
This story was pieced together and verified only after my mother died. Knowing I am a 'love child' leaves me with a big smile. The further knowledge that I came into the world, way back then, as a result of a co-operative method of saving energy, might explain why I especially enjoy giving rides to others and being involved in carpooling!
- Sylvia Button
My carpool travels from New Westminster/Burnaby to Vancouver and home again at the end of the day.
I am the driver and we share the cost of the parking spot. Our very first carpooling day - my carpool partner made me a sandwich - so now instead of paying me for gas - she makes my lunch every day!! It saves me in lunch $$ and I get delicious lunches!
- Leslie Malkowich
Our car pool is perfect because::
- Everyone has a good sense of humour - a pre requisite working for ICBC
- We have a very large window for departure time. Punctuality is optional
- We take turns driving
- Even though it is a short commute, 13.5 km, it does our part to reduce traffic, air pollution, and overall resource consumption
- It has a onetime only cost of a Chai tea latte & a coffee to get in. Of course birthdays, or just on a whim, may illicit the generosity of your fellow Poolsters
- We play 18th century Rock, all the way to the current Rock legends
- Nobody farts in the car
- Russ Garrett