News
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The Pelham Panther 2009-2010 Bantam Travel Hockey team was honored by Governor Riley on July 9, 2010, for becoming Alabama's first ever State Ice Hockey Champions. Each member from the team received a signed proclamation from the Governor highlighting the teams accomplishments.
Pictured in photo:
Back Row - Ian Kirkpatrick, Chandler Diercks, Hunter King
Front Row - Assistant Team Manager John Reagan, Braden Pichel, Tyler Harris, Danny Heslin, Gov. Riley, Connor Timbrookk, Reilly Williams, Michael Salak and Head Coach Jeff Timbrook
Not pictured - Jackson Reagan, Scott Gilbreath, Damon Wheeler, Matt Sheets and Jaylen Mitchell
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Jun 3
2010PELHAM WELCOMES AMERICAN POOL PLAYERS ASSOCIATION
TOURNAMENT WITH HIGH HOPES ON LAS VEGAS
(Pelham, Alabama) 1,700 players, 600 matches, 325 teams, 100 hours of play on 40 tables is slated for the Pelham Civic Complex as hosts of the American Pool Players Association Tournament, the largest in Alabama. The numbers may be overwhelming but the event is pure entertainment, “It’s good, clean, family fun! When we grew up Mom and Dad didn’t want you hanging around the pool hall, the APA is totally different. Now it’s fun for all ages”, boasts president and owner Walter Mims.
The nine ball play begins Friday, June 4, and ends Sunday, June 6. Eight ball competition starts Thursday, June 10, and concludes Sunday, June 13. Eight teams will advance to play for national titles to be held in Las Vegas. The American Pool Players Association has been active in the Jefferson/Shelby County area for 21 years but this is the first time the tournament will be held at the Pelham Civic Complex. “We are very excited about hosting this tournament and hope to have it in Pelham for years to come. The action will be nonstop, so it will be a lot of fun” says Pelham Marketing Director, Eva Shepherd. Mims agrees, “there is plenty of room for the tables and fans, easy parking, terrific food and drink, smoke free, it’s the perfect venue”.
In all, there will be seven full days of championship pool in less than a week and a half. “Some nights we cue it up until midnight”, Mims added. “And it is absolutely free to the public”!
For more information call 205-733-0505 or contact Skip Lassiter 205-365-5007. Visit our websites www.pelhamciviccomplex.com or www.birminghamapa.com. Media may contact Walter Mims at 205-960-3315.
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Apr 27
2010"Mad Max" signs in for Pelham BASH
By Ray Melick News Staff Writer
Source: Birmingham News
Saturday, April 24, 2010
The first name on the sign-in sheet for Tuesday night's adult pick-up hockey at the Pelham Ice Rink had to be a joke, right?
NHL and Russian national player Maxim Afinogenov plays a little pick-up game in Pelham while waiting for the Fed Cup to begin (Special to The News)"What idiot signed in as Maxim Afinogenov?" the next guy in line wanted to know.
Turns out, the "idiot" actually was Afinogenov, the 30-year-old right-winger for the NHL Atlanta Thrashers, three-time Russian Olympian, and seven-time member of the Russian National Team that is competing in the IIHF World Championships next month in Germany.
The man known in hockey as "Mad Max" for his blazing speed up and down the ice has been in Birmingham all week with his girlfriend, Elena Dementieva, the top-ranked tennis player on the Russian team that plays the United States in a Fed Cup semifinal match that begins today at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex Arena.
But with the Thrashers' season over and training camp coming up for the Russian National Team, the Moscovite was looking for some ice time.Jeff Cheeseman, director of hockey for the Pelham Civic Center, couldn't believe it when he got the call from Afinogenov's agent. "His agent said he wanted to skate," Cheeseman said. "So I told her we had an adult pick-up game on Tuesday nights, and (Afinogenov) showed up. We limit the number of players, so you have to sign in and pay $10. I made sure his name was first on the list." But no, he didn't make Afinogenov pay the $10.
"He was very professional, sharing the puck and everything," Cheeseman said. "Then I told him we have a little better level of competition on Thursday nights with BASH (Birmingham Area Select Hockey). These are guys who played college or minor league, a few of the old Birmingham Bulls. "As a general rule, we don't allow drop-ins. We made an exception."
The biggest problem Thursday turned out to be which team Afinogenov played with. He started out on the Black team and within 10 minutes the score was 7-2, with Afinogenov scoring all seven goals -- "the quickest paced 10 minutes we've ever played," Cheeseman said. At that point he was "traded" to the White team, which wound up winning, 16-13. "Of the 29 goals, Maxim scored 17, including the last three after it was tied, 13-13," Cheeseman said. "And he didn't come off the ice in either the second or third periods. He told us he was looking for conditioning. And besides, who was going to tell him to come off?
Afinogenov, attending the Fed Cup pairings announcement at the Botanical Gardens on Friday, smiled when asked about the game and said, "It was a lot of fun."
This being hockey, you know someone had to try to take the Russian on. "Not one guy walked away without saying they went after him," Cheeseman said. "One of the guys asked me, 'What do you think would happen if I give him a shoulder?' I said, 'The guy plays in the same league with (well known NHL tough guy) Chris Pronger. I think he can take a shoulder from you."'
Afterward, Afinogenov hung around in the locker room talking. Word got out and kids started showing up with jerseys, sticks, and pictures hastily downloaded off the Internet. Afinogenov signed them all, and went out of his way to thank the guys for letting him play. Any time, they told him. Any time at all.
by Ray Meleck -
Aug 26
2009Married chefs oversee food servicesBy Marienne Thomas-ogle News Staff WriterSource: Birmingham NewsWednesday,August 26, 2009There will be some new folks rattling pots and pans in Pelham come September.That's when husband and wife cooking team Jay and Lynn Roberson take over as chefs, in charge of food and beverage services for the city.Pelham made the move this month to hire the Robersons,with the goal of coor-dinating and growing the appetite appeal at three of the city's venues - the Pelham Civic Complex, Pelham Racquet Club and Ballantrae Golf Club.The Robersons will plan menus, cook, and oversee food service at all three locations for special events such as tournaments and business conferences, outside catering and even what are now basic hot dog and hamburger concession stands. A small, crosstrained staff will assist."We felt this was a unique opportunity to not only help market our facilities, but to bring the benefit of the Robersons' wonderful talents to the citizens of Pelham and beyond," said Mayor Don Murphy.They are certified chefs, graduates of the Jefferson State Community College culinary arts business program where they met on the first day of school 22 years ago.They became close friends through their three year, 6,000-hour apprenticeships and went on to marry and form a partnership based on their love of cooking."Our corporation's name is Passionate Foods Inc., because our passions are our relationship and our food," said Jay. "We spend all our time - work and play - together, and in this business, if you're married to someone who doesn't understand it, the marriage won't last."Their careers, like their relationship, have proven to be long-lasting.At age 13, Jay began work at Savage's Bakery in Homewood, which was close enough to home so he could walk."I was really the clean-up guy and the bakers taught me how to ice donuts," Jay said. "I really liked to watch everything that was going on and eat leftovers."He worked as kitchen manager at the original Incahoot's Restaurant in Hoover, then worked his way up the food service ladder as a sous chef and executive sous chef at locations like Mauby's and the Summit Club. He also served as executive chef at the Riverchase Country Club for 81/2 years.While Lynn had an interest in food and cooking as early as 5 years old, she worked as a medical secretary at the University of Alabama at Birmingham for several years.But she also catered there on the side and was so successful that then UAB President Charles "Scotty" McCallum encouraged her to pursue an education and full time career in the food business. She did at Jefferson State and met her future husband and business partner.In 2003, the Robersons opened Capers Comfort Foods restaurant in an Alabaster convenience store.With no sign or advertising and 35 seats, they eventually were feeding lunch to more than 300 people over four hours, five days a week.Word of mouth built the venture into a monster that in four years devoured itself, Lynn said."Every day you'd find CEOs sitting next to truck drivers, and the restaurant received 13 Birmingham News Readers Choice Awards," she said. "But we just ran out of space, with literally nowhere to put the extra raw food, or space to cook for the increasing number of customers."Butch Byrd, general manager of Pelham's Ballantrae Golf Club, was one of those early diners taken with the Robersons and their operation.A past manager of food and beverage service at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida and later, North River Yacht Club, Tuscaloosa, it was Byrd's insight into the business that prompted him to bring the Robersons to the attention of Pelham officials."The food was consistently good, their place was so clean, and they were so friendly they came to know most everyone by name," Byrd said. "Anyone can see they are excellent cooks and good people who were obviously raised right."As Pelham's executive chef and catering director respectively, Jay and Lynn said they will make available food choices from haute cuisine to country style, while keeping quality and reasonable pricing as priorities.All recipes begin with raw products and will range from simple items like fried green tomatoes and pickled shrimp to the more elegant figs foster and lamb tenderloin, Lynn said."We also have plans for things like outdoor barbecues, community Thanksgiving buffets, and sophisticated and wholesome concession stand food," Lynn said. "We're known for soul food with a flair."Eva Shepherd, Pelham marketing director, said she anticipates once word spreads about the Robersons, the Civic Complex phone will stay busy."We can host so many different types of events, including statewide business meetings and volleyball tournaments, antique car auctions and proms," Shepherd said. "Having Jay and Lynn on staff puts us in a better, more flexible position to serve the market and be a true community center to our residents and visitors."It has long been the Robersons' policy to improve a dish every time it's cooked, and to work to bring people back for more."We believe people eat with their eyes, nose and then their mouth, and that's the attitude we want to convey in our jobs," Jay said. "Pelham is a forward-thinking city and we plan to be as creative as we can to get this part of the machine running."