Just outside Blumenort along the #12 Highway lays Blue Ridge Enterprises. A small but growing business, Blue Ridge Enterprises has developed a solid reputation for providing a variety of services to the local area. Besides steel sales and repair, they offer custom fabrication and ornamental ironworks while also manufacturing a farm medication mixer, the Medimix that is used in farms across the country. Brian Thiessen has grown his business from a farm sideline to a full-time endeavour, making full use of skills learned both on the farm and in the machine shop.

Brian has always had a fascination with inventions. As a teenager, he entered numerous magazine contests offering small cash prizes for new inventions. One invention of Brian’s, a soap dispenser for the milk house, netted a hefty prize of $25 and publication in Goodyear Magazine. This was convincing proof that inventions not only could be fun, but profitable. Brian dreamed of one day taking one of his inventions and seeing it through to manufacture.

Brian’s mechanical inclinations didn’t go unrecognized. He fondly recalls being asked by his father to stay home from school one day so that he could help fix seeding equipment. Later, Brian honed his machining skills at Friesen Machine Works, where he worked for several years in the seventies. As a full-time farmer and part-time manufacturer, he repaired machinery and fabricated penning, feeders, and steel tube canvas shelters. Farming always provided ample fodder for invention.

Brian’s dream as a teenager was to be fulfilled in the Medimix. The Medimix was born out of frustration. Medicators are designed to dose out medication with very little effort by the farmer, yet the medication they dose is often sludgy and inconsistently mixed. At worst, farmers resort to mixing medication in a five gallon pail with a stick, but the medication inevitably settles as the day progresses. The Medimix was a simple solution to a problem that had never been properly addressed. Rather than mixing with a stick and pail, the Medimix keeps medication thoroughly mixed with a mixing motor that is automatically activated at timed intervals throughout the day.

First conceived and built in 1990, the Medimix has since become a fixture in farms from northern Alberta to southern Ontario. Recently, Brian has been pushing into the American market, a potential market ten times the size of Canada’s. Should the Medimix be embraced in America as it has been in Canada, it will prove, once again, that inventions can be both fun and profitable!

Blue Ridge Enterprises has allowed Brian to fulfill a dream. Besides manufacturing his own inventions, he offers a wide range of custom fabrication for local industries and farms. Blue Ridge also offers a wide range of custom ornamental ironworks. If it’s made of steel, Blue Ridge Enterprises can make it.

For more information, about the Medimix go to: www.medimix.ca.

Simply put fitness means being able to get through your day without undue fatigue and still have enough energy left to enjoy leisure activities. We can all get more fit by making active living part of our daily lives whether it’s at home, work, school or play. Ideally the experts would like us to be active for 60 minutes a day which for most people seems like an overwhelming task to achieve when first embarking on their fitness plan. The good news is you can break that down and begin by doing up to 10 minutes three or more times a day, then gradually increasing the frequency and or duration until you reach your goals. Always focus first on what you can do then build on the intensity of your activities and add a variety of exercise. Remember that just 20 minutes of activity a day will dramatically increase energy levels, help decrease stress, improve posture, increase flexibility and even lower blood pressure.

Activity literally pumps energy around the body, your pulse rises while blood and oxygen are supplied to your muscles. Exercise for a steady pace and your body will start to burn fat. Aerobic exercise conditions your heart and lungs while exercises like weight training will increase overall strength and endurance. Strength training combined with aerobic activity can actually change your body composition by building lean muscle making your body an efficient fat burning machine. This gets increasingly more important as we age and lose muscle mass. We also need to remember the importance of eating well and its role in achieving our weight loss and or fitness goals.

To get started decide which forms of exercise will give you the most pleasure, choose those that can fit into your schedule and you’ll be more likely to stick with it. For inspiration or motivation use music, videos, exercise classes, make a fitness commitment with a friend or ask a fitness professional to help get you started.

The need for an active healthy lifestyle is increasingly being recognized and appreciated for all its benefits to achieve a happy healthier you. Remember to start simple. Walk wherever possible, take the stairs, walk at lunch, dance while doing house work and put a little zip in all you do throughout your day. Take time to yourself, get enough sleep, eat well, de-stress and enjoy life.

There is nothing like a fast ride on a sled through the trails on a crisp winter day. Snowmobile lovers have sledding coursing through their veins and come alive with the first snowfall. What are snow mobile lovers riding these days? Arctic Cats! Arctic Cats are one of the top of the line sled producers and are manufactured in Thief River Falls. They manufacture many different sleds ranging from the 120cc – Kids Sled to the high performance “Fire Caps”. The most popular snow mobiles are the “Cross-Fires” which are excellent for mountain sledding, trail riding and deep powder areas. Of course if you are a long distance trail rider and you like to ride in style, then there is the luxury item “Touring Sled.” This machine has heated seats and handle bars, sound system and is 4 stroke turbo charged. If you’re looking for style and leisure, this is your baby.

What is the price ranges for sleds? You can pay anywhere from $5000 for the lower end models all the way up to $13,500 for the fully loaded luxury models. When buying be sure to tell the dealer what you want to use the sled for. Are you racing, traveling long miles, riding in deep snow or just cruising in light snow? This will play an important part in what machine you purchase. You want to make sure you get the machine specifically for you and your needs. Steinbach’s Crikside is one of the year round Arctic Cat dealers and they sell much more than just sleds. They also sell Arctic Cat and Suzuki ATV’s, Dirt Bikes, Motorcycles, a full Husquavarna line, lawn and garden care equipment, snow blowers and chainsaws. Crikside, as with most dealers, have both a service and parts departments and carry required accessories and clothing.

Many dealers offer an “open house” day in which you are able to test ride equipment. This is a wonderful way to expose people to machinery new on the market. For more information on Arctic Cat machines check out their website at www.arcticcat.com.

If you are like most boat owners, your boat represents a substantial investment. This means you not only want to protect that investment, but you want as much trouble free service from your boat as possible. As with most things, some basic maintenance will ensure that you get the maximum enjoyment and suffer a minimum of unexpected surprises.

Boat maintenance falls into three general categories: before use, after use and periodic maintenance.

Before Use

1. Before starting your boat engine, check the oil. It should be at the full line on the dipstick.

2. Check to make sure that your gasoline Boat Maintenance Imagetank is full.

3. Check all dock lines and tie-off points.

4. Check to ensure that you have an adequate number of life jackets aboard and that they are in good repair.

5. Check all fittings that go through the hull for leaks.

6. Check all lights to ensure they are operating properly.

7. Turn on all electronic equipment, including radios and GPS systems, to ensure they are operating properly.

8. Check gauges to ensure the charging system and batteries are operating properly.

After Use

1. Fill the gas tank. A full gas tank will help to resist corrosion.

2. Run the engine briefly just before you remove the boat from the water. The heat will help to get rid of any invasive species so you don’t transfer them to the next body of water you boat in.

3. Wash your boat. Oil and grime will eat away at waxes and finishes.

4. Check all lights and trailer hitch connections after loading your boat, but before going on the highway.

5. If you are lucky enough to use your boat in salt water, flush the engine to avoid a build-up of corrosive salt.

Periodic Maintenance

1. Every spring before you use your boat for the first time, change the oil and grease all required fittings. Replace the spark plugs. Charge the batteries and check them with a volt meter to ensure they are holding a charge. Check all valves and moving parts to ensure they are operating properly. Check all electronic devices.

2. Every 75 hours of operation, or at the manufacturer’s recommended intervals, change the oil and spark plugs. Clean or replace fuel and air filters. Grease all fittings that require it. Check batteries with a volt meter. Perform a complete inspection of all parts. Wash and wax the boat. Clean all surfaces with a suitable cleaner.

3. Every 150 hours of operation, or at the manufacturer’s recommended intervals, replace the impeller and the fuel-water separator if applicable.

4. Before placing your boat into winter storage, change the oil. Although you will be changing the oil again before use in the spring, dirty or contaminated oil can damage internal engine parts over the winter. Drain the fuel or add a fuel stabilizer. Old fuel loses its combustibility. A stabilizer prevents this.

Finally, give your boat a thorough cleaning and inspection. Wax it and polish it up. Check everything you check during your 75 and 150-hour maintenance checks. If you come across something that needs to be seen to, but don’t want to deal with it before putting the boat away for the winter, make careful notes so you remember to deal with it in the spring.