The Alberni Valley Bulldogs have learned they will be without their famous goal horn for at least the 1st round of the BCHL playoffs, and perhaps longer, pending a final report from the BC Association of Audiologists.
The famous goal horn has long been a hallmark of the Alberni Valley Multiplex, blasting away after each and every goal since the club moved to Port Alberni from Burnaby in 2002.
According to the club, they were made aware of a formal complaint in early February and received word over the weekend that the preliminary report deemed the goal horn to be too loud, especially when mixed with the roar of the crowd after a goal.
Bulldogs president David Michaud said the club has little choice but to unplug the horn until further notice, or risk severe fines, and potentially even running the risk of having games shut down completely if they don’t comply with the order. “We aren’t sure where the original complaint came from, we’ve heard rumblings it might have been the Clippers, or potentially former Bulldogs employee Tali Campbell who now works for the Bulldogs 1st Round opponent in Coquitlam that got the ball rolling on this.” said Michaud. “The news was shocking as the horn has been in use for over 20 years without issue. At this time we will comply with the order and hope the final report will clear us and have the horn up and running further into the playoffs.”
The horn has been the centre of controversy in the past.
In 2009-2010, a group of 11 BCHL goalies filed a class action lawsuit against the team and the City of Port Alberni seeking damages for emotional distress. The claim centred around the damage caused by the goal horn when Mitch MacMillan torched BCHL goalies for 61 goals that season, many of which were at the Multiplex. “I’ve only been here since 2019, but when you read up on the lawsuit filed against the team in 2010, the whole case centred around the damage the goal horn was doing to the mental health of the goalies.”
At the end of the day, Michaud wants fans to know that the organization will take whatever steps are necessary to comply. “In the interim, we’ve tested out a couple of alternatives that we think the crowd will enjoy, the leading contender is a pumped up bike horn.”
The final report is expected by Noon today, at which time all April Fool’s Jokes must end.
We would like to wish Express goaltender Adam Manji the best of luck with our famous goal horn on Friday & Saturday night for games 1 & 2 of the BCHL Coastal Conference Quarterfinals presented by the Port Authority.
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