World's largest hockey stick in B.C. to be chopped up, sold to collectors

The world's largest hockey stick could soon become the world's most in-pieces hockey stick as a Vancouver Island community prepares to tear down and carve up the Canadian landmark.

The Cowichan Valley Regional District says ownership of the Duncan, B.C., attraction has been transferred to a local sports memorabilia company that will chop it up and sell it off to collectors.

The 62-metre wooden stick, crafted from laminated Douglas fir, was constructed for the 1986 Vancouver Expo and later affixed over the entrance to the Cowichan Community Centre arena.

Age, weather and at least one tenacious woodpecker have all taken their toll on the landmark over the years, prompting the municipality to declare the stick has reached the end of its lifespan.

"Ongoing maintenance and extensive repairs in the early 2000s have extended its life," district spokesperson Leah Waldron said in a statement Thursday. "But the glulam Douglas-fir structure of the stick and puck have decayed to the point that the structure requires intervention to ensure public safety."

Last summer, the regional district solicited expressions of interest and surveyed the community about the future of the 28-tonne stick, with most taxpayers indicating they did not support replacing the monument.

Genuine Collectibles Inc., a home-based business in nearby Shawnigan Lake, B.C., stepped up to take ownership of the massive hockey stick and puck. The regional district says it accepted the company's proposal earlier this month to remove the landmark and transport it to a salvage facility, where the useable materials will be made into small collectibles.

The regional district says the company is "experienced with this type of venture," after turning pieces of drag racing cars into "authenticated collectibles."

Genuine Collectibles says its trademarked "Piece of the Action" series makes ownership of authentic sports memorabilia accessible to fans at all price points.

"GCI has acknowledged that a portion of the sales will be donated to local sporting organizations and charities, and looks forward to working with the community in this exciting project," Waldron said.

The landmark is expected to be dismantled and removed from the arena in the coming weeks.

The world's largest hockey stick is seen at Cowichan Arena in Duncan, B.C., in an undated handout photo. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout-Cowichan Valley Regional District)