Canadian chefs take 2nd at international ice sculpture competition

A pair ofchefsrepresenting Canada won second place in one of the world's largest ice carving competitions, which takes place each year in northeastern China.

Rusty Cox, of Cranbrook, B.C.,and Steve Buzak, from Edmonton, Alta.took home nearly$1,600 Cdnat the Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival two weeks ago.

"Honestly what it is, isfun," said Cox, 45.

Competitors had 22 hours to carve a sculptureusing a 1,814-kilogramblock of ice, he said.

Rather than sawing directly into the block, they "deconstructed" it to carve ahoneybee sitting on a single flower surrounded by a hiveof smaller honeycombs.

The intricatedesign forced the twoto hustle when putting it together.

"We had fivehours to goin the competition and our sculpture was only four feethigh (1.2 metres) with all our prepped pieces to go," recalled Cox.

The final structure was triple that height it stood more than 3.6 metres high.

Cox says depending on how and where you looked at the massive sculpture, it took on a different perspective.

"If you're person looking at it, you'd initially see the large honeycomb but we took into account, if you were a bee looking at it, their eyes are similar to flies ... they would see many smaller honeycombs within the larger one," he said.

It was inspired by the growing concernaboutthe loss of bees and its impact in North America, he said.

Russia's abstract design of a First Nations man blending with an eagle and bear won itthe first prize and Latvia came in third.

The B.C. duo's design is far more political this year than their Harry Potter piece from a decade ago when they placed sixth in the same competition.

Self-taught carvers

A self-taught ice carver, Cox saidhe started off by toying with elements in his kitchen sugar and chocolate.

After seeing someone carve ice for the first time, he became intrigued.

"I went and bought myself some cheap wood chisels, locked myself in a freezer for three-and-a-half hours and I came out with a beaver," he said. "It wasn't very good,but I was hooked."

That was more than two decades ago.

Now, thefull-time chefsaidhe's trying to commit more time to his passion, after taking a few years off.

But his age hasn't made things easier because the craft is so physically demanding.

He hopes more younger people will participate and helpkeep the art form alive.

"We started 22 years ago carving, we were the young guns in the game today we're still among the youngest in there," he said.

"This is one of the most unique things you could ever do, using a medium that is here one day and literally, gone in a couple hours."

Inspired by Log Driver's Waltz

In addition to the victory in Harbin, Cox saidhe and partner placedfifth at theLake Louise Ice Magic Festival just last week.

They carved a tribute to their childhood memory of watching on CBC television a 1979 National Film Board animated vignetteset to TheLog Driver's Waltz.