CALGARY -- A black security fence now covers the front entrance at Schanks South on MacLeod Trail. Planter boxes are filled with weeds. At Schanks North in Crowfoot Village there is a note on the door saying the once booming sports bar has closed for good.
Schanks had reopened as pandemic restrictions were eased but two long-time regulars say that with no sports to show on their many TV screens, there were often just a half dozen customers.
“A lot of memories, a lot of friends,” says Larry Swalm, who’s been going to the MacLeod Trail location for 20 years. “I was actually invited to the Schanks Christmas party because I’m sorta part of the group.”
On Wednesday, Larry was sitting in Schanks parking lot with his old friend Les Webber, the closest they could come to enjoying the gathering place they’ve enjoyed thousands of times.
The pair was part of a group that shared a love of horse racing. Schanks was a place they could place the odd bet and talk horses over lunch.
“We’d be here probably about 350 days a year,” Webber says. “Whenever they’re open.”
CTV has left numerous messages for the owners of Schanks but have not had a response.
