A natural mechanic who loved to tinker with cars and get the most out of them, Cooper was a stalwart in the days of the old Langford Speedway in the 1940s. He learned the game on the dirt and by the time the speedway closed to make way for a school expansion in 1950, he was one of the highest winning drivers at the track. After further success in the northwest, Cooper and a group of drivers and builders started the new Western Speedway 1953. In the first season he won both the sprint car and big car points race. In 1957 and '58, he won five feature events and captured his third and fourth season points championships. His overall win total was more than 200 races at the new track. He shifted gears and moved into the super stock division after that and retired as a driver in 1974. He was among the inaugural inductees into the Victoria Auto Racing Hall of Fame.

Having achieved national and international recognition for his on-the-field efforts in rugby, Don Burgess could just as easily be installed in the Greater Victoria Sports Hall of Fame as a player. A high school track star before he was introduced to the game, Burgess took to rugby quickly. His combination of speed, finesse and toughness endeared him to his Oak Bay Wanderers teammates as well as their supporters. But it was his kicking prowess that enabled him to reach great heights. A nine-time scoring champion in the Island league, he led the Wanderers to six league and two provincial championships in the late 1950s and early '60s. The fullback was a standout on Island, B.C. and national teams that faced top international competition and was capped 33 times. Upon hanging up his boots in 1971 - he was Wanderers' player-coach the final eight years - he focused his talents on coaching, both with Oak Bay and at Mount Newton junior high. He later coached provincial junior teams and guided the Canadian under-21 side to three North American titles. He was named to the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame in 2000.

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