The Backline - Vancouver Curling Club

The Backline
. . . a newsletter for the members of the Vancouver Curling Club
February 2015
Lassie Found a Home
Lassie has found a home at the VCC, and we’re not
talking about that loveable canine from the 60’s. We’re
referring to the ‘Lassie Trophy’ which was the trophy
awarded to the Canadian Women’s Curling Champions
from 1972 to 1979. The Macdonald Tobacco Company
began sponsoring the Brier, the men’s championship,
in 1927 and stepped in as the sponsor for the women’s
championship in 1972. Brier and Lassie were both
Macdonald Tobacco brands, with the Scottish Lassie
appearing first in 1935. She was for years the face of
Macdonald Tobacco Export A Cigarettes and is still
today considered an iconic Canadian brand.
In 1975, Lee Tobin, a VCC member who played with
her son Bill Tobin in the Friday night B&B League,
skipped the Quebec team to the Canadian Women’s
Curling Championship, defeating Marj Mitchell of
Saskatchewan in the final. In November of 2014, Bill
donated the trophy to the Club, providing us with
another valuable piece of curling history. Lee was
inducted into the Canadian Curling Hall of Fame in
1979 and more details on her background can be found
online: curling.ca/hof/people/tobin-lee
Bill, who managed the Royal Caledonia Curling Club
in Montreal and moved to Vancouver in 1978, also
donated the rock handle from the winning stone, Lee’s
certificate for entry into the Canadian Curling Hall
of Fame, assorted photographs from the 1975 event
and a ceremonial glass stone
paperweight from the 10th
anniversary of the Scotties.
@vancurling
The Lassie Trophy is amazingly
detailed and we encourage
you to have a look through the
lower lounge trophy cases to
use the past as inspiration for
the future. The Club’s Historical
Committee, led by Kathy
McInnes, has been diligently
working on documenting all of
our treasures and this year the
Club will be rotating different
display items throughout the
trophy cases.
The VCC would like to thank Bill for donating his
mother’s curling treasures to our collection.
In this issue
Above and Beyond . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
VCC Gives Back . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Travelers Club Championship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Pac Rim Cup 2015 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
In Search of Curling Glory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
VCC Doubles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Sawtooth Outdoor Bonspiel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
OK Tire Cup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Season Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
VCC Sponsors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
In Memoriam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
For the Love of the Game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
/vancurl
vancurl.com
The Backline
February 2015
Above and Beyond
Curling clubs across the country are driven by volunteers
and the VCC is no exception. Volunteers at the VCC are
responsible for ensuring a myriad of activities and events
run smoothly at the Club such as: making sure you know
what sheet you are curling on and who your opponent
is on your average league night; acting as ambassadors
for the game at open houses; managing and running
bonspiels; and, so much more. Each year VCC members
donate countless hours of their time and valuable skills
to the Club. The Club recognizes those members who go
above and beyond in a two different ways.
Honourable Life Member (HLM), voted on at the Annual
General Meeting, is a designation awarded to those people who, over a period of years, have made a significant
contribution to the VCC. Each year an HLM Committee
comprised of Past Presidents and HLMs reviews
submissions and makes a recommendation to the Board
for a vote by the membership at the Annual General
Meeting. If you believe there is a member, or members,
deserving of this highest honour at the VCC, please forward their name(s) and a summary of their contributions
to president@vancurl.com by Monday April 13, 2015.
The Volunteer of the Year Award recognizes those members who have donated time and / or skills to the Club in
the current season. If there is a member you have seen at
countless events over the course of the season and you
would like to reward them for their contribution, please
forward their name(s) and a summary of their contributions to president@vancurl.com by Monday April 13,
2015. Winners receive a certificate of appreciation from
Curl BC and a unique curling-themed recognition piece
from the VCC.
VCC Gives Back — 18th Annual
Barry Naimark Charity Skins Bonspiel
In March of 2015 the Club will host the 18th Annual Barry
Naimark Charity Skins Bonspiel. The Skins is the Club’s longest running event, named for a former VCC member who
was part of the Dagg foursome who became world curling
champions in 1964 and was a long-time contributor to the
VCC. The Skins is unique in that teams have the chance to
win a portion of their entry fee back in every game, and to
also give back by raising funds for a local Vancouver charity.
The event features a silent auction, raffle and multiple
50/50 draws, with the proceeds from all of these being
donated to the chosen charity. The 2015 event marks
the second year of a two-year commitment to Pets and
Friends. Pets and Friends provides and promotes the
healing comfort and companionship of animals.
The goal of the Club is to find a charity where a donation
of approximately $4,000 to $6,000 can make a meaningful and immediate difference. All VCC members are
invited to submit the name of local registered charities with which they have a personal connection. The
Special Events Committee will review the applications
and make a recommendation to the Board of Directors
for approval. The charity selected will be the recipient of
the funds raised at the bonspiel for the next two years.
Submissions for charity consideration (including a brief
summary on the charity and your connection) are due
no later than April 13, 2015 and should be emailed to
president@vancurl.com.
For more detail on the event and to register, please visit
vancurl.com/events/skins. We encourage all our members to
support the VCC in making a difference in the community.
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The Backline
February 2015
Extend Your Season with the
Travelers Curling Club Championship
Most club curlers in Metro Vancouver see their
seasons end in March or early April, but for a
select few March is the start of the most interesting part of the curling season. For VCC member
Richard Brower, some of his favourite curling
experiences have come from winning a men’s
club championship in March which leads to competing in the BC Club Challenge and the Pacific
International Cup (PIC) in April. Richard was fortunate to play in his first Club Challenge in 2000
at the Golden Ears Winter Club, representing the
North Shore Winter Club. Over the past 15 years
he has played in the event a total of five times.
Richard’s November 2012 trip to the Dominion
Curling Club Championship in Scarborough,
Ontario was like a dream where he and his team
were treated like Brier participants. In addition to all
the travel amenities provided, high profile curlers Glen
Howard and Richard Hart participated in clinics, discussions and banquets. While his team finished 3-3, it was
an experience he will never forget.
While some league games at the VCC take on the feel of
a championship, few of our members have the time and
dedication to train and compete in cash spiels and playdowns in search of provincial and national curling glory.
The BC Club Challenge is dedicated to the grass roots of
curling — club curlers, who support club leagues on a
regular basis from September to April.
VCC member Ken Watson along with Al Campbell, Bob
Black and Jim Mann organized the very first event, then
called the Pacific Club Challenge, in April 1999 hosted
at the Royal City Curling Club in New Westminster. The
event was open to men’s teams whose curling clubs
had declared them their Club Champions. Sixteen of the
22 curling clubs in the Lower Mainland, from Hope to
Squamish and Gibsons quickly entered their men’s club
champions to gain bragging rights as the best club curlers in the region. Several clubs created club championships solely for the purpose of having representation at
the event.
In August 2008, The Dominion of Canada General
Insurance Company (The Dominion) first announced it
was taking Canadian curling to another level with the
launch of a national curling event, The Dominion Curling
Club Championship, set to benefit Canadian club curlers and charities. More recently, The Dominion has been
acquired by Travelers Insurance (Travelers), and the BC
men’s and women’s curling club champions that win
their regional Club Challenge events and finish on top at
the PIC, will become British Columbia’s Travelers Curling
Club Champions and will represent BC at the Travelers
Curling Club Championship. Since 2009 the top men’s
and women’s BC team at the PIC has qualified for an allexpenses paid trip to a national championship with 14
men’s and 14 women’s teams representing every province, Northern Ontario and the three territories.
Over the years, teams from across BC and around the
world have taken part in the PIC, and Richard has had
the pleasure of curling against and meeting many curlers he otherwise never would have. This season, invitations to participate in the PIC have been extended
to curling associations or clubs from Alaska, Arizona,
Australia, British Columbia, California, China, Chinese
Taipei, Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Japan, Korea, Michigan,
Minnesota, Nevada, New Zealand, North Dakota,
Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Oregon, Texas, Utah,
Washington, Wisconsin and Yukon.
The Club encourages members to enter the VCC Club
Challenge Playdowns, Saturdays March 14 and March 21.
A tip from Richard, “don’t just enter, but practice like heck
beforehand. There is a lot to play for.”
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The Backline
February 2015
Five Stars for Pac Rim Cup 2015
And that’s a wrap, folks! Pac Rim Cup 2015: Hurry Hard
Hollywood was a star-studded salute to cinema and celebrity.
The red carpet was rolled out for 32 teams from Vancouver,
Calgary and Toronto for the annual PRCL bonspiel at the
VCC from January 23–25. Local teams competed well
and an Oscar-worthy extra end was required to crown
this year’s Pac Rim Cup champion. My Favourite Things
(Aaron Thompson, Jack Holmes, Brian Enns Oldham and
Mark Trowell) narrowly defeated The Real Housewives
of Hollywood (Scott Robertson, Shelley Birston, Kevin
Mintenko and Krista Frazee) in the A-List final.
Fourteen teams from the A-List to the D-List took home
cash prizes at The 32nd Annual Pacademy Awards.
Wayne Pires won the Grumpy Old Farts Draw to the
Button Challenge and TMNT from Calgary was awarded
best movie-themed team for their teenage mutant ninja
turtle uniforms. A second Calgary team, Two Spirited,
was the victor in The HUNGer Game which pitted two
randomly selected teams in a wildcard final.
Team TMNT from Calgary
The Last Draw Lounge was serving up Blue Lagoon martinis and Malibu cocktails as curlers took to the stage for
Movie Music Karaoke and posed for the paparazzi on the
red carpet. Teams tackled Hurry Hard Hollywood trivia
challenges at the Eat Pray Love Actually banquet which
was followed by an evening cabaret with performances
from Bette Midler and Liza Minnelli (as impersonated by
Mandy Kamp). After winning the trivia challenge, The
Rock Hard Heros (Brian Mathae, Adam Hyslop, Tristan
Gilchrist and Kelvin Lau) were quickly shuffled off to hair
and make-up before emerging as movie star divas for
The HUNGer Game Reaping and a Chicago jazz routine
with local tap dancer Tosh Sutherland.
Two thumbs up for event sponsors Graveley & Sons,
MASC and Arts Club for donating prizes and to PRCL season sponsors The Junction, Numbers Cabaret, Cobbett &
Cotton Lawyers, Kermodi Living Art, FrischkornMEDIACO
and Queer Active for contributing to the success of the
Pac Rim Cup.
Team My Favourite Things
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The Backline
February 2015
In Searching of Curling Glory
One of the goals of the Club when it made the move
from Dinmont Avenue to Hillcrest Centre was to foster
an environment where competitive curlers could thrive
alongside club curlers. In its over 100 years, the VCC has
been home to almost 50 provincial championship teams,
with the most recent Team Switzer’s Mixed Provincial
Championship in 2013. The tradition of winning has continued in 2014 / 2015 and VCC members looking to add
a purple heart to their curling resume have had a great
season so far. VCC-led teams have qualified for Men’s
and Women’s and Senior Men’s and Women’s provincial
championships being held at curling clubs throughout
the province.
From January 21 to January 25, 2015 Team Gushulak took
part in the Scotties BC Women’s Curling Championship
held at the Golden Ears Winter Club in Maple Ridge,
British Columbia. Team Gushulak consists of Skip: Diane
Gushulak, Third: Grace MacInnes, Second: Lorelle Weiss
and Lead: Sandra Comadina. The 2014 / 2015 season was
the team’s first together, but Diane and Grace have curled
together for many years. Team Gushulak qualified for the
event based on points earned throughout the season
and finished with a 1-3 record, narrowly missing a spot
in the playoffs. However, not having to participate in the
playdowns meant the team missed opportunities to play
10-end games before the BC Scotties and Team Gushulak
worked with Coach Roger Friesen, a sports psychologist
who helped with focus and mental training. The team
loves the energy and support from fans in attendance
and Grace is credited with having the biggest fan base,
along with co-workers who bring homemade signs.
The Vernon Curling Club was host to the Canadian
Direct Insurance BC Men’s Curling Championship from
February 4, 2015 to February 8, 2015. Christmas came
Team Gushulak: Diane Gushulak, Grace MacInnes,
Lorelle Weiss and Sandra Comadina
Team Schneider: Stephen Schneider, Jeff Guignard,
Shawn Eklund and Brant Amos
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The Backline
February 2015
In Searching of Curling Glory
early to Team Schneider, Skip: Stephen Schneider, Third:
Jeff Guignard, Second: Shawn Eklund, and Lead: Brant
Amos, who qualified for the event by taking one of
the C event qualifying spots at a playdown held at the
Cloverdale Curling Club in December of 2014.
Stephen, Shawn and Brant have curled together for four
years, and Jeff is in his first year with the team. Team
Schneider went 0-3 this year, but according to the skip
they gained valuable experience, “being in a provincial
is an achievement all competitive curlers strive for and
being able to partake in the competition at that high a
level was a great learning opportunity and also a chance
to meet more participants from around the province and
gain from their experience and advice. Team Schneider
has had a busy season, playing in five bonspiels before
playdowns, fitting in practices between league games
and bonspiels.
Team Richter, Skip: Marilou Richter, Third: Deb Walker,
Second: Brenda Garvey and Lead: Pam Cuthbert, will
also be in Port Alberni in February, representing the Club
at the Senior Women’s Provincial Curling Championship.
Skip Marilou has been playing competitive ladies for
many years and has played in quite a few provincials over
the years, but this is her first year of eligibility for Seniors.
The team came together shortly before playdowns in
January, but they quickly gelled, taking home the B qualifying sport. VCC members Marilou and Deb are joined by
Brenda from Kamloops and Pam from Royal City. Marilou,
Deb and Pam have curled together in the past and they
have all curled against Brenda in various provincial and
cash spiel events.
Team Richter: Marilou Richter, Deb Walker, Brenda Garvey, Pam
Cuthbert
Team Brower: Larry MacDonald, Denis Sutton, Richard Brower and
Jan Bos
Team Brower, Skip: Richard Brower, Third: Denis Sutton,
Second: Jan Bos and Lead: Larry MacDonald, will be
representing the VCC at the Senior Men’s Provincial
Championships held February 16 - 21, 2015 at the
Alberni Curling Club. The team qualified by winning the
C qualifying spot at a playdown in North Vancouver in
mid-January. Denis is new to the team this season, but
the rest of the members have curled together for three
years. Team Brower only curled in one event together
before the playdowns and VCC member Richard Brower
had to help prepare the ice at the VCC when the power
went out at the North Shore Winter Club in the midst of
Lower Mainland playdowns.
The team has found that senior events are “different”,
more relaxed than the Women’s tour and while Skip
Marilou agrees, she reiterates “every one of us wants to
win and loves competing. I’m really looking forward to
Provincials and will play hard to get another “BC” on my
back.”
While there are no playdowns for the event itself, the VCC
was well represented at the Mixed Doubles Provincial
Curling Championships with five of the 13 teams.
Taking place at the Peace Arch Curling Club, January 30
- February 1, 2015, three of the eight teams making the
playoffs were comprised of VCC members. Participants
included: Shelley Birston/Scott Robertson, Jon Braun/
Alison Koch, Andrew Forrest/Becky Campbell, Daniel
Jun/Allison DenToom and Keith Switzer/Carmen Cheng.
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The Backline
February 2015
Persistence Pays Off: 2015 VCC Doubles Spiel
Congratulations to Team Robinson (Mark and Siobhan
Robinson) for winning the A Event in the Annual 2015
VCC Doubles Spiel! They showed that ‘persistence pays
off’ given that they’ve finished the event higher each year
they’ve participated. They may have finished second last
year but this year they made no mistakes to ensure that
their names would be on the Vancouver Doubles Trophy.
The Vancouver Doubles Spiel sold out this year in record
time with 32 teams competing in four events that
resulted in an action-packed day of doubles play. The
event raised $1,000 for the Sandra Schmirler Foundation!
Thank you to our VCC members for your attendance and
to the out-of-town teams who made the trip to our Club.
We had great representation with teams from as far away
as Brazil, New Zealand and the United States(California)
as well as teams from Marpole, Golden Ears, Langley,
Hope, Delta, and the North Shore Winter Curling Clubs.
Highlights and Notable Moments of the Event included
a Final match between Team Robinson and Team Grant
with Noah Grant returning to our Club with Lisa Speers
from the Golden Ears Curling Club.
The Brazilian Teams definitely found a new home
at the Vancouver Curling Club by turning one area
of the downstairs lounge into a ‘Brazil Away From
Home’ with everything from Brazilian flags to ‘samba’
music to make everyone feel like they were not at
a Doubles Bonspiel but at the Carnival. Noteworthy
was a Quarter Final Match Up that pitted Team Brazil
against Team New Zealand — possibly an indication of
things to come in the Olympics if the Doubles format
is adopted.
Team New Zealand entered under the pseudonym of
the Flightless Furry Fruit. According to Jerry McKenzie
from the Vancouver Curling Club Motors League,
“Team New Zealand should have gotten extra points
for ‘style,’ from showing up as the ‘Flash’ and a ‘Smurf’
in red flannel long johns with a Canadian flag discreetly placed on his trap-door that was distracting to
any of their competition, to keeping us entertained
with their ‘on ice’ antics of 1080 Degree and Canoe
curling deliveries, and their ‘off ice’ antics involving the
consumption of Canadian beer between games.”
A event winners: Sioban and Mark Robinson
B event winners: Patrick Patterson and Kris Wright
C event winners: Ken Grahame and Sheri Lomas
D event winners: Thomas Schuster and Ian Foreman
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The Backline
February 2015
Persistence Pays Off: 2015 VCC Doubles Spiel
Team Brazil
Team Flightless Furry Fruit
The Shamrock Juniors in the B Event Final demonstrated
that they didn’t need any ‘luck’ with their accurate take
outs. Not to be ‘outdone’ Ken Grahame on Team Gromas
in the C Event Final managed to deliver one crucial rock
that was clocked at exceeding the ‘sound barrier’ to
the delight of the other half of his Doubles Team, Sheri
Lomas given that when the smoke cleared they had won
the C Event.
sure didn’t play like Novices!” A Testament to the ‘Legion
of Doom’ and the Novice League Coaches.
In the D Event Final, the Gneiss Guys showed that they’re
‘Nice’ whether it’s spelled as ‘Nice’ or ‘Gneiss’ in their
match up against the ‘Legion of Doom’ from the VCC’s
Novice League. The Gneiss Guys were heard to say “They
The day started with Coffee and Cupcakes and in the end
could only summarized as being ‘Fun’ that should be on
everyone’s Calendar for 2016. Congratulations to all of
the participants and the winners listed below.
The VCC Past President, Mark Robinson was definitely
‘Cool’ after his A Event Final win but even ‘Cooler’ after he
went home with the #1 Raffle Prize which was a ‘Granville
Island Blue Metal Beer Cooler’ filled with a few Granville
Island brew.
A Event Winners: Team Robinson – Mark and Siobhan Robinson (VCC)
A Runner up: Team Grant – Noah Grant and Lisa Speers (Golden Ears Curling Club)
B Event Winners: Shamrock Juniors – Kris Wright and Patrick Patterson (VCC)
B Runner up: Flightless Furry Fruit – Brett Sargon and Kieran Ford (New Zealand)
C Event Winners: Team Gromas – Ken Grahame and Sheri Lomas (VCC)
C Runner up: College Sweephearts – Katherine Morrison and Thomas Sayer
(VCC & Marpole Curling Club)
D Event Winner: Gneiss Guys – Thomas Schuster and Ian Foreman (VCC)
D Runner up: Legion of Broom – Robert Kirkwood and Barry Trischuk (VCC)
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The Backline
February 2015
Sawtooth Outdoor Bonspiel in Idaho
Team Gibson
(Marilou Richter,
Amy Gibson,
Michelle Dunn, and
Rebecca Turley)
recently travelled
to Stanley, Idaho
for a weekend of
outdoor curling at The Sawtooth Outdoor Bonspiel (AKA
The S.O.B.) Stanley is 3 hours east of Boise in the Sawtooth
Mountain Range, about 1 hour north of Sun Valley. A
summer resort town with a population of 63, Stanley is as
quiet and friendly as you’d expect from a town of that size.
The town of Stanley converts their outdoor hockey rink
into 4 curling sheets just for this event, which this year
hosted 16 teams from Washington, Minnesota, Wisconsin,
Utah, Arizona, and of course, British Columbia. The organizers made us feel at home by hanging a Canadian flag at
the end of the rink and playing ‘O Canada’ at the opening
ceremonies – where we belted out our anthem while most
others watched, laughed, or videotaped us.
Our first game started just after the opening ceremonies.
We threw our first rocks as the sun went down behind
the jagged Sawtooth Mountains that surrounded the
sheets. We had a hard time concentrating on the game
and found ourselves constantly smiling or taking photos
of the scenery, and would regularly exclaim how much
fun we were having. The ice conditions were nothing
comparable to what we were used to, and we quickly
learned we only needed two weights – our normal hit
weight if we wanted it to stop in the house, and ‘shove
it as hard as you can’ for a hit, maybe. Even though the
sheets were 30 feet shorter than regulation, we had one
end where we hogged seven of our rocks, while our
opposition had every one in play – but still got a blank!
The weather was the biggest influence on the ice conditions. The draws were planned to avoid the warmest time
of the day, with draw times at 7am, 9am, 7pm, and 9pm.
But on Saturday morning, it started to lightly snow, which
acted like sand, grinding the rocks to a halt. The snow
stopped and the sun came out for the afternoon. But by
the time the evening draws were scheduled to begin,
there were puddles across the rink. Our games were postponed until the next morning and shortened to four ends
so we could have one draw per hour and wrap by noon.
This gave everyone the opportunity to check out the local
establishments, which had brought in live music and were
full of the town residents and curlers from the spiel, all of
which were stumbling distance from our hotels.
People would come up regularly to thank us for being
there and to ask us to come back next year. As good
Canadian ambassadors of the sport, we ensured our competition understood the tradition of broom stacking (AKA
team shots) at the midway point of every game and led a
crew of cheerleaders when we got knocked out of the C
event. We learned a few things from them too, like how free
beer all weekend makes everything OK, even a 7am draw.
All of the American curlers we met love the sport so
much and appreciate every opportunity they have to
play it. The Boise Curling Club, which organizes the
S.O.B., doesn’t have its own dedicated facility. They play
on hockey ice once a week and only when it’s not being
used for hockey. They generally only get 2 hours once
per week, usually after 10pm on Sundays.
Seeing everyone’s excitement to have curling ice for an
entire weekend and how hard they work for it made us
appreciate how lucky we are in Canada. We realized how
easy it is for us to go through some stones on any given
day on a sheet that very closely replicates what we see on
TV. Sure, we may not consistently have 5 feet of curl or get
14.5 second draws, but we definitely left Stanley with a
huge appreciation for how hard our local clubs work. It is
not something we will take for granted any time soon.
Our weekend in
Stanley created
many memories
we will long cherish. Everyone was
happy just to be
there, curling or
not curling under
the gorgeous
Sawtooth Mountains. If you’re looking to meet some fun
people, have some laughs, and maybe get some curling
in, we can’t recommend this bonspiel enough. They would
be overjoyed to host more fun Canadians next year and
you would have an experience unlike anything else.
For more photos and videos of the event check out Team
Gibson facebook page: facebook.com/GibsonCurling. If
you are interested in attending the annual spiel next year
have a look at the SOB’s website sobidaho.com.
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The Backline
February 2015
OK Tire Cup
The Vancouver Curling Club was the venue
February 16–18 for the third annual OK Tire
Bonspiel — a masters’ event open to men
aged 55+ who are members of the Pacific
Coast Masters Curling Association (PCMCA).
The association was formed in 1963 to
create competition specifically for older
curlers (principally aged 60 and above)
playing at clubs in the Lower Mainland,
Fraser Valley and Vancouver Island. The
PCMCA is affiliated with CurlBC, has around
2,100 members and helps organize masters’
bonspiels, zone playoffs and playdowns for
curlers aged 60+, 70+ and 80+. In concert
with a similar association that covers the
Jack Dunlop (far left); Wayne Dangerfield, 3rd; Glen Gangnes, Skip {holding the trophy};
BC Interior, winners of the playdowns move Wayne Saito, 2nd and Ian Tocher, Lead.
on to an end-of-season province-wide
enjoyable catered “awards” lunch. The winning team was
championship. These playdowns and championship have
from the New Westminster/Royal City Club (skipped by
recently been expanded to include both mixed teams
Glen Gangnes). They won four games and tied one. The
and, for the first time this year, ladies teams.
second and third-placed teams (from Peace Arch and the
NSWC/North Shore Winter Club) each won four games With the financial support of OK Tire and the sterling
with the former missing their chance of an overall win by
efforts of club staff, the Senior Men’s League, which curls
losing to NSWC in both teams’ final game. It was noted
twice-a-week (Tuesdays & Thursdays at 1:00pm) at the
that VCC was a gracious host – both off the ice and on!
club, hosted a very successful 24-team bonspiel. It drew
teams from Metro Vancouver and the Sunshine Coast. The
The photos, courtesy of Brian Thomson, show the winSenior Men’s league had two teams in the bonspiel, the
ning team holding the OK Tire Cup and receiving the
City Hall league had one team, plus there were a number
winners’ cheque from Jack Dunlop. Jack is a member of
of VCC members playing on non-VCC teams. Five 8-end
the Senior Men’s League and was the Treasurer of OK Tire
games were played over the three days followed by an
for seven years during part of his varied career.
2015 Season Calendar
The following list of events highlights what is happening at the VCC from September 2014 until April 2015.
For more information, please visit vancurl.com/events.
2015
March 5 - 8
April 12
March 14 & 21
April 13-16
Barry Naimark Charity Skins Bonspiel
VCC Playdowns for Dominion Club Challenge
Last day of league play
VCC Championships (VCC members only)
April 11
Member Bring-a-Friend Open House / Meet the Leagues
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The Backline
2014 - 2015
VCC sponsors support
success
Partners
As you look down at the ice or up at the TV screens you will see rotating
logos of the VCC sponsors that provide cash and/or goods and services
Gold
Silver
that are an integral part of VCC operations.
2014 February 2015
Partn
Gold
The Club offers a variety of sponsorship packages designed to create a
win-win situation for the sponsor and the VCC. All sponsors have their
digitel.ca
logo on the VCC website, on the TV screens and for our Gold and Silver
partners, in the ice. As you flip through this edition of The Backline you
Bronze
will see the businesses that have partnered with the Club this year.
VOICE
VOICE TECHNOLOGY FOR YOUR BUSINESS
2014
2014--2015
2015
Partners
Partners
2014
- 2015
Partners
Sponsorship is a critical part of the Club’s fiscal and operational planning
each year. Sponsors provide prizing forGold
our events along with
discounted
Silver
Gold
Silver
or gratis goods and services or cash. The Club in turn provides access to
our 1,200+ members and the thousands
of peoSilver
Gold
ple that visit our facility or website each year.
VOICE TECHNOLOGY FOR YOUR BUSINESS
VOICE TECHNOLOGY FOR YOUR BUSINESS
Sponsors make it possible for the VCC to offer programs for youth curlers and member-services such
as discounted pricing in the Last Draw Lounge
and Pro Shop and subsidized VCC bonspiels.
Sponsorship packages start as low as $500
annually and can benefit local businesses by
exposure to members and Club support for
their goods / services.
If you own your own business or work for a
business that might benefit from a partnership
with the VCC please contact Interim General
Manager, Ann de la Hey for more details.
The VCC would also like to acknowledge the support of the Province of British Columbia, through
their Community Gaming Grant program, of
the Junior, High School, and Blind and Visually
Impaired Leagues.
Friends
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VOICE TECHNOLOGY FOR YOUR BUSINESS
AR Thomson
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Bronze
Clarkes
Recognition
Bronze
Products
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MacDonald Realty
Manning Elliot
Travelers Canada
Friends
Cla
Friends
AR
Thomson
Friends
Clarkes Recognition
ARProducts
Thomson
AR Thomson
Clarkes
Recognition
MacDonald
Realty
Clarkes Recognition
Products
Products
Manning Elliot
Ma
M
MacDonald
Realty
MacDonald Realty
Travelers Canada
Manning
Elliot
Manning Elliot
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Travelers Canada
Travelers
Canada
In Memoriam
Sim (Sam) Chang passed away April 12, 2014
at the age of 77 after a battle with liver cancer.
Sim was an enthusiastic member of the Blind
and Visually Impaired League for over 30 years
and was a member of Vancouver’s team in
many West Coast Blind Curling Provincial and
Western Canadian Blind Curling bonspiels. He participated in many other sports and activities such as bowling, lawn bowling, cross country skiing and gardening.
His motto was “Keep active, stay healthy!”
Ian Monsarrat passed away on December
18, 2014 at age 80. Ian was a professional
photographer and an avid sailor, sailing as
far away as New Zealand with his wife Barb
Angel. He became a member of the Blind
and Visually Impaired League and learned
to curl in October 2008 after his vision failed. A highlight
of his curling career was participating in the West Coast
Blind Curling Provincial bonspiel in Kelowna in 2010. He
will be remembered for his wonderful sense of humor.
pg.11
2
The Backline
February 2015
For the Love of the Game
If you follow the Club on social media you will find that almost every weekend we are celebrating efforts of our members who have ventured outside of the VCC and are taking part in cash spiels, playdowns and other bonspiels. The level
of competition ranges from events on the Men’s and Women’s tours for cash and Canadian Team Ranking System points
to small town spiels and even outdoor spiels.
We polled some of our most prolific members for some tips, advice and strange happenings on the bonspiel circuit. The
below are actual responses from VCC members.
“Ottawa Curling Club for its great character and members, Golden
Ears Curling Club and Peace Arch for consistent ice and Marpole
Curling Club for fun and great support from members.”
Favourite non-VCC curling club?
“Multiple as our schedules are too hectic to take one car.”
How many cars on road trips?
“One car always, it helps bond the team together and have some
laughs along the way as the playdowns part is always stressful.”
“We actually won a coin toss.”
“We were playing in a spiel which shall remain unnamed, we showed
up for our first game and found out they gave us the wrong draw
time and we ended up having to start the event in the “B” event
although we hadn’t lost a game.”
Strangest thing that has ever
happened at a bonspiel?
Least favourite part of playdowns?
“Long waits in between draws when you are not near home or the
hotel. It is exhausting to wait around to play for a game, or hazardous
if the bar is serving cheap strong drinks.”
“8am draws are ‘yucky.’”
How do you set your bonspiel calendar?
Most elaborate pre-game or
pre-throwing ritual?
“Decisions are made in the spring before the season or over the summer, based on our schedules and our budgets.”
“We look at our schedules and how much sponsorship we received
and try to plan it so our competition level builds towards playdowns.”
“I like my movie score soundtracks to pump me up and calm me
down. I’m often finding some alone time in my car before game time
listening to my movie scores.”
“Our third, he stretches every part of his body (well almost).”
Vancouver Curling Club
4575 Clancy Loranger Way • Vancouver, BC • V5Y 2M4
604-874-0122 • 604-874-2865 (fax) • info@vancurl.com
@vancurling
/vancurl
vancurl.com