The fifth annual The Dominion Curling Club Championship, which gives club curling teams from every corner of the country, who have won their respective provincial or territorial championship an opportunity to compete in national level competition, gets underway on Monday, November 18 at the Fort William Curling Club in Thunder Bay Ontario.
Club curlers are those who enjoy the sport recreationally, supporting club leagues on a regular basis from September to April. This event includes curlers from all ten provinces and three territories.
PEI is represented on the men’s side for the second consecutive year by the Alan Inman rink from the Crapaud Community Curling Club. The Island women’s reps are the Sharon Horne foursome from the Western Community Curling Club in Alberton.
Here’s a look at the Island teams (interviewed by The Dominion):
Hailing from the Crapaud Community Curling Club, the men’s team consists of Alan Inman (Skip), Steven Thomson (Third), Gordon Fall (Second) and Tony Quigley (Lead).
Photo (L-R): Inman, Thomson, Fall, Quigley
The PEI Men all live in Tryon, and have know each other for many years. Friends on and off the ice, they have played both against each other and on the same team throughout the years. This is their second consecutive year winning the PEI provincial playdowns and making it to The Dominion Curling Club Championships. After taking their second provincial title without a loss, they know what to expect and are planning to be more competitive this time around. These men have all had dedicated time to serving their curling club, whether it is on the board of directors, or working on ice or at spiels.
The PEI Men have most enjoyed playing against the top teams on the Island and the excitement of the final championship game, which was a close one. They are looking forward to playing all the teams from across Canada and to making new friends. Last year’s championships well exceeded the team’s expectations and gave the men many memories that will last a lifetime!
Gordon shared his favourite memory, one that was formed at the final game in this year’s provincial playdowns. It had come down to a measure of the last rock to either tie the game or to win.
When it was measured and we knew we won, there was such excitement and happiness knowing we would be heading to Thunder Bay!
From the Western Community Curling Club in Alberton, the PEI Women’s team is comprised of Sharon Horne (Skip), Kim Ellsworth (Third), Wendy Fraser(Second) and Alison Griffin (Lead).
Photo (L to R): skip Sharon Horne, Kim Ellsworth, Wendy Fraser and Alison Griffin.
The PEI Women can be best described as calm and cool. They enjoy being a competitive team, but like to keep their cool and let the game play out. “We never get down on one another and stay positive even in tough situations” shared Sharon. The team finds it best to keep conversation in the game light, focusing on staying relaxed and wishing each other a good game always.
Kim, Wendy and Sharon have been curling together for the past ten years, and Alison joined this past season. The ladies know each other from the community and are involved in different things together outside of curling. Kim and Sharon have curling experiences spanning 20 years on and off, while Wendy has curled for 15 years and Alison for 6. An exciting curling highlight for these women is when Kim and Sharon won the Provincial 8 Year and under in 2001.
This is the team’s first time attending The Dominion Curling Club Championship, where they are excited to represent PEI at a national event and meet people from all over the country. The team will be bringing an item for the silent auction table to raise funds for the CPA / SCI.
Favourite celebrity curlers for this team include Jon Mead (Sharon), Glenn Howard (Kim), Brad Gushue (Wendy) and Jeff Stoughton (Alison).
These women love to have a good time when curling: “You may see us all laughing, even when we are not having a very good game” says Sharon.
As well as the two rinks from PEI, Souris native Marion MacAulay is skipping the Nova Scotia women’s rink, from the Bluenose Curling Club in New Glasgow.
The PEI men and women both open play against Nunavut on the 18th at 9:15 pm Atlantic. From then on they play the same team, but in subsequent draws.
Here are the rest of the PEI draws (all times Atlantic)
Nov. 19 at 10:30 am (men) and 2:15 pm (women) vs Northwest Territories
Nov. 19 at 5:45 (men) and 9:15 pm (women) vs Quebec
Nov. 20 at 10:30 am (women) and 2:15 pm (men) vs Sask.
Nov. 20 at 5:45 pm (women) and 9:15 pm (men) vs Nova Scotia
Nov. 21 at 10:30 am (men) and 2:15 pm (women) vs Ontario
Nov. 21 at 5:45 (men) and 9:15 pm (women) vs Newfoundland and Labrador
Tiebreakers (if needed) and the semi-final go on Nov. 22, with the finals at 11:15 am (women) and 2 pm (men) on Saturday the 23rd.
Event website: www.curling.ca/thedominioncurls
Scores and standings will be available at www.curling.ca/thedominioncurls/scores-and-standings/.
You can also follow along on Twitter @dominioncurls, Facebook (www.facebook.com/thedominioncurls) and YouTube (www.youtube.com/TheDominionCurls)
The 2014 PEI playdowns for The Dominion go March 27-31 at the Silver Fox in Summerside, while the 2014 nationals take place at the Mayflower Curling Club in Halifax, November 24-29, 2014.
