Monthly Archives: October 2024

TWO IN A ROW FOR MCKINNON-GRAY

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Fort Rouge members Dewar McKinnon and Dale Gray made it two bonspiel wins in a week when they won the Ft Rouge’s opening weekend stick spiel. October 2. Earlier in the week, they had won the season kickoff Ernie Oliver Bonspiel at AMCC.

McKinnon & Gray bested Brian Kushner and Don Smith in the club event final game.

MCKINNON-GRAY WIN 2024 ERNIE OLIVER ‘STICK ‘SPIEL: The 2024-25 2-person stick curling season got underway October 1-2 at Assiniboine Memorial with an entry of 24 teams in the annual Ernie Oliver Bonspiel. The ‘spiel annually pays tribute to Ernie Oliver’s contributions to the remarkable growth in 2-persoin stick curling.

Fort Rouge stick league members Dale Gray and Dewar McKinnon were the winners of the bonspiel championship with a final game win over AMCC’s Ralph Nespor and Rob Lacombe.

The consolation division final was won by Ken & Shirley Strand (St. Vital) with a victory over Jim & Keren Rouse (Warren).

CURLMANITOBA PLANNING A “REUNION OF CHAMPIONS”

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When CurlManitoba’s Viterra Men’s Championship takes place at Stride Place Arena in Portage la Prairie, February 4-9, 2025, it will the 100th time that the top male curlers in the province have competed for the opportunity to represent Manitoba in inter-provincial competition. CurlManitoba and the Portage host committee are planning a celebration to mark the occasion.

While there had been bonspiels like the MCA bonspiel, which began in 1889, and other major provincial bonspiels across Canada, the 1925 competition won by Howard Wood and his Granite team became the first provincial championship event in Canada.

The championship has been played every year since with only four title sponsors (Macdonald Tobacco, Labatts, Safeway, Viterra) and with the only year missed being 2021, when Covid wiped out the curling season.

To celebrate this very significant occasion in Manitoba and Canadian curling history, CurlManitoba and the Portage host committee are inviting past Manitoba Men’s champions to a 100th anniversary “Reunion of Champions” at the Viterra Championship in February, 2025.

The celebration of 100 years will recognize the four primary sponsors along with the 99 previous champions. Of approximately 400 men (many of them multiple times, of course) who have won a Manitoba purple heart, symbolic of winning the men’s curling championship, it is estimated that about 120 champions, from the 1950’s to the present, are still alive.

Every past Manitoba Men’s champion is invited to attend the formal recognition at the Opening Banquet of the 2025 Viterra Championship. Invitations are being issued but, unfortunately, the association has lost touch with some past champions and all are invited to contact CurlManitoba (mca@curlmanitoba.org OR 204-925-5723) to ensure they are on the invitation list.

THE MACDONALD BRIER TROPHY: The first Manitoba championship curling event, officially called the Macdonald Brier Trophy event in the MCA Bonspiel, took place in 1925. It has since been known as the British Consols, Labatt Tankard, Safeway Select, Safeway Championship, and Viterra Championship.

Even during the years of World War II, a Manitoba championship took place despite the fact the Macdonald Brier national championship was paused from 1943 to 1945.

That 1925 event is recognized as the first stepping stone toward establishment of the Brier. Howard Wood’s champion Granite team was hosted on a good-will tour of Eastern Canada, playing the best teams in Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec. The idea was repeated in 1926 when George Sherwood’s St John’s CC team was taken east, this time to play in the annual Quebec bonspiel.

The interest in the games between the Manitobans and their eastern opponents led to the establishment of the first Macdonald Brier in 1927. It has been lost in the mists of time that the Manitobans competed for the Macdonald Brier Trophy and the winners advanced to play for the Macdonald Brier Tankard (the same national trophy being played for today). Manitoba’s championship became the British Consols in 1937.

During the Viterra Championship in Portage, a number of special events and historic displays will help celebrate the 100th championship.

QUALIFYING & TICKET SALES: Curlers are encouraged to try to qualify for what will be a special event in Portage. Berth winners will join defending champion Reid Carruthers and 2023-24 CTRS berth winner Jordon McDonald and their teams, who have pre-qualified.

Qualifying events will include the MCT Atkins Classic at Assiniboine Memorial (October 4-6), the Viterra Berth Bonspiel in Carman (November 8-10), Regional Qualifiers (December 6-8), two berths in the MCT Showdown in Stonewall (Nov. 29 – Dec. 1), and the MCT Shootout in Virden (December 13-15). The Brandon Bonspiel (January 10-12) will provide one more entry for Portage and the final three will come from the last-chance Manitoba Open (January 16-20). As in the past, season high point teams on MCT and CTRS will also qualify.

Tickets for curling fans who want to join the celebration and watch the best men’s teams compete for this year’s provincial title will go on sale December 1st.

CURLMANITOBA WELCOMES NEW PARTNER ACCESS CREDIT UNION

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CurlManitoba is excited to announce expanded support for the development of Manitoba’s junior curlers in a new partnership with Access Credit Union.

The unique new partnership features a three-way agreement between CurlManitoba, Access Credit Union and the Bob Picken Open Masters Bonspiel (the BOBSpiel). The agreement will see Access Credit Union expanding the bonspiel’s Bob Picken Junior Legacy grant program, by doubling the number of grants available to junior programs across Manitoba each year. Access Credit Union became the Presenting Sponsor of the 2024 bonspiel (September 24-28, at Granite CC)

Access Credit Union will also be supporting the strengthening of CurlManitoba’s Youth Curling Camps program. The Access Credit Union Youth Curling Camps are designed as fun and positive one-day camps for young athletes to play, have fun, learn, and improve in the sport of curling. Individual and team instruction provide a chance for the young athletes to work on all of the sport’s fundamental skills.

In addition to the junior grants program and the youth curling camps program, during the 2024-25 curling season Access Credit Union will be visible to Manitoba curlers as a Manitoba Open bonspiel event sponsor and as the Presenting Partner for the Dynasty U20 Mixed Doubles championship.

Access Credit Union is the largest credit union in Manitoba and the sixth largest in Canada, with more than more than 203,000 members and more than 60 branches in Winnipeg and across southern Manitoba; west to Morden and Manitou, north to Moosehorn, Ashen and Fisher Branch, south to Emerson and Gretna, and east to Pinawa, Whitemouth, Vita and Sprague.

“Curling is an important social, recreational, and competitive sport across Manitoba and the young people involved in this and other sports are one of our most important assets,” says President and CEO, Larry Davey of Access Credit Union. “We consider it a wonderful opportunity to support CurlManitoba and the many volunteers in their efforts to support junior and youth curling programs.”

On behalf of CurlManitoba, Executive Director Craig Baker expressed sincere appreciation for the new support of Access Credit Union. “CurlManitoba has had an important focus on youth and junior development as a priority for the last several years. We can see that emphasis paying dividends in the expansion of junior programs, including numbers in recent junior and youth events. We are excited by the opportunities this new partnership creates to continue the growth.”

Bob Minaker, co-chair of the Picken Open Bonspiel committee, also added his appreciation to the new sponsor. “We have made $6,000 in Picken Junior Legacy grants over the past four years in support of some excellent junior programs. Our greatest disappointment has been the other very excellent programs which we have not been able to support. With the help of Access Credit Union, we will be able to turn some of those no’s into a yes. It is exciting to think about.”

Application information for the new Bob Picken Junior Legacy Grants presented by Access Credit Union will be circulated to Manitoba curling club junior activities coordinators in the near future.