Steve Powell and Tim Atkin have visited some pretty exotic locations in recent years as they pursue a birthday plan of celebrating in new places and experiencing new things.

Last year the Fort Lauderdale, Florida residents visited London where the main attraction, among many, was a trip to a Brand Museum – no, not the kind of brand museum you might find in Texas or Alberta. Steve had recently retired after a career as a Trade Mark attorney – and the brand museum dealing with corporate brand names, trademarks, etc was a perfect destination.

In years before there were things like truffle hunting with dogs in Italy’s Piedmont region, learning glass-blowing in Hawaii and making their own cologne in Italy.

This year, a visit to Manitoba for the Canadian Human Rights Museum and a learn-to-curl trip to Morris (yesterday, May 28, Steve’s 60^th birthday).

Of course, a curling publication would like to suggest the curling was the primary objective of the trip – but no, that visit to Winnipeg’s Human Rights Museum has been the top of their ‘where-next’ list since they saw it on Amazing Race Canada.

A visit earlier in the week told them the museum trip truly merited top place on their list. They acknowledged they knew what to expect generally from the TV exposure – but not specifically and they described the current major exhibition, The LGBT Purge, as “an exceptional exhibit”. “So well done, we loved it,” Powell said.

The timing of the trip was set for Steve’s birthday but the coincidence of timing with Winnipeg’s Pride Festival has also allowed them to set a busy schedule.

The ‘what-else’ list has included curling for several years – exposed to it also on television both on the American version of Amazing Race and of course the Olympics, including the great visibility generated by John Shuster’s gold medal run in 2018.

So, when they learned that curling ice was available in Morris and that a coach-instructor was available in Rhonda Varnes, who has signed on for the summer as an on-call coach for the Cargill Curling Training Centre, their own amazing race took them down Highway #75 and onto sheet #1 at Morris.

“Until you try, you have no idea of the balance and the coordination that is required,” Powell said after an enjoyable 2-hour session on the ice.

Some slide-throw delivery attempts did not go particularly well. Powell suggested that the idea of the extra slippery slider didn’t make a lot of sense when the ice is already slippery enough.

Quick on her feet (two grippers please!) Coach Varnes was inspired by the fact that about 10 stick curlers, including 2024 Canadian champion Warren Johnson and 2022 Canadian champion Norm Magnusson, were using adjacent sheets for their weekly summer session.

Using the stick to facilitate the Florida ‘curlers’ deliveries, Coach Varnes talked with them about rotation and curl and release weight and all of the foreign language (to a visitor from Florida) which is spoken by curlers. She also explained how and why sweeping works (more foreign language – even to a lot of curlers).

By the end of their session, Powell called it “extraordinarily fun”. They were propelling their stones down the ice – often on the right line, often with the right weight, usually with the right turn and earning the satisfaction that goes with that stone stopping in the rings or that great feeling when you hear your stone crash against the opponent’s.

Powell and Atkin acknowledged that their time on the ice gave them a greater appreciation for the skill required for the game and for just how spectacular that Team Shuster gold medal win had been.

Are they ready to take up the sport full time? – maybe, but not an easy thing to do in Florida.

Are they interested in coming back to Morris for the stick bonspiel scheduled in early November – maybe, “but remind me when the cold weather comes,” Powell said with a big smile.

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VARNES PURSUING CURLING PRO ACCREDITATION

In one of her first assignments as the summer on-call coach/instructor for the Cargill Curling Training Centre in Morris, Rhonda Varnes learned what pro golf instructors know and what aspiring ACP’s (Accredited Curling Professional) will learn: most of the time, you’ll have no idea what challenges your day is going to bring you.

For example, no matter how prepared you are, there is really no way to prepare to teach curling to two guys from Florida whose only knowledge of the game is having watched it a few times on TV.

While they were complimentary of their first exposure to curling as being “extraordinarily fun”, Steve Powell and Tim Atkin were equally complimentary of Varnes’ talents as a teacher.

Recognized as one of Manitoba’s fine competitive women curlers (semi-finalist at the RME Women’s a year ago with Darcy Robertson) and an excellent thrower of the stone, Varnes quickly figured out that teaching them to throw a stone was not going to work. A good teacher adapts and teaching them to deliver a stone with a delivery stick allowed them to learn the game and some of its nuances in the limited time available.

Varnes is one of the first in Manitoba to pursue certification as an Accredited Curling Professional. She’ll be doing a series of on-line courses in June/July, travelling to Oakville, ON for in-person work in August, more course work over the winter all targeting completion of the certification requirements by April.

Meantime, she’ll be working as an on-call coach-instructor at the Cargill Curling Training Centre this summer. She will be available to work with individuals and even teams who want to improve their skills, whether at a competitive level or a more intermediate level.

“I can’t think of anything more satisfying than helping curlers, whatever level they are at, elevate their game. Helping grow their enjoyment of the game is very satisfying,” she said.

Current plans are for the ice in Morris to be available all summer. Curlers with an interest in a single session or a series of sessions are encouraged to contact club Manager Steph Berard (manager@morriscurlingclub.com). If you are interested in using Rhonda Varne’s coach/instructor services, Steph will put you in direct contact for further planning.

The Bob Picken Open Masters Bonspiel presented by Access Credit Union, the season-opener Masters bonspiel, will move to a new host club for the 2025 bonspiel. The event has awarded $9,000 in Junior Development grants to Manitoba curling club junior programs over the last six years.

The event will be hosted by the East St. Paul Curling Club and will once again be played in late September (Sept. 23-26, 2025)

“We are hopeful to start the season again at the Bob Picken Open Masters,” says 2025 Canadian Masters champion skip Randy Neufeld. “It was a great way to start the season a year ago. It gave us five competitive games but a relaxed schedule to get started.”

Neufeld says he is always excited by the start of a new curling season. The Picken Open Masters provides an early start and an early opportunity to renew friendships and rivalries along with the added benefit of raising funds to support junior curling development.

The bonspiel will once again offer a CurlManitoba Masters Men’s championship entry for the Manitoba’s Credit Unions Masters to be played in Brandon in February of 2026. While they are planning to participate in the bonspiel, Neufeld’s Manitoba/Canadian champions will not be competing for the provincial berth as they have an automatic entry in Brandon as the 2025 champions.

The bonspiel format will be unchanged from 2025, featuring:

• A maximum of 24 Men’s, Women’s or Mixed teams, with stick curlers welcome
• Four team pools with a three-game round-robin
• One game a day for the round-robin with a choice of playing on the morning OR afternoon draw (tentatively 9:30AM and 1:30PM)
• A championship playoff with two games (for finalists) to be played on the Friday.
• A separate four-team women’s playoff if there are minimum of four women’s team entries.

Entries will open about mid-August, 2025.

A successful 2024 bonspiel, with the support of CurlManitoba and Access Credit Union, allowed the committee to make six $500 Bob Picken Junior Legacy grants to support junior curling programs across Manitoba. The recipient clubs included Altona, East St. Paul, Ste. Anne, St. Vital and Teulon.  The sixth successful application was coordinated by the Swan River Curling Club on behalf of the Sliding Stars North junior program.

Beginning in 2019, the bonspiel made $1,500 in junior grants annually (with 2020 missed due to the pandemic). Recipient clubs included:
2023: Winkler, Elmwood, Portage
2022: Carman, Swan River, Westman Development League (Virden)
2021: Interlake Junior Inter-Club League (East St. Paul, Selkirk, Stonewall), Bob Picken Inter-Club Youth League (Pembina, Elmwood, La Salle, Fort Garry, Assiniboine Memorial)
2019: Oakville, Riverview, Thistle

The organizing committee expresses sincere appreciation to the Granite Curling Club for its support and sponsorship of the Picken Open Masters Bonspiel in the years after the bonspiel had to move from Bob Poicken’s home club at Valour Road/Thistle.

The committee is delighted by the move of the one and only BOBSPIEL to CURL ESP, home of one of the most vibrant Masters curling programs in the province, and looks forward to continuing the Bob Picken Junior Legacy grants program. Clubs will be informed of application procedures when next curling season begins.

CurlManitoba has announced a change of dates for the 2026 RME Women of the Rings Championship presented by Case IH.

The Manitoba women’s championship will now be played December 30, 2025 to January 4, 2026. The venue, Riverdale Community Centre in Rivers, is unchanged.

“We very much appreciate the co-operation of the Rivers host committee and the Riverdale Community Centre in making the change,” says CurlManitoba Executive Director Craig Baker.

“The previously announced dates in early January were the best fit in the Grand Slam of Curling’s plans to bring the AMJ Players’ Championship to Steinbach’s new Southeast Event Centre – recently announced for January 6-11, 2026,” said Baker. “The change of dates for the Manitoba Women’s championship event made sense in order to ensure Manitoba curling fans can support their favorite local teams in Rivers and their favorite international teams in Steinbach.”

Curling fans are excited to see the new Southeast Event Centre turned into a curling venue and anticipate the possibility of it hosting future provincial and even national/international championships.

In a year of transition, this year’s Pat Spiring Awards will be presented May 3, 2025 to Jay Kinnaird (Virden) and Kim Link (East St. Paul). The presentations will be a highlight of the annual Manitoba Curling Hall of Fame Induction Dinner presented by Wellington-Altus.

Presented initially at the Viterra championship to the competitor who “shows competitive spirit, love of the game, respect for the tradition and spirit of the sport of curling and on ice curling ability”, consultation with the Spiring family and the dinner’s presenting sponsor, Wellington-Altus, and CurlManitoba has resulted in a transition of the award to become one which is available to both men and women. It also transitions to recognize leadership in the sport of curling along with the sportsmanship, competitive spirit and respect for the traditions of the game which Pat Spiring embodied.

The nominations of several worthy candidates received from curling clubs across the province presented a challenge for the selection committee and the two recipients are exceptional examples of the quality of nominees.

This year’s Pat Spiring Award honourees, Jay Kinnaird (Virden) and Kim Link (East St. Paul) both skipped teams at this season’s Seagram’s Whisky Club Championships, continuing their competitive careers at the same time as their primary focus is club leadership. In the recent past, Link has been a regular competitor at the Senior Women’s level as well, winning Manitoba in 2021 and competing for the third time at the Canadian Seniors in 2022. Kinnaird continues to compete at the men’s level, qualifying as recently as 2023 for the Viterra Championship.

Both Spiring Award recipients have a history of dedicated service, notably as the leader of major events hosted by their respective clubs along with their volunteer board and committee commitments.

Kinnaird was co-chair of the 2019 Viterra Championship in Virden and most recently was a leading force behind the Virden CC’s 125th Annual Bonspiel — an ambitious and successful event that brought together over 120 teams (men, women, mixed teams of all ages) utilizing the local curling club and ice in their arena. His nomination notes “for the past 10+ years, Jay has been a driving force at the grassroots level, serving on the board of our local curling club and contributing to the growth and strength of the curling community – he loves curling and is a skilled competitor and one of the best at bringing the community together at the rink. His ability to balance competitive drive with respect for opponents and officials reflects the core values that the Pat Spiring Award seeks to honor.”

Link was co-chair of East St. Paul’s provincial Scotties in 2023 and before that was involved with organizing other provincial championships including Mixed Provincials, Senior Provincials and another Scotties. Those are the showcase events. Less visible but equally (or more) significant is the leadership provided in 25+ years on the club’s Board of Directors including two terms as President, multiple years as Treasurer, and a valued role as mentor/adviser to new Board members. Her nomination notes “Kim values the curling tradition of sportsmanship and while she plays to win, she does it with respect for her opponent and the rules of the game – the true spirit of the game, the fun and comradery, is what keeps her coming back year after year. Winning is icing on the cake but her true motivation is the love for a game that is steeped in tradition and forms lifetime friendships.”

“CurlManitoba is honoured to participate in this recognition of two skilled competitors who exemplify all that is great about our sport – competitiveness, sportsmanship, respect for opponents and for the traditions of the game. We have deep appreciation for the fact that they have taken on such a strong local leadership role at the same time as they continue to compete at a very high level,” says CurlManitoba Executive Director Craig Baker.

The Pat Spiring Awards will be presented May 3, 2025 at the Victoria Inn, Winnipeg as a feature of the annual Manitoba Curling Hall of Fame Induction Dinner presented by Wellington-Altus.

Friends, family and curling fans wishing to celebrate with the recipients and with 2025 Hall of Fame inductees can still purchase tickets – the advance ticket price of $115 has been extended to April 15. The deadline for ticket purchase is April 24.

Purchase tickets on-line:

ADULT ($115)  https://mb.curling.io/en/products/9138-manitoba-curling-hall-of-fame-fundraising-dinner-ticket-adult

CHILD ($35)  https://mb.curling.io/en/products/9139-manitoba-curling-hall-of-fame-induction-fundraising-dinner-ticket-child

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The 2025 Manitoba Curling Hall of Fame inductees include:

• BUILDER: Darren Oryniak
• CURLER: Dan Carey
• CURLER: Dawn McEwen
• CURLER: Raunora Westcott
• TEAM: Mike McEwen, BJ Neufeld, Matt Wozniak, Denni Neufeld, Coach Chris Neufeld
• TEAM: Randy Neufeld, Dean Moxham, Peter Nicholls, Dale Michie
• TEAM: Ron Westcott, Ken Dusablon, Bob Boughey, Howard Restall

Randy Neufeld and his LaSalle team (Dean Moxham, Peter Nicholls, Dale Michie, Larry Borus) have won the Canadian Masters championship with a 5-4 victory over former champion Mickey Prendergast and his Alberta team.

It is Manitoba’s first Masters title since Ron Westcott and his team won the 2015 title.

(Curling Canada Release) An iconic curling facility with more than 110 years of history will play host to the 2025 Canadian Curling Club Championships, it was announced today by Curling Canada.

The event will be played Nov. 18-23 at Winnipeg’s Granite Curling Club, which opened its doors in 1913 and is popularly known as The Mother Club for Curling in Winnipeg.

“It’s truly fitting that a club with as much history as the Granite Curling Club gets the opportunity to host one of our most popular and meaningful events,” said Nolan Thiessen, Chief Executive Officer of Curling Canada. “The Canadian Curling Club Championships give opportunities to grassroots curlers across Canada to enjoy a national championship experience, and they’ll have a truly special setting in 2025 at the Mother Club in Winnipeg.”

Women’s and men’s champions from Curling Canada’s 14 Member Associations will be competing in Winnipeg in the 16th edition of the Canadian Curling Championships.

While the Granite Club building was opened in 1913, the club itself had already been in existence for three decades.

“We’re thrilled to welcome the 2025 Canadian Curling Club Championship to the Curling Capital of the World,” said Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham. “This city lives and breathes the game, and I know Winnipeggers will give curlers from across Canada a warm and enthusiastic welcome.”

It will be the second time Winnipeg has hosted the Canadian Curling Club Championships. In 2023 at the Assiniboine Memorial Club, New Brunswick’s Team Abby Burgess (Oromocto) won the women’s title while Alberta’s Team Dan Sherrard (Beaumont) claimed the men’s championship.

In the history of the Canadian Curling Club Championships, Manitoba has won a leading four women’s titles, including Team Meghan Armit from the Granite Club winning in 2011 at Richmond, B.C.

Alberta and Ontario teams have each won three women’s titles.

On the men’s side, Manitoba is still seeking its first Canadian Curling Club Championship. Ontario leads the way with five men’s titles, followed closely by Alberta with four.

“The Granite Curling Club is excited for the opportunity to host the 2025 Canadian Curling Club Championships,” said Host Committee Chair Warren Reimer. “The ‘Mother Club’, founded in Winnipeg in 1880, is the traditional centre of excellence promoting the sport of curling in a positive friendly atmosphere for all ages and abilities. The Tudor-framed clubhouse, with its arching rink to the rear, is the province’s oldest curling institution and one of the oldest sporting groups in the province, and is now considered a Heritage Building by the City of Winnipeg. We look forward to welcoming curlers and fans from across the country to spend a week in our city and our beautiful curling club.”

At the 2024 Canadian Curling Club Championships in Barrie, Ont., Nova Scotia’s Team Michelle Armstrong (Lower Sackville) and Ontario’s Team Jordan Keon (Richmond Hill) were crowned women’s and men’s national champions.

“We’re excited to be welcoming the Canadian Curling Club Championships back to Manitoba in 2025 and I know the Granite Club will do a superb job,” said Craig Baker, Executive Director of CurlManitoba. “There is a dedicated group of volunteers who will be working tirelessly to make the event memorable for curlers and fans alike at our most historic club.”

(March 14) Dave Boehmer and his Petersfield team (Dale Lott, Sean Bracken, George Hacking, Alternate Scott Szydlik) have won CurlManitoba’s Strathcona Senior Men’s championship. It is the second championship in three years for the team and the win moves Boehmer and Hacking into a tie with the Neufeld team with their now-record five Manitoba Senior championships.

In a re-match of the 2024 final against Randy Neufeld and his La Salle team (Dean Moxham, Peter Nicholls, Dale Michie, Alternate Larry Borus), Neufeld led 2-1 after a conservative first half when Boehmer blanked the third and fourth ends. The Petersfield skip stuck on an attempted blank on the fifth end to tie the game at 2-2 and give Neufeld last stone advantage.

The last three ends of the game turned into a chess match which Boehmer won, stealing two on the sixth end to lead 4-2 and giving back a deuce to come home tied 4-4 with last stone.

On the final end, lying two already, Boehmer executed a near perfect freeze to his shot stone on the button. Facing three and with his clock ticking down, Neufeld’s desperation hit attempt almost worked but he left the new champions a pair of counters without them having to throw their final rock.

The final game was also a re-match of this year’s Page 1-1 Playoff game which was won 6-2 by Neufeld.

Boehmer trailed in the Monday morning semi-final but stole singles on the home end and the extra end to defeat Paul Scinocca (Charleswood) 6-5. Scinocca had beaten Dean Dunstone (Granite) 5-4 in the Page 2-2 Playoff game.

In the playoff quarterfinal games, which serve as qualifiers for the Page 2-2 Playoff game, Scinocca stole single points on ends 6, 7, and 8 to beat Mike Mahon (Granite) 5-4. Dunstone scored two coming home to defeat Butch Mouck (Minnedosa) 5-3.

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(March 23) FIRST EVER SENIOR WOMEN’S TITLE FOR ST. VITAL: Marlene Lang and her St. Vital team (Pamela Kok, Jackie Hendrickson, Patti Ulrich) have won the Pharmasave Senior Women’s Championship with a Sunday afternoon victory at the East St. Paul Curling Club. Remarkably, it is the first Senior Women’s title for a St. Vital team in the 56-year history of the event.

The Lang foursome completed their four-game round robin with a 3W-1L record but were awarded a spot in the Page 1-1 Playoff game based on the tiebreaker formula. Joelle Brown’s Fort Rouge team had an identical record and tiebreaker advantage.

The Lang-Brown Page 1-1 Playoff game was won 10-1 by the St. Vital team, forcing the Fort Rouge team to the semi-final where they defeated Jennifer Clark-Rouire’s Fort Garry team in a close 5-4 match.

In the final game re-match, coming out of the mid-game break, the Lang foursome scored a four to lead 6-2 enroute to a 10-3 victory.

The CurlManitoba record book shows numerous St. Vital based junior champions, Karen Young and Jennifer Jones (several times) as women’s/Scotties champions, and three Masters Women champions; Elaine Jones, Sylvia Erickson, and Pat Malanchuk.

There has only been one St. Vital Men’s champion, Dave Smith, in the 100 year history of the Manitoba men’s championship. No St. Vital team has ever won the Mixed title.

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(March 19 – CurlManitoba Release) CHAMPIONSHIP RECORDS COULD BE SET AT CURLMANITOBA’S SENIOR CHAMPIONSHIPS: Randy Neufeld (La Salle) and Terry Ursel (Portage) can set new records in Manitoba Senior curling by winning championships this week at East St. Paul in the Strathcona Senior Men’s and Pharmasave Senior Women’s respectively.  Dave Boehmer (Petersfield) and Kim Link (East St. Paul) can join the current record holders if their teams win the championships

Neufeld and his La Salle team (Dean Moxham, Peter Nicholls, Dale Michie) will attempt to add to an already record number of Manitoba Senior Men’s championships when the Strathcona Trust Senior Men’s Championship takes place at East St. Paul Curling Club beginning March 19-24.

The defending, and five-time champion, Neufeld team has been seeded #1 in the 16-team field by the other competing teams.

Petersfield’s Dave Boehmer, who has won four senior championships with two different line-ups and can move into a number-of-wins tie with Neufeld, skips the #2 seeded team. The Boehmer line-up is the same which won the 2023 championship (Dale Lott, Sean Bracken, George Hacking).

Dean Dunstone’s Granite team (Greg Melnichuk, Al Purdy, Bruce Wyche) is the number three seed with 2017 champion Murray Warren’s Brandon team (Jim Renwick, Terry Warren, Ray Tomiak) ranked number four by the teams.

The listed alternates on the four top seeded teams are Larry Borus (Neufeld), Scott Szydlik (Boehmer), Scott Kidd (Dunstone), and Reg Warren (Warren).

Neufeld and Warren headline the Asham Pool in the 16-team round robin format event. Their group includes Wayne Ewasko (Beausejour), Sam Anitla (Burntwood), Paul Scinocca (Charleswood), Barry Swain (Granite), Butch Mouck (Minnedosa), and Gord MacKay (Pembina).

Boehmer and Dunstone lead the Asham Ultra Force pool which also includes Lawrie Hogg (Assiniboine Memorial), Mark Anderson (Brandon), Dean North (Carman), Mike Mahon (Granite), Lawrence Daniel (Hamiota), and Colin Grenkow (Pembina)

Competition begins at 9AM, Thursday, March 20 and continues through to the final at 1PM on Monday, March 24.

Since the Manitoba Senior Men’s championship began in 1965 Neufeld leads the way with five championships while Boehmer and Lloyd Gunnlaugson both have four titles. Kelly Robertson and Barry Fry each skipped three champion teams.

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In the Pharmasave Senior Women’s, three-time former champion Kim Link and her East St. Paul team (Colleen Kilgallen, Renee Fletcher, Pam Namaka) have been rated the #1 seed by their competitors.

The second seed is the Fort Garry team of Jennifer Clark-Rouire (Karen Klein, Susan Baleja, Michelle Shields Buchanan, Coach Howard Restall) while the third seed is 2023 champion Joelle Brown and her Fort Rouge team (Maureen Bonar, Allyson Bell, Natalie Claude).

Defending champion Kathy Isaac’s Hamiota team (Lynn Sandercock, Sheila Gregory, Sandra Cowling) are the fourth seed in the ten-team event.

Link and Isaac are joined in the Asham pool by Laurie Macdonell (Beausejour), Marlene Lang (St. Vital), and 2012 champion Laurie Deprez (Stonewall).

With Clark-Rouire and Brown in the Asham Ultra Force pool are Lori Pelissier (East St. Paul), Terry Ursel (Portage), and Marla Boyd (St. Vital)

Listed alternates for the four top seeded teams are Karen Fallis (Link) and Kim Horne (Brown).

Competition begins at 9AM, Thursday, March 20 and continues through to the final at 4PM on Monday, March 24.The Manitoba Senior Women’s began in 1969. Ursel, who is already a four-time champion skip, can set a record with a fifth win in 2025. With a win on home ice, East St. Paul’s skip Kim Link can move into a tie at the top of the number-of-championships list with Joan Ingram and Elaine Jones and Ursel who each won four championships. Dorothy Mackenzie, Mabel Mitchell, Joyce McDougall, Linda Van Daele, and Lois Fowler each skipped three champion teams.

(Curling Canada News Release) The Gimli, Man., tandem of Kadriana Lott and Colton Lott added another chapter to its storied mixed doubles history Friday afternoon, winning the 2025 Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Championship with a 9-8 extra-end victory over Team Nova Scotia’s Marlee Powers and Luke Saunders (8-3; Halifax) at the Gerard “Turk” Gallant Arena in Summerside, P.E.I. 

The duo will now go on to represent Canada at the 2026 World Mixed Doubles Curling Championship at a location to be named later. The historic win marks the first ever back-to-back Canadian championship victories for any Canadian mixed doubles curling team, with Team Lott/Lott having won in 2024 at Fredericton.  “The feeling you get of winning a national championship; there’s no words to really describe it,” said Colton Lott. “It’s an unbelievable feeling and just for us to have that opportunity to do it back-to-back is phenomenal. We’re going to be great at worlds next year.” 

The Manitobans opened the gold-medal final with a score of three that set the tone early for the match, proving to be the game’s biggest score. It was enough to outpace Team Nova Scotia, who managed to pull even in the sixth and eighth ends, but never once lead.

“They played a great game,” said Kadriana Lott. “They kept us on our toes. We knew we had to make those key big shots which I think we executed really well. We keep pitching away at every shot and, fingers crossed, that you come out win the win.” 

Three shots defined the outcome of the final for Team Lott/Lott; the first being a clutch draw for a second point in the second end, where Kadriana Lott had little more than a third-of-a-rock sized piece of the button to sneak an extra point on the board.  

The second was an extremely thin double takeout to pick two Nova Scotia stones off the four-foot, both of which were nearly fully buried behind a corner-frozen Lott/Lott stone, to leave a single Lott/Lott counter around to score in the fifth end.  

It was a shot so difficult that it was barely there, but the successful outcome changed the complexion of the final for Kadriana Lott. “I’m a lot more comfortable throwing those draws,” said Kadriana Lott. “That pick? From my eyes, you couldn’t really see much down there. It was definitely a momentum swing for myself. It made me feel more confident in making my next shots.” 

The third came in the extra end, where Colton Lott managed a heavy-draw-bump around two guards to remove a Team Nova Scotia stone off the tee-line in the four-foot. Lott was perfect on the execution, forcing Marlee Powers to attack on Team Nova Scotia’s final stone, but the offering hung wide, giving the national title to Team Lott/Lott. 

It’s the third time that Team Lott/Lott will wear the Maple Leaf at a World mixed doubles event; the first at the 2024 World Mixed Doubles Curling Championship at Östersund, Sweden and, the second, at the 2018-19 World Curling Cup at Jönköping, Sweden. 

“We played in the world cup,” said Lott. “But the actual world mixed doubles event just a totally different environment. It makes us that much more prepared for next year when we go.” 

Team Lott/Lott posted a near-perfect 10-1 record on its way to the 2025 Canadian mixed doubles crown, with its only loss coming to Team Jones/Laing 6-4 back in pool play. 

The Canadian mixed doubles title also ties Colton and Kadriana Lott with Team Jocelyn Peterman/Brett Gallant (Chestermere, Alta.) for most all-time with two since the event’s inception in 2013. 

Sean Grassie (Deer Lodge) has won his fourth Manitoba Mixed Championship title. Grassie and his teammates Roxie Trembath, Jordan Johnson and Hilary Johnson (with alternates Tyler Drews & Shyla Johnson) won three games Sunday to win the Chicken Chef Mixed.

The Grassie foursome opened the Sunday afternoon final with a four in the first end against Jeff Stewart and his Carberry team (Alyssa Calvert, Trevor Calvert, Kylee Truscott) and put another three on the board on the forth end enroute to a six end victory.

The Grassie team had beaten Zach Wasylik (Stonewall) and #1 seed Brett Walter (Assiniboine Memorial) to advance to the final. The Stewart foursome had beaten Michael Siwicki (Granite) and #2 seed Daniel Birchard (Pembina) to reach the final game.

Grassie, with different teams, won the 2009, 2012, and 2014 Manitoba Mixed titles. In 2009, he and teammate Allison Nimik were the first Canadians to win a World Mixed Doubles medal, a bronze. He also won the 1999 Manitoba junior title, making this year’s Mixed his fifth Manitoba championship.

It was a second Manitoba title for Roxie Trembath, who won the 2004 Junior Women’s. It is a first Manitoba title for both.Jordan Johnson and Hilary Johnson.

The champions will represent Manitoba at the Canadian Mixed in Assiniboia, SK in the fall of 2025.

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In the concurrent Dynasty U20 Mixed Doubles Championship presented by Access Credit Union, Samantha Eagles and Jack Steski (West St. Paul & Granite) won a pair of games Sunday to add their names to the record book. It is a second Manitoba championship for Steski, who won the 2023 U-18 championship, and the first Manitoba championship for Eagles.

Eagles/Steski defeated Julie Magnusson & Tyler Fehr (Gimli & Morden) in the championship game, leading by three coming home and running them out of stones.

Earlier, Eagles & Steski had beaten #1 seeds Cassidy Dundas & Rylan Campbell in the Page 1-2 game to advance to the final. Magnusson & Fehr defeated the #2 seeds Tessa Terrick & Rylan Graham in the Page 3-4 game and then beat Dundas & Campbell in the semi-final.

The champions have earned entry into Curling Canada’s U-21 Mixed Doubles West Qualifier (Richmond, BC) or East Qualifier (Guelph, ON) in the fall of 2025.