Another reminder for you today, curling fans: if you aren’t following the The Curling News Twitter feed, you’re missing out.Here’s what we’ve posted today:• Is Nunavut curling on the upswing?• SoCal curling on Nov. 7• A look at the scorching Kelly Scott and Bob Ursel teams• Edmonton now hosts a CCA

If you recall September’s launch announcement for Season of Champions TV, you will also recall mention of another new website coming soon: AtThePatch.ca ...!This morning, the official website of curling’s biggest party palace – the Keith’s Patch – went live... check it out!Curling fans can eyeball t

Time for another curling casting call... this time for the Toronto area.Jigsaw Casting Ltd. is looking for male curlers who fit the following characteristics to be featured in an upcoming Tim Hortons Brier print campaign:• Men between the ages of 30-45 of Caucasian ethnicity• Must have some curling

Our friend Terry Jones is back on the curling beat, and not a moment too soon.The veteran Sun Media sports scribe, who also authored the 2007 book The Ferbey Four, was at a “32 days out” ceremony for the massive Roar of the Rings event coming to Edmonton December 6-13.Otherwise known as the Tim Hort

We’ve talked about it before, and we’re talking about it again... It’s Mo’vember.This is the month in which to raise awareness about prostate cancer, to raise some money for research and hopefully save lives.This is the most common cancer among Canadian males, afflicting one in six men, and is a gre

It’s your First Shot for Scotties curling tickets!The latest version of the Canadian Curling Association e-newsletter “Hittin’ the Button” arrived this morning, offering pre-sale tickets to the 2010 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, January 30-February 7 in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.There are four new

The Northern Ontario Curling Association has launched the inaugural “Curling Week in Northern Ontario” presented by Bearskin Airlines, with a trip for two to the STOH and a very cool historical poll all part of the celebration.From today, October 31 through November 8, the campaign aims to honour th

This photo captures the millisecond following the moment of impact of Kevin Koe’s last-shot attempt to win the Grey Power World Cup of Curling.The angle-runback missed by a hair, ticking a front guard, and two of Koe’s team members react with obvious dismay.The photo was shot the stands at the Hersh

Did you hear about the Carrot Cup?TCN publisher George Karrys, who recently made his return as a Toronto-centric Sun Media curling columnist after a 10-year absence, revealed the existence of the Cup for the first time at last week’s Grey Power World Cup of Curling.The tell-all can be read here.And

Mississauga, Grey Power World Cup of CurlingBy Matt HamesRobbery. Theft. Anguish.Going into this game, Team Koe had lost the last 5 Grand Slam finals theyve played in. Make it six, and this one might actually leave a mark.So what happened?Two of the first four shots that Glenn Howard threw were hal

Mississauga: The Grey Power World CupBy Matt HamesHoly smokes, they like run backs.Now, were all for run backs, but team Koe seems to hit first and ask questions later. This isnt a criticism, because its hard to argue with the success. They make run backs like most teams make guards. There isnt

Mississauga:by Matt HamesThis Howard team is kind of annoying. Dont get me wrong, I like to watch them, but they bug me.They should have been down at least one (maybe more) at the fourth end break. Team Koe totally out played them and could have been up 4-0. (I still say that Koe should have capped

Mississauga:by Matt HamesSo here we are, the second half of the game is underway. When I got here, I was surprised to learn that team Koe has been in 5 Grand Slam finals and is 0-fer in all finals.This is a big second half for Kevin Koe and the team. If youre following this live posting, then youl

Mississauga: by Matt HamesSo heres the skinny.Team Koe dominates the first half of the game. We posted on Twitter that Koe was all over Howard like a cheap suit.We dont care what the numbers say, there was never a point in this game where Koe had discomfort until Blake MacDonalds last rock in the

The only sweeper on the sheet who sweeps with two grippers is Nolan Thiessen.This isnt a knock on Nolan, but I think its better for the game if sweepers can use their slider. Just watch the motion of the sweeper using two grippers. Its an almost slide with a gripper on the ice.Inevitably, that sw

Mississauga:by Matt HamesAt this level, its really hard to pick the right spot for a center guard. Koe starts end #1 with a half way guard.Any higher, and you can get rid of a rock thats buried with back line weight. Any tighter, and Howard just runs back the guard.The real value in the guard come

The Grey Power World Cup:Mississauga-- by Matt HamesSo here we are, in Mississauga for Act III. Ill be your live blogger for what is the third year in a row that Glenn Howard takes on Kevin Koe in the final of the World Cup of Curling.Here are some stats that Im sure CBC will mention:1. Its the t

It has begun.The flame was lit in Olympia, Greece today for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games and carried off by the first relay runner on a journey of more than 47,000 kilometres to Vancouver.The Olympic flame is to be carried 2,180 kilometres across Greece this week and will arrive in Victoria, Britis

Here we go!The first issue of the 2010 Olympic curling season is now arriving at subscriber’s doors, and in extremely limited supply at curling clubs.Got yours?We’ve updated our website with the latest TCN Top 15 Men and Women (hello there, new #1 Thomas Ulsrud!) and with selected contents of this i

Russ Howard roared, particularly on this stone (a missed draw for two in the seventh end) but to no avail, as he lost yesterday’s Bern Open finale to Norway’s Thomas Ulsrud by a 7-5 score.The 2006 Olympic and two-time world curling champion had a 4-1 lead but watched the Norwegian 2010 Olympic hopef

Kris takes us through the playoffs at the CurlTV.com September Shootout where David and Heather Nedohin's teams are looking for 1st place. Brad Gushue and Kevin Martin do battle in the final at the Shorty Jenkins Classic.

The Canadian Curling Association announced the 2011 Tim Hortons Brier, presented by Monsanto, will take place in London, Ontario. The 82nd edition of the Canadian men's curling championship will be played at the 9,100 seat John Labatt Centre, March 5-13, 2011. It will mark the 30th time that th

Kris Laudien takes us through highlights from the CurlTV.com September Shootout and a quick look at the Shorty Jenkins Classic.

The Capital One Grand Slam of Curling, the World Curling Tour and iSport Media and Management announced that Grey Power has been awarded the title sponsorship of the inaugural Grey Power World Cup of Curling. Previously titled the Masters of Curling, the tournament will be the first men’s Capi

With WCT action underway, Kris reveals the 2011 Brier has landed in London, Ontario and the Players Championship has a new name.

The first WCT of the season is almost underway. Team USA adds some veteran leadership to Olympic squads and Kris reveals a new way to watch CurlTV.

Kris starts off September with wrapping up the New Zealand Winter Games, the US names their Coach of the Year and a preview to the first WCT event of the season.

Shannon Kleibrink nominated for Sportswoman of the Year and we reveal your number one shot of the year.

2010 U.S. Olympic team nominees John Shuster and Natalie Nicholson have been named the 2009 USA Curling Athletes of the Year. While, in the team category, the Brady Clark mixed squad from Seattle earned the top honors.Both Shuster and Nicholson have been nominated to Team USA for the 2010 Olympic Wi

The Olympic Curling Schedule is out and shot number 2 of your shots of the year is revealed.

It's the middle of summer and although you might be in the garden, at the lake, or entertaining visiting family, this piece of Olympic news is destined to grab your attention. The Draw Schedule for the Vancouver Olympics has been released following an agreement by the Vancouver Olympic Committe

Kris Laudien reports on which curlers make up the new WCPA Board. Also, the 3rd best Shot of the Year is revealed.

Kris Laudien reports on Ed Lukowich departure from the USCA. Also, the 4th best shot of the year is revealed.

The Canadian Curling Association reported at its annual general meeting that for a second consecutive year it will finish the fiscal year in the black, with a continued positive financial outlook. The Association tabled a financial surplus for the 2008-09 year of $879,692, resulting in a total ac

Ed Lukowich has resigned from his consultancy position as athlete development director with the United States Curling Association, closing out nearly a decade of service. "After nine years in the position of USCA athlete development director, I feel it is time for a change both for me, and in part

There is one week left to cast your vote for the World Curling Players Association Board of Directors. After a nomination process brought forward several excellent candidates, voting opened online June 12 and will conclude Friday, June 26 at 2:00pm ET. The new WCPA Board will consist of eight elec

WCT Players Association voting is under way, Anwttw Norberg will get a shot at defending her Olympic medal and shot number 5 of the shots of the year.

Following Swedish Olympic Committee tryouts held on June 10, Anette Norberg and her 2006 Olympic Champion foursome of Eva Lund, Cathrine Lindahl and Anna Svaerd have been appointed as Sweden’s representative for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Team. “We are incredibly proud and pleased that

The Canadian Curling Association announced that Monsanto Canada has extended its involvement as the presenting sponsor of several premier curling championships in Canada through 2013. This new multi-year agreement makes Monsanto the presenting sponsor of the 2010 Ford world women’s curling cha

Kris Laudien reports in on the Pheasant Classic in Brooks, Alberta and video #6 in this weeks Shot of the Year.

Amy Nixon is in Mississauga, Ont., this weekend, wondering if her time might be better spent in Winnipeg.The vice-skip for Shannon Kleibrink’s Calgary curling team is, along with her teammates, taking part on the Three Nations Cup tournament being held in conjunction with the Capital One Grand

There's been an outpouring of sympathy in the curling world to the Miller family after the recent death due to a brain tumour of Linda Miller. Her daughters, Stefanie Lawton and Marliese Kasner, are two of the top female curlers on the planet, and they continued to be so as the mom fought bravel

OK, it takes a lot for a Youtube video to make me laugh out loud. But this one, pointed out to me by curlingzone.com’s Gerry Geurts, truly did. I have no idea who produced it, except that apparently they’re from the Guelph, Ont., area.But anybody who read this blog nearly two years ago,

Let’s face facts, Kelly Scott’s options were fairly limited when it came to replacing Renee Simon at lead on her Kelowna women’s curling team.Most of the top players in the country were already in either the Olympic Trials or the pre-Trials, leaving a fairly thin talent pool.But yo

Based on reports out of the U.K., it looks like Eve Muirhead, the three-time reigning world junior women's champ from Scotland, will handle skipping duties for the newly named Great Britain team at next February's Winter Olympics in Vancouver.Interesting choice; I thought Muirhead, who's

OK, here's more on the Kelly Scott story; in fact, down below is the story I wrote and is being distributed on the Canwest wire today, with comments from Kelly herself.As far as a replacement for Renee Simons goes, Scott would appear to have plenty of options; any player outside of the Sweet 16

And so it begins . . . You can take it to the bank that the next few months will feature some significant fine-tuning of lineups leading to the Pre-Trials tournament in Prince George, and Kelly Scott has made the first move.Scott, the 2007 world champion, has made a change at the lead position, tell

There was no shortage of Alberta content on the medal podium at the world mixed doubles championship, which wrapped up Saturday in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.The one most of you knew about was Calgary’s Alli Nimik, who teamed with Winnipeg’s Sean Grassie to claim the bronze medal wit

It’s shaping up as an interesting closing weekend at the Grey Power Players’ Championships up in Grande Prairie.One thing I can definitively tell you know is that Calgary’s Cheryl Bernard has qualified directly into next December’s Tim Hortons Olympic Trials in Edmonton, by v

MONCTON, N.B. — Excuse me while I hit the delete button on the 400 words I’d already typed trumpeting Canada’s victory in the Ford worlds gold-medal game tonight.The last time I’d done that much work thinking the result was inevitable — Kevin Martin with a two-point lea

I know something you don’t know. Or at least something most of you don’t know.We all know that Glenn Howard and Kevin Martin have qualified directly for the Tim Hortons Olympic Trials in December at Rexall Place in Edmonton.But the Canadian Curling Association is now confirming that Edmo

MONCTON, N.B. — It’s been an awful long time since I’ve seen Kevin Martin look as befuddled and frustrated as he did here Friday night during the Page playoff one vs. two game.Probably the last time was during his round-robin victory over Randy Ferbey at the Boston Pizza Cup Albert

MONCTON, N.B. — Mind games? Kevin Martin? Hmmmm . . . Well, you have to wonder after tonight’s round-robin finale thriller loss to Scotland’s David Murdoch.All week long, Martin had pointed at the red rocks on Sheet D as being the worst in the building, noting the Scots lost to the

MONCTON, N.B. — It was nice earlier in the week to see all the former world champions wandering around the Moncton Coliseum, and there was an amazing gathering of curling history that took place in one of the suites at the Delta Beausejour when the Richardsons and Kevin Martin’s reigning

MONCTON, N.B. — The World Curling Federation folks spent the Tuesday in various meetings discussing various future rule-changes, none of which will be on the table at today’s annual general meeting.Just discussions on various options for down the road, beyond the 2010 Olympics, including

That was a massive win for the Chinese this morning over Scotland, and it will put a temporary end to some internal frustration on that team that boiled over here last night when coach Dan Rafael, a Lachine, Que., native who guided Bingyu Wang to the women’s world title a couple weeks ago, lit

I present to you, in their unadulterated form, Ben Hebert’s take on the opening-weekend ice conditions at the Moncton Coliseum.“One of our biggest strengths is sweeping, and we can’t use it to get around guards or drag rocks. Sweeping does nothing. If you throw it light, it doesn&r

Some interesting doings back home in Alberta leading into the Grey Power Players’ Championships in Grande Prairie.On the women’s side, there’s a domino effect being created by Calgary’s Heather Rankin pulling out with an injury. Stepping in for her team will be local hero Ren

MONCTON — OK, I’m going to get all Canadian chauvinist for a moment here.Germany is playing Switzerland in the morning draw right now and one of the teams just scored three in the sixth end. Problem is, it’s hard to tell which team did it because BOTH teams were high-fiving.For the

MONCTON — MVP award today goes to Hans Wuthrich, unquestionably.In his mind, there were the makings for an utter disaster here tonight at the Moncton Coliseum with the warm, muggy weather outside and a good crowd inside to watch Canada’s opening game at the Ford worlds.Maybe there was a

Today is a big day for me. I’m heading out to buy curling pants. Whoo-hooo. As I mentioned in a previous blog, after a three-year absence from the ice due to injuries and driving my hockey-playing son all over Southwestern Ontario, I’m back throwing rocks. And I need new, updated gear. At the Hershe

Scott Taylor, curling’s busiest man, dropped me a note yesterday reminding me to help promote Movember. This is a great promotion that helps raise funds for Prostate Cancer Canada. Prostate Cancer Canada raises funds for the development of programs related to awareness, public education, advocacy, s

It’s been a good couple of weeks for Glenn Howard and his team. The boys took home $22,000 for winning the Brooks Cactus Pheasant for the second straight year, knocking off Kevin Martin in the final. This has become – in a very short time – one of the most popular stops on the Asham World Curling To

I’m writing a column on whether or not the success of the Grand Slam event last week at the Hershey Centre means Toronto could host a Tim Hortons Brier. Plus side: great arena and facility (patch attached!) at the Ricoh Centre, media centre of Canada so lots of attention, 23 curling clubs in TCA, mo

Here is a link to todays Globe column. Its on the fitness levels of the curlers. Ive been impressed with how hard the curlers are working at this and of course Dean Gemmells book with John Morris, Fit To Curl, is proof that this isnt just a flash in the pan. I sort of liken it to when Tiger Woo

According to Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star, the Grand Slam of Curling drew some decent numbers for the recent broadcast from the Hershey Centre. The quarter-final on Saturday drew 483,000 viewers while Sunday’s final was watched by 441,000.Considering it was up against the NFL, the CFL and MLB

So a few of us knee-sliders were sitting around yesterday talking about the Olympics and curling. A question was posed: do you think the Canadian men or Canadian women will face stiffer opposition in Vancouver? Interesting question, don’t you think?In three Olympics, Canadian curlers have never fail

So over the weekend I was helping my parents clean out the homestead where theyve lived for the past 35+ years and I made an interesting discovery -- About seven boxes of my first curling book, The Brier: The History of Canadas Most Celebrated Curling Championship. This book was my real baby, a la

Heres a link to my report of the Grey Power World Cup of Curling final in todays Globe. And here are some thoughts about the final. Note the picture -- its of the cheque that never got handed out. :• Glenn Howard’s team may one of the best at mid-game adjustments. After getting off to a slow star

Today we get a final at the Grey Power World Cup that should be quite interesting. Either Glenn Howard will get his first win of the year or Kevin Koe will finally get a Grand Slam victory.In the quarters, to take nothing away from Brad Gushues team, but I cant remember when Ive seen Kevin Martin

Here’s my Globe and Mail column for Saturday. It’s a feature on Glenn Howard and Kevin Martin, and how those two may be the favourites heading to the Trials, but strange things have happened at that event in the past.

Day 2 at the Grey Power World Cup of Curling was another good one with what I would say are decent crowds. Again, I had to miss the evening draw (for my own curling game) but the afternoon draw was about 1/3 to ½ full. Some thoughts from the day:• I ran into Dean Gemmell and he gave me a copy of his

I spent much of yesterday at the Hershey Centre, watching the teams practice in preparation for the Grey Power World Cup event. Actually, I got to through a few rocks too. There was a media “event” that allowed us ink-stained wretches to toss some granite prior to the practice and I’m proud to say,

I had a chance to speak with David Murdoch yesterday in advance of the Grey Power World Cup of Curling and you can read the results of the interview here. (By the way, this marks the start of my 21st year as the Globes curling columnist.)I think Murdoch and his team are exceptional talents and in a

I was back on the ice for a regular curling game the other night, my first in three years. Owing to injuries and a son who played hockey all over hell’s half acre, I haven’t slipped the slider on for some time and it showed – my poor skipper!Anyway, several of the guys on the ice are involved in the

I finally managed to get through the CCA’s Season of Champions TV special which was supposed to go live last week, but ended up with a whack of technical difficulties and had to be taped and posted for re-broadcast. Overall, I thought it was a pretty good effort and there was a lot of interesting co

Nice to see that Jim Armstrong is going to lead the Canadian team at the Paralympics. The announcement of the team, which also includes third Darryl Neighbour, second Ina Forrest, lead Sonja Gaudet, Coach Joe Rea of and alternate is Bruno Yizek of Calgary, came down today from the CCA. Canada is the

This one is pretty hard to believe, but some person has stolen almost all the curling rocks in Australia. Heres the story from Garth Woolsey in the Toronto Star: It might not have been the crime of the century, but in the annals of sport what happened this past week in Australia amounts to the gran

Maybe I’m the lone guy in this, but I’m not one who thinks the world of curling changed when Bingyu Wang won yesterday’s (today’s) women’s world championship. Yes, it’s marvelous that China grabbed its first global crown. And it’s stunning just how quickly this team became world-class. And yes, it’s

I don’t know why I’m still surprised whenever Canada loses in a world curling championship, but I am.So when Jennifer Jones lost to Anette Norberg yesterday (or is it today?), in the 3-vs-4 game, it was news. I’m still living in the last century when Canada always seemed to win the worlds. Of course

I am currently performing maintenance on this blog, and will continue to be making improvements over the next few months. I will be changing the permalinks in this wordpress blog from: blog/year/month/title /%year%/%monthnum%/%postname%/ to blog/category/title /%category%/%postname%/ or just /%pos

[ November 8, 2008 to November 15, 2008. ] What: 2009 Canadian Mixed Curling Championship Where: Iqaluit, NU When: Nov. 8 - 15, 2008

Oliver Curling Club, Oliver. Saturday, February 28th, 2009 - Sunday, March 1st, 2009

Valley Curling Club, Cloverdale. Tuesday, February 24th, 2009 - Saturday, February 28th, 2009

Valley Curling Club, Cloverdale. Tuesday, February 24th, 2009 - Saturday, February 28th, 2009

Duncan Curling Club, Duncan. Monday, February 23rd, 2009 - Thursday, February 26th, 2009

Duncan Curling Club, Duncan. Monday, February 23rd, 2009 - Thursday, February 26th, 2009

Nelson Curling Club, Nelson. Saturday, February 21st, 2009 - Sunday, February 22nd, 2009

North Shore Winter Club, North Vancouver. Thursday, March 5th, 2009 - Sunday, March 8th, 2009

Smithers Curling Club, Smithers. Thursday, March 5th, 2009 - Saturday, March 7th, 2009

Smithers Curling Club, Smithers. Thursday, March 5th, 2009 - Saturday, March 7th, 2009

Tunnell Town Curling Club, Tsawwassen. Saturday, February 28th, 2009 - Monday, March 2nd, 2009

Nelson Curling Club, Nelson. Saturday, February 28th, 2009 - Sunday, March 1st, 2009

Kimberley Curling Club, Kimberley. Monday, March 23rd, 2009 - Saturday, March 28th, 2009

Winfield Curling Club, Winfield. Monday, March 16th, 2009 - Thursday, March 19th, 2009

Winfield Curling Club, Winfield. Monday, March 16th, 2009 - Thursday, March 19th, 2009

Williams Lake Curling Club, Williams Lake. Saturday, March 7th, 2009 - Sunday, March 8th, 2009

North Shore Winter Club, North Vancouver. Thursday, March 5th, 2009 - Sunday, March 8th, 2009

Nelson Curling Club, Nelson. 2009/02/21 - 2009/02/22

Oliver Curling Club, Oliver. 2009/02/28 - 2009/03/01

Nelson Curling Club, Nelson. 2009/02/28 - 2009/03/01

Valley Curling Club, Cloverdale. 2009/02/24 - 2009/02/28

It must be here or I wouldn't b e upating this blog. Here's the media release and everything else you need to know about the Sandra Schmirler Curling Classic. Enjoy but in moderation. We don't want to get going too hard too early, there is still golf left. I hope. Schmirler Charity Curli

Thanks for logging on. Bloglines returns next curling season.

A three-year run of the CTRS comes to an end this week with the Players Championship. Good and about time. I've avoided writing anything about Curling's Totally Rank System because it was too confusing to explain to non-curlers. But it has sorted itself out nicely and this media release does

The latest on the WCT Players' championship next month. Kevin Martin and Glenn Howard Lead Canada’s Top 16 Men’s Teams at Grey Power Players’ Championship Season-ending Capital One Grand Slam of Curling event the final opportunity for teams to secure a berth into the Cana

Here's a rare post to bloglines for your reading pleasure. I understand the men's teams are to be announced on Thursday. Defending Champion Amber Holland and Krista McCarville Secure Final Two Grey Power Players’ Championship BerthsSeason-ending Capital One Grand Slam of Curling event

This item was included in the media package for the Canada Cup of Curling. It actually explains where it stands with the trials. Teams Already Qualified directly into the 2009 Tim Hortons Canadian Curling Trials (Roar of the Rings), December 6-13 in Edmonton Men 1. Kevin Martin2. Glenn Howard3. To b

We're headed into the 10th end for Hack To House. Saskatchewan's best-read and most popular curling column (in a survey conducted by me in my living room) returns to the L-P on Thursday. It was on haitus while I enjoyed the sand, sun and all-inclusive food and drink in Mexico. Still recoveri

The nearly latest from the SCA   Curling2009 Ramada Hotel Juvenile Saskatchewan Curling Championshipat KindersleyParticipating teams (listed skip to lead)Region Number: 1. Swift Current — Mickey Wallace, Justin Senicar, Jason Senicar, Dwight Butler; Coach: Murray Senicar2. Assiniboia

Here's the latest from the CCA on the Canada Cup of Curling. Enjoy! YORKTON, Saskatchewan, March 17, 2009SThe $150,000 Canada Cup of Curling, presented by Richardson International, gets underway Wednesday in the 1,800-seat Farrell Agencies Arena at the Gallagher Centre in Yorkton, Saskatchewan.

I’ve returned from my Brier-cation in lovely Puerto Vallarta, along the Pacific Coast in Mexico.Yep, I know I missed the Brier and everything else and it sounds like it was a great show. I spent Monday reading the stories on the web and catching up with everything that took place.I jump back i

Bloglines is gone on a first-ever winter vacation and I'm too excited to tpye, I mean, type. Check back after March 16 for updates.

Well, it's finally here. The most anticipated Tim Hortons Brier since, er,. well last year, starts this afternoon. The draw ls loaded with good games and some that may well be great. As you can tell, the L-P didn't send me to the Brier either. The Brier didn't fit into our budget, so I&#

Here's the latest from TSN on the Brier.   Sweeping Live Coverage of 2009 TIM HORTONS BRIER, Begins Saturday on TSN   – Exclusive end-to-end coverage consists of more than 60 hours live, featuring every draw including playoffs and final for the first time on TSN – –

The curling season isn't over for Regina's Michelle Englot. Winnipeg's Jennifer Jones has withdrawn from the Canada Cup of Curling, which takes place in Yorkton. The withdrawal of Jones, who successfully defended her Canadian title on the weekend, cleared a spot for Englot to take part.

The Tim Hortons Brier starts Saturday and I'm getting a head start on my advance copy for the Canadian men's curling championship. Of course, I focus on Saskatchewan and I also throw in a story on Brier Ben. I would expect the national copy will start flowing on Friday. So, if you want the i

Yep, here's the latest media release setting up the Brier, which starts when? Yep, Saturday. Where? You know it, in Calgary.   Exceptional field for 2009 Tim Hortons Brier March 3, 2009SAn incredible field is ready to battle at the Tim HortonsBrier, presented by Monsanto, March 7-15

Ben Hebert is on the cusp of throwing rocks in a fifth straight Brier when the action begins Saturday in Calgary. Hebert reached Briers in 2005 and 2006 with Pat Simmons and has qualified for the last three with Alberta's Kevin Martin. I believe that Ben is the only male curler from Saskatchewan

We’ve heard a lot about Eugene Hritzuk’s shoes the last few months.By now, you know that Hritzuk’s prized 16-year-old custom-made curling shoes were stolen out of his truck in Saskatoon. Hritzuk went to the media and pleaded for whoever took the shoes to return them. Hritzuk also p

The world juniors start Thursday and two days later, so does the Brier. Here's the latest media release from the WCF on the world juniors. No word about TV coverage, though. VANCOUVER -- The 2009 World Junior Curling Championships begin  Thursday March 5, featuring 20 teams - 10 male and 10

Heh, if you can stay up past 11 p.m., then Monday is your lucky night. I make my annual curling appearance on Global TV with Warren Woods. Here's hoping we get the same audience numbers the Scotties final got on Sunday.  

A few days after Team Howard finished on top at the first Capital One Grand Slam of the season, we talked to Third Richard Hart about the event, the season so far and the impossibility of throwing the rock like Glenn Howard. Subscribe to this podcast by clicking on the iTunes feed or use the [...]

It’s interesting to see the influence of second Brent Laing when it comes to strategic decisions on Team Howard. Whenever Rich and Glenn are mulling over a complicated situation, Laing is the one who weighs in and, typically, his opinion carries the day. After giving up a steal in the second

Down 5-1 without the hammer, the Swedes threw up two corner guards. Edin is now freezing to second shot with four Koe counters in the rings. There’s a reason people with the hammer like corner guards. Koe scores an easy deuce. On the other sheets that aren’t on television, Team Howard

A nice crowd starting to fill in but the schedule seems to be a bit of a guideline. It’s a few minutes before three o’clock and the only team practice that’s underway is on Sheet B. I guess TV will do that. (They’ve just announced that it’s a staggered start with some g

It seems that at every round-robin curling event there is much talk about tiebreakers as the qualifying games near their end. And while there have been exceptions over the years, it seems that, when all is said and done, there are usually no tiebreakers. That’s exactly what happened here at t

With 14 rinks and 8 teams into the Quarter-Finals, we’ve reached Draw 8 and hardly any teams are eliminated. Outside of China, Great Britain and France, every team is still in the mix since a 3-3 record should mean at least a tie-breaker. Kleibrink-Muirhead on the ice during this draw and Sha

First, the morning. After Draw Six, it’s safe to say the most disappointed teams are Murdoch and Ferbey. Team Gushue made short work of the Great Britain’s Olympic reps this morning — Murdoch and company seem flummoxed by the ice. The percentages from the Curling Zone stats nerds, who pr

Howard and Martin can both qualify for the playoffs with wins tonight. Howard very comfortable with a 3-1 lead in Seven. Martin sort of comfortable tied with the brick in Seven.

Team Gushue snuck out a win against Ralph Stoeckli earlier and now seems to be playing Glenn Howard awfully tough. That said, a deuce is brewing for Howard. And there it is as Brad overcurls with a freeze on his last and Glenn draws the four-foot for his two. Lots of terrific shotmaking in Ullsrud-

Ullsrud-Martin. Gushue-Howard. Then a European Championship — Defour-Edin, Stoeckli-Kapp, Murdoch-Schmidt. The crowd seems to be filling in pretty well tonight. Curlers in the GTA have worked hard on this event and it’s nice to see a decent crowd. I’d still like to see a few more butts

If you noticed the line score from the Draw 1 game between Randy Ferbey and Fengchun Wang looked a bit strange (a 4-2 Ferbey win with nothing recorded for the seventh end), that’s because things on the ice were weird. They’re using Thinking Time here at the Grey Power World Cup of Curl

Koe-Ferbey is the center sheet while Murdoch-Howard are right next to them. Those two games look to be the best of the afternoon. After I said Edin et al were in over their heads, they went out and handed it to Ferbey in the 1 PM draw. After I said Gushue was struggling mightily, they [...]

Team Gushue is struggling mightily. Things would be even worse if the Swiss hadn’t swept Ralph Stoeckli’s draw in Four to the button instead of the top of the four foot. Brad wound up with a relatively simple tap for one when he could have found himself playing a circus shot. Andy Kapp

So I’m here. Dean Gemmell, that is. I’ll be blogging all weekend. I’ll probably record some conversations as well but I’m not likely to post them until next week. I’m hoping a few more Toronto-area curling fans get here, too. But I’m optimistic about this evening

Win the best-of-seven series that determines the Swiss Olympic side on October 14th. Travel to Toronto to compete in the Grey Power World Cup of Curling on October 19th. Block out rest of season for Olympic preparation. It’s been a busy few days for Simon Struebin but he still found time — eve

It’s the first time I’ve recorded an interview with two curlers at once. Since it was two guys who usually aren’t at a loss for words, there was plenty of material. Ryan and Jamie talk about Team Gushue’s fast start, the upcoming season, what it’s like to compete when y

He’s a good bet to win any event he leads a team into and he’s the perennial favorite to represent Manitoba at the Tim Horton’s Brier. He’s Jeff Stoughton and he joined us for a conversation as the curling season starts to unfold. Subscribe to this podcast by clicking on the

Ending a summer hiatus, we’re back with an interview with John Morris to start the season. And as I admit in the introduction, it’s a bit self-promotional since we discuss the book, Fit to Curl: A Sport-Specific Guide to Training for the World’s Greatest Game, that I helped write.

The 1998 Olympic Silver Medalist who moved to the media bench offers his take on the past curling season and the importance of this upcoming Olympic year. Lots of good thoughts for people who follow the game and try to build it at the club level. Subscribe to this podcast by clicking on the iTunes

He’s spent a lot of time chasing dreams on ice — he tells us he started curling when he was 10. So it was nice to see Eugene Hritzuk get a big win last May — that’s right, May — at the World Senior Men’s Curling Championship in Dunedin, New Zealand. That’s a long way for curl

Hope everyone is enjoying their summer. Before you know it curling will be upon us again. Until then look back again and marvel at this shot that Glenn Howard made at this past year’s Brier. I think it’s still the best shot I’ve ever seen, what do you think?

Due to popular demand we have added some new local city curling club listings to CurlingRink.ca. We’re hoping to make it easier for to find the best local club in your area. We’ll be adding listings for all the major centres across Canada over the next while, but here is our first set

The registration for the Little Rocks and Junior program will be held on November 2, 2009 and the Bathurst Curling Club. If you are available to help please call the club at 546-5665. Its going to be a busy time.

Our thanks to The Northern Light for the following article which appeared on October 20, 2009 edition in the Sports Section.Bathurst Curling Club looks forward to its second century of operationLongtime downtown fixture marks 100 years this DecemberClick on the article for a larger view.

For a bigger view please click on item.

LocationBathurst Curling Club209 rue St Andrew StBathurst NB E2A 1C3506-546-5665, please leave a message, s.v.p. nous laisser un message.Mailing Address postaleBathurst Curling ClubC.P./P.O. Box 692Bathurst NB E2A 3Z6We can be reach through the following e-mail address/Contacter nous à ladresse d

Season beings November 9, 2009. Wobble days November 9, 10, 11, and 12.More information to come on September 24, 2009 please check back with us.Time to dust off your curling shoes.

Bathurst Curling Club annual meeting is on May 27The Bathurst Curling Club will be holding its annual general meetingthis month.All members are encouraged to attend the meeting, which will take placeMay 27 at 7:30 p.m. at the club.Included on the agenda is the election of the executive for the2009-2

History has been made this our 100 season.Well tonight was the last regular season play for Thursday and the bragging rights belongs to team Scott Hachey, of course skipped by Scott Hachey, mate Zachary Robichaud, second stone John LeBlanc (yup of Max 104.9) and first stone Rene Theriault. Congratu

Congratulation to Team “The Northern Light” who has won the bragging rights for our 100 anniversary. Team members are skip Peter Assaff, mate Jim Walker, second stone Andre Lanteinge and first stone Kevin Murchie.To all our Tuesday night curlers, thanks to you it was a great season.

In tonight play in Alberta Buttimer CA competitive league’s last night of play for the season did see:Pat Maher defeated Chris Fisher,Terry MacDonald outscored Emile Babineau,Omer Fontaine beat Alvin Lavigne,Fred Elhatton got by John Ferguson and,Marc Imbeault outscored Joel Roy, and congratulation

This is the man whos responsible for it all, all the members thank you Emile.

--------Ron not shown in this photo is in our first team up above is our event photographer, great shots on and off the ice Ron, Thank you!

Our thank you to all the volunteers in the kitchen as well as all who helped out during this special 100 anniversary of the clubs curling under the sheet event, we couldnt have done it without your help. THANK YOU! and THANK YOU to all participants.

For the great meal we owe our thanks to Omer and Lynn, congratulations on a job well done. Omer and Lynn are camera shy but here they are.Again thank you Lynn and Omer, from all of us at the Curling club.