I spent a day or so recovering from a curling bonspiel known as the Bulldog. The Bulldog is an old-school men’s ’spiel, held at the curling club at the end of my street in East Toronto. There is roast beef, drinking, door prizes and even curling on club-level ice. It’s great to see that events like this still exist.
An unexpected bonus: they had the irrepressible 2006 Olympian Amy Nixon as a celebrity guest speaker!
So after a three-game Saturday, a few rye-and cokes and listening to Amy drop a few F-bombs and spill some tea, I thought I would take it easy and catch up on all the curling happenings that have occurred over a busy couple of weeks.
First, the Olympic Trials.
They were hosted in Halifax. While the format was ripe for a dramatic finish, both the men and women avoided a game three decider, with Brad Jacobs and Rachel Homan winning the right to represent Canada at Cortina in February.
Neither result is particularly shocking. Jacobs was the odds-on favourite in a strong men’s field. They looked better than everyone else, although the Matt Dunstone and Mike McEwen teams showed some game.
The Trials, as they often do, produced some uncharacteristic misses… including from Dunstone, in both of the two-game finals. I’m sure Matt will have some skip night terrors over a few of the rocks he threw – like the board weight takeout in the 10th end of Game 1 – but in the end I think Jacobs will give Canada’s men the strongest chance at a medal.
Jacobs is the most fearless big-weight thrower I have ever seen. He takes on double takeouts that make us mere mortals tremble. Even the one he threw in the ninth end of Game 2 was a skinnier double than most skips would be willing to try.
He is the best in the world at it, and will have a good chance at bringing home a medal in what is a ridiculous Olympic field.
On the women’s side, alI I can say is that it’s too bad I refuse to participate in the moral travesty that is sports betting, ’cuz I would have made a bundle.
(Side note: if you have any doubt of the influence of sports betting on pro sports, watch the end of the Denver-Las Vegas NFL game this past week).
I actually predicted the final three, and predicted Homan to win it all. Okay, that one was not unexpected. But I also predicted Christina Black would step up and finish second over Kerri Einarson.
Christina has been a growing force in the last few Scotties. While I think they still need some more growth before they’re ready to bear the Olympic burden, it was great to see them get experience at the highest level of the sport. I was happy to have been right on that one.
All in all, the Trials was compelling television as usual. From Gushue going out by a millimetre on a Bottcher blown line call, to the McEwen near four against Dunstone in the semis (when he was down three playing 10), the Trials brings out the best in curling. The Brier and Scotties are still huge, but the trials are a four-year wait. Teams are geared towards that one week of curling, and you can feel the stress oozing through the TV screen.
A few thoughts:
• I love Halifax, but damn, can we hold the event in a place with perfect ice next time? If the Halifax arena can’t manage dehumidification, let’s host the event someplace dry. A few of the games looked like my last few ends at the Bulldog, with unpredictable draw times and lots of frost. No fun.
• Please don’t make me watch Lanny McDonald and Daryl Sittler in another commercial. This is a typical Brier/curling commercial that would probably be okay to watch three or four times, but when you have to watch it every freakin’ end you want to tell them both to just turn off the hearing aid, be quiet and eat their damn breakfast.
• Why doesn’t curling have a 20-30 minute post-game show, if only for something as big as the Trials? I would love to watch live reactions from some celebrity commentators after the game. I feel like 30 seconds after Gushue missed his last shot, TSN had switched to the Leafs on SportsCentre. Recap the game, show some highlights from other games, have some talking heads get excited and keep the drama rolling. Feels like a missed opportunity.
Finally... I would be remiss to not mention the passing of an icon.
Colleen Jones has been synonymous with curling for as long as I can remember. I was too young to remember her first Scotties, but she was always present as the on-ice reporter for countless events, before TSN coverage took over the Canadian game. Then, after a crazy 20+ year gap, she returned to the Scotties and went on one of the most dominant runs in modern times. Her team elevated the women’s game.
Colleen was a fierce competitor, and all business on the ice. I was lucky enough to play her at a national mixed in the 1990s. She was intense then as well, even at a mixed. I also had the good fortune of being interviewed by her on That Curling Show during the craziness that was the Bubble Brier. I feel that was the show that really displayed the deep love she had for the game, and the people who play it. She was contagiously passionate. And funny.
I will loudly chew a big piece of gum during my next game, in commemoration of her life well-curled.