Wednesday Open 8 Ender

Happy Brier's Eve all you fellow Curling Chronics! I feel the same way today as I used to when it was Christmas Eve when I was a kid. The only difference here is that it's Christmas day for me for a week! And I bet it was like that for Ron Northcott, pictured here in the 1968 Brier. Boy, smoke in the mouth and sweeping to beat the band. Things sure have changed. And, I think we have better underarm anti perspirant these days as well. And since 1968, the game has changed. These high performance players are athletes and have a skill that puts them in a league of their own. And we will get a chance to witness it all starting tomorrow when the Brier kicks off in Edmonton. And at the BRCC, there was some action all of its own at the Wednesday Open 8 Ender. Sure, this was not TV curling calibre but hey, there were some good shots made and the enjoyment level was there.

Ice A: Andrew Roberts vs Ryan Hagger. WIN for Roberts. Team Santana sure has come a long way. This is this team's second year and they win as much as they lose. They continue to get stronger and I am interested in seeing them next year. For sure, the potential is there to be a top team. Andrew plays alot of curling these days. He plays in 2 leagues as a skip and does not miss too many opportunities to spare. Just another victim of the curling bug that has him in love with the Roaring Game. He wins the "Love Is The Drug" Award. Roxy Music would be proud (if they were curlers).

Ice C: John Hammond vs Vola Roberts. TIE GAME. With Vola conspicuously absent, it was Sandy Milroy at the helm and he battled it out with the tough Hammond rink. In the end, no one could claim first place. sandy Milroy is a veteran curler. He's been in the game a long time and he quietly goes about the business of playing good curling. He makes alot of shots and can always be counted on for good competition. He wins the "Eye Of The Tiger" Award. Rocky Balboa would be proud (if he was a curler).

Ice D: Tom St Jules vs Warren Neufeld. NO INTEL.  Big Daddy would most likely had his hands full with the tough Neufeld Factor. That being said, this game could have gone either way because Big Daddy and his squad also know how to manufacture points and generate wins.  Big Daddy (Tom St Jules) is also a long time pal of the BRCC. He plays 2 or 3 times a week and it shows in his shot-making skills. When he is on, he can deal out some curling pain, big time. He wins the "Heartbreaker" Award. Pat Benatar would be proud (if she was a curler).

So that's how it all played out for this week's Wednesday 8 Ender. The Thursday Men's playoffs got under way this week and the A and B sides have started to take shape. I don't have all the results yet but I do know that the Robb Road Express (Ben Lemieux) is through to the second round as is Team Ryan Hagger, the Thursday Newfie Bullet, Team Chris Astles, Team Francois Lemieux, the Posties (Team Rick Rouselle), the Molson Exers (Team Keith Rouselle) and Team Mike Laderoute. These are the ones I know about and the action will start up again on Monday when round 2 of the playoffs get under way. Stay tuned for the on-going results.

The Men's Closing is just around the corner now and everyone is stoked for this, the BRCC's premiere event. One of the highlights of the year, this spiel is once again full and 48 teams will hit the ice and jostle for position. I'm looking forward to seeing all my out of town buddies and we'll get caught up on the Thursday when this hootenanny begins.

Rock On!

The Curling Chronic