Middleton curlers have busy week away

Last weekend was very busy for curlers from Middleton Curling Club, but not on home ice.

The student curlers had a threeday ‘Spring is Here’ event at Berwick and MCC had four teams participating – two in the under12 division and two in the under14. It shows the increased interest in youth curling that co-ordinator Dawn Spidle has routinely been able to send four teams to ‘away’ events this year, and that the Middleton curlers are able to hold their own against larger clubs.

After three days of play, Sam Roop’s team with Ben Macfadyen, Hannah Johnson, and Lauren Tattersall took bronze for the under12 division and all teams did very well in their games, making MCC proud.

While the youth curlers were in Berwick, numerous adult curlers were participating in the ‘Farmer’s Spiel’ in Bridgetown, an annual event of many years standing. There were MCC players on several teams and Les Smith, the club’s bar manager, skipped a team with Cody Spidle, John Troop, and Peter Smith and won the bonspiel - for the second year in a row.

Several of the regulars at Chase the Ace on Friday night waited for the drawing of the card (the ace stayed hidden) and then went on to curl at 9 p.m. in Bridgetown. It explains the reason curlers have taken ‘Sociable’ as their watchword.

With the final week of curling at MCC came the club’s usual social closing curling events. The Afternoon League, under co-ordinator Jean Fry, had a funspiel on Wednesday with a morning six-end game and then a pizza lunch, followed by another six-end game. This popular drop-in league has done well this year and is great for those who don’t have a schedule that allows for being on a regular team. Teams are made up from attendees each day, and social events and exchanges with other clubs are a regular occurrence.

The Open League on Monday is finished for the year, and so Bill Eaton, co-ordinator of the Thursday Mixed League, is holding his closing funspiel over two nights, with one game for participants on Monday and the final game for everyone on Thursday night. A fan of tennis, Eaton always awards the winners a “Wimbledon-style” trophy in addition to prizes for everyone.

The Tuesday night Western Draw always ends their year with a fun night of mixing teams and players throughout the evening to make sure everyone knows and has played with everyone else. And everyone brings snacks for post-game celebration – this league changes teams throughout the year and is the entry level for many players. No one is interested in champions - everyone just likes the social curling and the party at the end.

Chase the Ace will not be held on Good Friday, March 30 but will resume as normal on April 6. The pot is always shown at www. middletoncurlingclub.com