Outdoor curling rolls back time at Lougheed House
Early Alberta curlers were a hardy bunch. Taking to frozen creeks and ponds in the 1880s, they braved the elements to heave stones down the ice in hopes of winning barrels of beer, gold watches and silver goblets.
Clubs in Priddis and Banff were particularly active, with curling remaining an outdoor game in the mountain park town until 1960.
But in Calgary, a city famous for its chinooks, the melting ice didn’t make for ideal outdoor conditions.
“The Scottish Settlers played on the Elbow River as early as 1880, but as far as I know, there’s been no curling outdoors in Calgary since because of the weather,” said Dennis Havrelock, museum curator for the Southern Alberta Curling Association. “And not just warm weather, but also the miserable weather we often get.”
That shouldn’t pose a problem next weekend when curlers take to the ice outdoors for what Havrelock believes is possibly the first outdoor bonspiel in the city in the past 100 years.
Lougheed House is hosting the fun Beltline Bonspiel on its garden rink in conjunction with an open house on Feb. 25. The bonspiel features teams from three community associations including Inglewood, Sunalta and Beltline. They’ll be competing for a trophy almost as old as the sport.
The Brewery Trophy was made in 1915 for the Calgary Brewing and Malting Company and hasn’t been awarded since 1966. It holds a place of prominence in the Southern Alberta Curling Association museum at the Calgary Curling Club.
“It’s a beautiful trophy,” said Havrelock. “But I’m still looking for the buffalo head that used to be on the top of it.”
Someone absconded with the metal sculpture cast in the distinctive shape of the brewer’s logo before it was donated to the curling association.
The Lougheed House event runs from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. with free admission all day.
Meanwhile, the mansion will feature a display of old-time artifacts such as brooms and sweaters.