November was a busy time at the Nanaimo Curling Centre on Wall Street. So before getting any further into a new month, we’ll slip onto the ice this week and catch up on results from recent bonspiel action…
One of the most popular bonspiels of the entire season is always held in mid-November. It is the Nanaimo Hangover spiel and it is organized by the curlers of the Sunday Morning Men’s League, otherwise known as the Hangover League. A new supporter came on board this year, as the bonspiel was sponsored by Longwood Brewery. Sunday curling league members such as Ferdie Hobson, Chuck Passmore, Tony Brocklehurst, Tom Zacharuk and other volunteers worked hard to once again make this year’s event a definite success. My special thanks go to Randy Brahniuk for keeping track of results and passing them along to me.
The bonspiel this year attracted a strong field of 38 teams and competition over three days saw them gradually divided into four separate events. Midland Tools was the sponsor of the A event. In the championship final, the only two teams that were undefeated in the competition faced each other. Both were local squads; one skipped by Keith Clarke and the other sponsored by the Wellington Liquor Store and skipped by Steve Hobson.
Hobson’s team opened with a point in the first end, but Clarke struck for four in the second, then added one in the third and three more in the fourth end for an early 8-1 victory. Others on the championship team were third Steve Waatainen, second Cam Foster and lead Frank Smith. Backing Hobson on the five-man runner-up side were Bill Chapman, Dave Hitchen, Cleve Carlton and Doug Freeland.
In the final of B event, sponsored by Marks Imports, local teams skipped by Mike Kenefick and Dan Allarie faced each other. It was Allarie who scored first, but Kenefick counted in five of the next six ends en route to a 10-4 victory. Teammates with Kenefick were third Dean Mousseau, second Bob Palynchuk and lead Bill Millward. Allarie was backed by Doug McGlenen, Bill Shaw and Trevor Shaw.
Sponsor for C event in the bonspiel was Christensen Collision. The all-Nanaimo final for that division featured an entertaining match between teams skipped by Brendan Neff and Randy Forbes. The Neff foursome led 6-1 at the halfway point, but Forbes came back to tie the game at 6-6 after seven ends. Neff had last rock in the final end, however and used it to score the winning point in a 7-6 victory. Others on the winning team were third John LaPointe, second Doug Neff and lead Rick Neff, while Forbes was backed by Brian Forbes, Joel Brittain and Scott Forbes.
Whatever your sport, a reminder in closing to play your hardest, play fair and show good sportsmanship.