Grandy team in Kamloops for the Scotties, Feb. 17-26
The Clancy Grandy team with the BC Scotties trophy, left to right: Sarah Loken (lead), Lindsay Dubue (second), Kayla MacMillan (third) and Clancy Grandy (skip)
The Clancy Grandy team from VCC will be representing BC at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Kamloops, Feb. 17-26. They won the BC Scotties final 10-9 in an extra end over Corryn Brown from Kamloops, Jan. 15 in Chilliwack, despite giving up a five-ender in the third end. As the fifth-ranked team on the Canadian Team Ranking System, they have to be considered playoff contenders! Swedish skip Niklas Edin, the 2022 Olympic champion and six-time world champion, has been brought in to coach the team at the Scotties. Niklas made an appearance at VCC on Feb. 10, working with Kayla and Clancy on the peel weight hits he is renowned for.
Thursday Open League curler Jenna Duncan is alternate on the Yukon team. Jeanna is originally from the Yukon.
VCC head ice tech Norm Scott is part of the ice making crew in Kamloops.
Sarah and Cody win BC mixed doubles
VCC curler Sarah Loken and former VCC ice tech Cody Tanaka are the BC mixed doubles winners.
Prior to representing BC at the Scotties in Kamloops this week, VCC curler Sarah Loken was there last week winning the BC Mixed Doubles Curling Championship at the McArthur Island Curling Club with former VCC ice tech Cody Tanaka. It was a comeback win in the final, as Sarah and Cody tied the game wth three points in the eighth end, then stole in the extra end. They will represent BC at the 2023 Canadian Mixed Doubles Championship in Sudbury, ON, from Mar. 21-26. VCC curlers Diane Gushulak and Patrick Prade competed in Kamloops as well, qualifying as one of eight teams to make the playoffs.
VCC curler reaches playoffs at under 18 Canadian championship
VCC curler Meredith McCullum (far right) played lead on the BC#2 team at the national event in Timmins, ON.
Meredith McCullum had a good run at the 2023 Under 18 Girls Championship in Timmins, ON, Feb. 5-11. Meredith was lead on the BC #2 team, skipped by Keelie Duncan from Comox. They made the playoffs, winning their first playoff game over Northern Ontario #2, before losing to the Alberta #1 team that ended up winning the gold medal.
Changes made to VCC Championship
Changes are coming to the annual VCC Championship, including dividing the field of 32 teams into championship and a less-competitive president's cup divisions. Click here to see the new policy. This year's VCC Championship will run April 13-16.
New curling programs start late February and early March
Registration is open for the next batch of five-week curling programs designed for beginners and novices. There are learn-to-curl programs on Saturdays and Thursdays, novice leagues on Saturdays and Mondays, plus the Little Rockers program for kids aged five to nine years old on Saturdays. Program start dates range from Feb. 27 to Mar. 9.
For information and registration, go to https://vancurl.com/index.php/events/charity-skins-mar-25-27.
Charity Skins Bonspiel donations requested
New charity sought for Skins Bonspiel
VCC members are invited to submit names of local registered charities with which they have a personal connection and for whom a donation of approximately $4,000 to $6,000 can make a meaningful and immediate difference.Submissions for charity consideration must include a brief summary on the charity and the member's connection. As well, a copy of the most recent annual financial statement should be submitted.
The deadline for submissions is Mar. 31. Please submit the information to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. The Barry Naimark Charity Skins Bonspiel, held in March each year, will raise money for a two-year period for the chosen charity.
Motors League introduces new swag with new logo and lengthy history
The latest Motors League cap and shirt includes the new Van Curl logo.
The "four-buildings strong" on the arm pays tribute to the league's lengthy history.
The Motors League on Tuesdays at 4:30 pm is the oldest league in the club, and it's now the first one to come out with league clothing incorporating the new VCC logo. The league started out in the Pile, the original curling building in Vancouver from 1912 to 1930 that also included a hockey rink on another level. League rep Jerry McKenzie reports there isn't a record of the exact year the Motors League started at the Pile. It was located at Denman and Georgia, across from Stanley Park and the totem poles. The original VCC logo, which was recently laid to rest, incorporated a totem pole because of that view from the Pile.
Curling in Vancouver moved to the Forum in 1931, a building that still exists on the PNE grounds. Hockey and curling shared the same ice surface. There were plans to build a curling rink on Heather Street at 18th Avenue, but they were abandoned when World War II came along. Coincidentally, the Marpole Curling Club, erected in the late 1950's, is on Heather Street south of Southwest Marine Drive.
Sod turning for the rink at Heather and 18th Ave. that was never built.
The Vancouver Curling Club got its first dedicated curling rink in 1949, at the corner of Dinmont and Midlothian, just down the street from our current location in the Hillcrest Centre. It was a five-sheet rink with a sand floor, built on what was previously a marshy area. Moisture underneath the sand floor would freeze, expand and eventually cause the ice to heave. Membership services coordinator Richard Brower managed the Dinmont location from 1993 to 1999. He still has the occasional bad dream about installing ice on that sand floor. An artificial playing field is there now.
Garth found a way to curl in Spain
VCC curler Garth Phillips in his Madrid curling sweater.
As an avid curler far away from a curling rink, Garth Phillips brought the first league curling to Spain at the Club Boadilla in Madrid in 1985. Originally from Alberta, Garth lived in Spain for 20 years, managing the oil operations of Halliburton Services for the Mediterranean region. Today, he skips a team in the Norwesters League at VCC on Tuesday and Thursday mornings.
Arena curling ice requires dedication. They had one sheet on an ice rink, cleaned by Zamboni, with club members preparing the ice before curling and stones being taken in and out of storage for every game.
The pebble can and stones came via Scotland. While the stones weren’t exactly smuggled into Spain, with some creative thinking they did arrive duty free as dead weight for oil industry land drilling operations.
The Madrid Curling Club evolved into a mix of Spaniards and ex-pats, with staff from the Swedish, Norwegian and Swiss embassies actively involved. Garth and the MCC participated in the Aviemore International bonspiels in Scotland, bringing Spain its first international recognition with a silver medal.
Today, Spain is an up-and-coming nation for curling with four clubs, and in 2023 the Spanish men’s team qualified into the A division of the European Curling Championship.
VCC curlers defeat Scots in Strathcona Cup match
Sweepers Al Moore (left) and Scott Robertson (right) with Richard Brower delivering a stone.
The VCC team did its part in helping Canada win the Strathcona Cup over Scotland with a 9-3 win on Jan. 13 at Royal City CC. The VCC team of Jeff Guignard, Scott Robertson, Al Moore, Keith Switzer and Richard Brower took on a Scottish team that included Sandy Nelson, a former Scottish senior men's champion, and Tom Pendreigh, a 2000 Scottish men's champion at back end. There were four matches at Royal City that day, with a North Shore masters team of Paul Dunkin, Mike Howey, Dickson and Mark Bailey also winning their game handily. Paul is a former VCC curler and the other three are current VCC members.
Fifteen Scottish men's teams toured Canada in the Strathcona Cup, with five teams each making western, central and eastern tours. There were 350 games played at 85 curling rinks across Canada with 1400 Canadian curlers taking part. Canada won with 2454 total points to the Scots' 2317. It is the first time since the 1980s that the host country has won the Strathcona Cup. Groups of Scottish and Canadian curlers alternate touring the other's country every four or five years in the Strathcona Cup.
All three Scottish tours wrapped up on Feb. 2 at the Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club. VCC curlers Don Giles and Ken Grahame were in Ottawa for the closing festivities. Don was a group courier for the Scots while they were in BC. Ken was part of the 1998 Strathcona Cup.
Super Seniors win B event in Courtenay
A Super Seniors League team travelled to Courtenay for the Hangover Men's Bonspiel, Jan. 20-22, winning the B event in the 44-team competition. Left to right are Peter Lee, Dwayne Wright, Pat Patterson and Paul Keelan.
New hack protector being tried out
A new type of hack protector could be coming to VCC.
Click here to get your name tag. Orders taken until the end of February.