Ice Holes win Barry Naimark Charity Skins Bonspiel

The Ice Holes won the annual Barry Naimark Charity Skins Bonspiel on the March 17-19 weekend, defeating the Bye Bye Bye team skipped by Patrick Prade in the A event final. Left to right are skip Jeff Guignard, third Chris Faa, second Daniel Wenzek and lead Allen Ho. Over $4300 was raised for the Rainbow Refugee charity. More photos and info at https://bit.ly/3LEJS5w.

VCC curlers at Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Championship

VCC curler Sarah Loken and former VCC ice tech Cody Tanaka are representing BC in Sudbury, March 21-26, at the Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Championship. Sarah plays lead on the Clancy Grandy team out of VCC that won the BC Scotties title this year and reached the playoffs at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts. Sarah and Clancy will face each other in mixed doubles pool play, as Clancy has qualified with Olympic gold medalist John Morris through the Canadian mixed doubles team rankings. 

Spring League surprisingly popular

Apparently more members than we realized want to keep curling after their league ends for the season. We set up an eight-team Spring League to run for six sessions on Tuesday and Thursday evenings in April, and it sold out in three days. The only advertising we did was in the washrooms and a Facebook post. Plans are in the works for a bigger Spring League in April next year.

You still have a chance to get in the VCC Championship as a fill-in team

If you want to play in the VCC Championsip, April 14-16, but may not qualify through league play, you still have a chance. Put your name on the waitlist for a draw to get in by filling any spots in the 32-team field not taken by leagues.

April is a good time for group rentals

Leagues end play in March, so there is lots of ice time available in April for group rentals. You can even bring in family, friends and work colleagues on a weekday evening. For more information and online booking, visit our rentals page.

Nominations accepted for honourary life members

Nominations for honourary lfe member are being accepted until April 1.

• Demonstrated a solid commitment to the sport of curling in general
• Demonstrated a strong commitment to the Vancouver Curling Club
• Has a record of involvement in VCC sponsored events, involving both time and effort
• Commitment to all facets of curling, including fair play, association with other curlers, etc.

Submissions for nomination should be in written form and should include the name of the nominee, the name of the nominating member, and a letter which outlines how the member believes the nominee meets the criteria outlined above. Please email them to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

VCC curlers at BC Winter Games this week

Some VCC youth curlers will be in Vernon, March 23-26, for the BC Winter Games.  Erin Fitzgibbon (second from the right) will be skipping the Zone 5 girls' team, coached by her father. Brian Fitzgibbon (far right). Erin also played lead on the Bryelle Wong team that finished third in the BC under 21 championship. VCC boys going to the BC Winter Games are Trevor Roberts and Michael Yan, who play third and lead respectively on thr Zone 5 boys' team skipped by Matthew Moi.

VCC seniors competing in BC championships in Langley

VCC will be represented by both female and male curlers in the BC senior (50 plus) championships at Langley, March 22 to 26. Sandra Comadina (third) and Christine Mathews (lead) are on the Shiella Cowan team. Kip Greenlaw is skipping a team that includes Ian Baart and Olivier Eymere, while brothers Deryk and Richard Brower are on the Craig Lepine team.

A VCC team of Peter Lang, Kym Neutel, Craig Coyne and Heather Lawrence was at the AMJ Campbell BC Mixed Championship, March 2 to 5 in Penticton.

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.

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.

VCC women at BC Scotties this week

The Clancy Grandy team is representing VCC at the BC Scotties, Jan. 11-15 in Chilliwack. They are currently ranked sixth in the Canadian Team Ranking System standings and the top-ranked BC squad. Left to right: Clancy Grandy (skip), Kayla MacMillan (third), Lindsay Dubue (second), Sarah Loken (lead), Katie Witt (coach). The team, without Grandy, was second at last year's BC Scotties.

VCC curlers are on four of the eight teams competing in the BC Scotties, Jan. 11-15 in Chilliwack. Besides the Clancy Grandy team (above), other VCC curlers who have qualified for the championship include Sarah and Amanda Wong, front end for Shawna Jensen; Shiella Cowan, Sandra Comadina and Christine Mathews from the Cowan team; and Dianne Gushulak, who skips a team and throws lead rocks . VCC honourary life member Al Moore is coaching the Cowan team. Team pictures from the event are posted on the Curl BC Facebook page.

You can watch every game live on the Curl BC Youtube channel. Game scoring and results are on the curlingzone.com website.

VCC curler off to under 18 Canadian championship

VCC curler Meredith McCullum is off to the Canadian U18 Curling Championships, Feb. 5-11 in Timmins, Ontario. McCullum plays lead for the Kellie Duncan team that finished second at the BC U18 Girls' Championship in Richmond during the Christmas break. This year, BC gets two teams in the national event, so the Duncan team gets to go to Timmins along with the Holly Hafeli team that won the BC final. Meredith curls in the 453 City Hall League on Friday evenings. Other 453 League curlers, Taj McKenzie and Isaac Lauzon, finished third in the BC U18 Boys' Championship. You can read Meredith's report on the BC U18 Championships for both the VCC girls and VCC boys taking part here.

 VCC blind curlers place second at BC championship

 Left to right are: Fraser Hiltz (skip), Henry Vis (third), Monica Nelson (lead), Tim Hurley (second), Paul Willing (coach).

The Vancouver Blind Curling Club team, proudly curling out of Vancouver CC, travelled to Prince George for the Provincial Blind Curling Playdowns, Jan. 5-7. We are proud to bring back the plaque for second place, narrowly missing on a last shot to win it all. It was a great feeling to get back into competition again after our pandemic shut down. The sportsmanship, comradery and great competition was sorely missed over the past three years. Many thanks to VanCurl for helping with some of our travel costs; it was much appreciated! Submitted by Fraser Hiltz.

Charity Skins Bonspiel donations requested

 Get your name tag.

For information and registration go to https://prcl.ca/pacrimcup/.

For information and registration, go to https://vancurl.com/index.php/events/doubles-bonspiel-feb-2-5.

For information and registraion, go to https://vancurl.com/index.php/events/charity-skins-mar-25-27.

 Next Little Rockers program starts on Mar. 4. Visit https://vancurl.com/index.php/curling/little-rockers for more information and registration.