The turnout for the Sundre Curling Club’s annual open bonspiel increased over last year, an organizer said.
“We were up four (rinks) from last year,” said Kevin Humphrey, a past president and club volunteer.
“We had 28 teams; everything went quite well.”
Teams came from numerous places including Calgary, Olds, Eagle Hill, Cremona, Didsbury, Sylvan Lake and Innisfail as well as, of course, Sundre, he said.
There were four pools, with the Travis Phillips rink from Sundre winning the main event. The Ryan Parsons team from Cremona won the B event, while Larry Flessatti’s rink from Olds won the C event and Lorn Anderson’s crew from Eagle Hill won the D event.
The bonspiel, which ran the last week of March at the Sundre curling rink, also featured fundraisers including a Calcutta, pie sales as well as raffle tickets for the local golf clubs, which each donated four rounds of golf, said Humphrey.
Individual pie sales fetched anywhere from about $225 to $300, and combined with the raffle tickets and Calcutta, the club raised about $5,000 after expenses, he said.
Looking back over the past year, Humphrey said the season had been successful. The numbers of teams in the leagues remained on par with last year, and the bonspiels held over the months had good turnouts, he added.
Looking ahead, Humphrey said plans are underway to get ready for the eighth annual Rockin’ the Rink in October, which he anticipates will include the return of The Chevelles.
“We had a good turnout last year,” he said, adding that he committed to helping organize the event again in light of how many people have asked whether it would return.
Without the support of sponsors and volunteers who keep the club running throughout the year, the organization would not be so successful, and Humphrey expressed gratitude for all of the contributions that make curling in Sundre possible.
