Editor: Mark Romer. Remembrance Day

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1 Editor: Mark Romer The season is progressing well and it seems the extra ice time has improved our game. This month MWCC women past and present celebrate the 100 th anniversary with a gala dinner. I am sure it will be a memorable evening. Remembrance Day On November 11 th, we honour the many brave men and women who fought and died for our country. The MWCC traditionally lays a wreath at the ceremony performed at the Montreal West Cenotaph. At right, President Doug Allan escorts June Gray as she lays the wreath on behalf of our club members.

2 Opening Dinner On October 28, 2017, the curling club held its opening dinner. A full evening was planned by House Committee chair, Suzel Julien and her assistants, Sophie Bélanger and Anne-Marie Bélanger. Starting with cocktails in the lounge, the evening got off to a fine start. Dinner, prepared by Jacques Gilmore began with an autumn vegetable soup, followed by the main course of Osso Bucco a la Milanese or Poached Salmon and then dessert and coffee. After the customary words from our president Doug Allan, the name of the free membership raffle winner was drawn - congratulations to Russel Haliburton. After dinner, guests were offered a free after-dinner drink at the bar and invited to join the fun in the lounge where Dave Moran, a local singer who was brought back by popular demand, sang and entertained the small but enthusiastic crowd straight through to midnight. Bonnie Soutar and Mark Romer joined Dave Moran at the microphone on several occasions while many others danced and clapped along. Although not as many members attended this event as had been hoped, fun was had by all. Many thanks to Gordon Bowles and Greg Kehoe who helped set up the tables and chairs for this event. Le banquet d ouverture de la saison de curling a eu lieu le samedi 28 octobre, Une magnifique soirée a été planifiée par le comité des activités sociales Suzel Julien, Sophie et Anne-Marie Bélanger. La soirée a bien commencé par un cocktail dans le lounge. Le nom du gagnant du tirage pour l inscription gratuite au club a été tire et notre gagnant est Russell Haliburton. Félicitations. Le repas, préparé par Jacques Gilmore comprenait un potage d automne, suivi du plat principal, un succulent osso bucco ou un excellent filet de saumon, pour terminer par le dessert et café. Après le repas, les invités ont eu droit à un breuvage gratuit au bar et se sont confortablement installés pour entendre Dave Moran. Dave qui est revenu cette année à la demande populaire, a chanté et nous a diverti jusqu à passé minuit. Bonnie Soutar et Mark Romer se sont joint à Dave au micro à quelques reprises tandis d autres dansaient et tapaient des mains. Bien que peu de membres aient participé à cette soirée le plaisir et la bonne humeur était de la partie. Une merci spécial à Gordon Bowles et Greg Kehoe pour leur participation à la préparation de la salle. What is a bigamist? Fog in Italy. 2

3 Grand Match & Grand Dame This year s city-wide ARCM event proved to be unusual as fewer teams participated and we only held one draw at the MWCC. Despite the low turnout, our 5 teams performed well posting a record. Our women's side fielded the required 2 teams to qualify for the banner and posted a record with a very strong 13-1 performance by Sophie Belanger's team on home ice. Gloria Toteda's team swept to a tie against Baie d'urfe in Hudson. After the final count, our women's teams finished 2nd overall out of 15 teams! Our club only fielded 3 men s teams out of the 8 needed to qualify, but managed a record with strong performances on home ice against Lachine (Team Williams won 15-3) and Hudson legion (Team Botsford won 15-11). Team Botsford was Bonnie Soutar, Anne-Marie Belanger, particularly Suzel Julien & Sophie Belanger (skip) proud of the 7 ender posted early on the scoreboard. Team Philion played to a tie against Baie d'urfe. Congratulations to all who participated in the event and helped with post-game lunch, cleanup and bar duties. (Rob Williams, Anne Mitchell, Nacy Gallant and various volunteers in general capacities). The complete list of results can be viewed HERE. Next year we would strongly encourage more members to participate in this event. KUDOS Eva Lemanczyk, Shiona Dempster, Janet Walpole & Gloria Toteda (skip) In the office restroom the boss posted a sign above the sink. It had a single word on it THINK". The next day he found another sign above the dispenser. This one said THOAP". 3 To Adam Freilich and Team Israel who competed in St Gallen Switzerland at the European Curling Championships last week. Adam and Team Israel finished 4 th in a field of 16

4 Instructional Here's a report from Jim Doyle: We have 20 regular members of the class and there is interest from at least 4 other people. Many members have already spared in the evening league competitions and will soon begin playing regularly in the EHL and Wilkinson leagues. In addition to the Monday night group, there are 2 curlers from the day curling group who want to compete for the Green Singles Trophy this year. A class goes on a field trip to the local police station when they see a pictures of the 10 most wanted criminals in the country. A little boy points to a picture and asks if it is really the photo of a wanted person. Yes," says the policeman. The detectives want to capture him very badly." The boy replies, So why didn't you keep him when you took the picture?" KUDOS Building & Grounds Here's a report from Jim Doyle: It must be winter - the furnace is now on! Our work continues on the repair of the garage door and we find it is performing better. Hopefully it will be operating at a 100% level before the end of the week. A technician was also called in to fix the kitchen stove ahead of the Centennial Gala this weekend. To our club ice-man Mirko Murovic (second from left) who has joined the team preparing the ice for the Roar of the Rings in Ottawa next week. We are lucky to have Mirko s expertise working our ice every week! A blond man shouts frantically into the phone, My wife is pregnant and her contractions are only two minutes apart!" Is this her first child?" asks the Doctor. " No!" he shouts, this is her husband!" 4

5 Ladder The first session of the Thursday Grafton Hunt Ladder is now complete. Rob Philion s team has captured the top spot with a record. Scott Grafton s team & Marc Philion s team finished close behind. Round 2 began on Nov 30 th. In the Tuesday Past-President s Ladder, 4 games remain in the first round-robin schedule. Competition is tight with a three-way tie for first place between Team Jean, Team Haliburton & Team Grafton. Three other teams are within striking distance so the next month will be exciting to watch. PP LADDER (as of Nov 21st) RANK TEAM TM# GMS PTS 1 D. Jean T R. Haliburton T S. Grafton T P. Cadorette T D. Ship T J. Cohen T C. Da Roza T T. Watson T M. Watson T G. Toteda T M. Allen T J. Walpole T6 7 9 My girlfriend says I'm handsome." That's only because you feed her guide dog." GH LADDER (as of Nov 23rd) RANK TEAM TM# GMS PTS 1 R. Philion T S. Grafton T M. Philion T M. Watson T R. Williams T H. Myers T D. Dubeau T M. Allen T

6 Celebrating 100 Years of Women's Curling at MWCC Here's a report from Joslyn Schultz (Centennial Committee Chair): Much has changed in the world during the last century. When the Montreal West Curling Club Ladies Branch -- as it was first known -- was inaugurated in 1918, The Great War was still raging; Armistice was still almost nine months away. Many Canadian women supported the war effort, both at home and abroad, including 53 Canadian nurses who died in service to their country. It was in 1918 that women were granted suffrage in all Canadian provinces. As I write this report, the Gala Dinner to kick off our Centennial year is still a week away, on Saturday, December 2, Excitement is building as the day approaches. In addition to all current women members of our club, an invitation has been extended to past members, many of whom will be joining us on this special occasion. We are so looking forward to renewing old friendships, reminiscing and celebrating the past, present and future of women's curling at Montreal West. Watch for pics and stories from this event in the next ROAR and on our web page. Day Ladies Report Here's a report from Mary Sutherland: Our first Tuesday competition was a Merry-Go-Round. The teams were changed weekly so no one remembered who they were playing with. Points were tallied for each position. The winners were: Leads/Seconds: Victoria Gomez Thirds: Marg Ford Skips: Karen Hall Moon We had many more curlers sign up for Thursday curling. There were five teams for the Presidents Competition. Winners: Victoria Gomez Joslyn Shultz Linda English Marnie Linder Runners Up: Irene Rixon Karen Fagen Mary Sutherland Sandra Jones Photo from the Archives Canadian Nurses from WWI New rounds of competitions have started. We will have lots of good curling before Christmas. December 14 th will be our Christmas Fun Day organized by Rosemary Cochrane and Dale Huston. A diplomat is a man who always remembers a woman's birthday but never remembers her age. 6

7 Ladies Curling Association Here's a report from our LCA rep, Angela Geoffredo: Hello Ladies! Exciting news we entered 2 teams in the LCA competition DEBUTANTS for curlers 5 years and under, a one day event, 2 8 end games this November 25 at our Club and Mtl West team # 2 won over 8 teams that entered from various clubs in District 1. Winners from the evening sections of lady curlers were Skip, Angela Marszalek, Third, Joelle Green, Second, Glenna Jacobs and Lead, Ellen Meredith. Our other team from the day lady section played well but were defeated by two stronger teams in their 2 8 end games. They are Skip, Victoria Gomez, Third, Carol Sullivan, Second, Kathryn Smith and Lead, Irene Rixon. Results for Debutants may be viewed on their web site. The TOBIN EARLE, a reflection of the Debutants, is a 2 day event for curlers 5 years and under (2 day event) is also upcoming Dec 5 and I believe we have one team entered from our Club. Will update the results of this competition in next month s Roar. LADY TWEEDSMUIR double rink entry closing date Dec 19, A fun and prestigious competition for all curlers With so much history behind this competition, why not enter your double team and be part of that history it involves both District 1 (Quebec Clubs) and District 2 (Ottawa Clubs). Tweedsmuir tradition bagpipes introducing Championship teams to welcoming committee- photo A. Geoffredo This trophy, first played for in 1938 was graciously donated by Lady Tweedsmuir, wife of Lord Tweedsmuir, who was Governor-General of Canada from The trophy is for annual competition and is emblematic of the double rink championship of the Ladies Curling Association and might be fittingly termed as the counterpart of the Governor General s Trophy competition for men which was instituted in The reception and trophy and medal presentations were traditionally held at Government House but this year they will be held at the famous RA Curling Club in Ottawa, a Club that is found on the navy base in Ottawa. There is a traditional entrance featuring the bagpipes for all dignitaries and winners of District 1 and 2 as they enter the ice. This tradition is designed to show appreciation to the former Lady Tweedsmuir (who so graciously attended the Championship Finals) and to all participants and attendees. 7 Lady Tweedsmuir Trophy Photo LCA Archives

8 This competition was played in irons up until 1953 and has since been played in granites. In 1950 the length of play was reduced from 14 ends to 12 ends but is now played in 10 ends. Each member club may send one double rink entry. A total of 6 Centres compete (of which MWCC is Center 2) against each other and the winner from each Centre advances to the District finals. The Championship finals are held in Ottawa between the Quebec and Ontario winners on Sunday, February 11, 2018 at l pm. Further information for LCA competitions found in the Ladies locker room - LCA bulletin board or me at the following a.geoffredo1@sympatico.ca - Happy Holidays! I'm not saying that the customer service at my bank is bad, but when I went the other day and asked the clerk to check my balance...she leaned over and pushed me. Butterflies, Bridge and Birthdays Butterfly-making is a fun après curling activity. At right, June, Mary and Bonnie making butterflies with a hand from Cathy (Photo by Hille Viires) Bridge, Tuesdays at 12:30 PM We are a fun and informal group and everyone is welcome to join at any time. We start playing at 12:30 pm on Tuesday afternoons. Cathy Wardlaw, Convenor Duplicate Bridge, Thursdays at 1 PM If you like playing bridge, and would like to compare your play with others, consider coming to our Thursday Duplicate where men and women play. This is not a serious group; it is considered entry level and is very low-key. Bring a partner before 1 pm and enjoy your afternoon. It s $4 for club members and $5 for non-members. Coffee and cookies are provided. The Thursday bridge group celebrated a special birthday for a special player Happy 90 th Eileen! Linda English, Convenor December Luncheon Bridge The next Luncheon Bridge will be on Wednesday, December 13 th at 12:30 pm. All welcome. Please reserve your table for bridge or other games by signing the sheet in the women s locker room, by calling Wendy at or by to wendylyearnell@gmail.com Wendy Yarnell, Day Ladies Section 8 Surprise!

9 Wilkinson Here's a report from Trish Dempsey: The Wilkinson Day of the Dead party on November 3 rd was nothing short of a successful evening; it was great to see so many new faces! The fun-filled evening began with a mystery bag that got passed around between the curling games. Teams took turns acquiring the bag when a player made a double takeout or clean draw to the pin. Congratulations to Team Savoie for being the last team to win possession of the bag, which contained four coupons for a free drink at DAVID s TEA! Most curlers played in costume, Hallowe en-themed dishes were served after the games, and eight out of nine teams brought a decorated pumpkin! Needless to say, energy was high throughout the night; in fact, it may be the most enthusiastic holiday party the Wilkinson has seen in a long time! Congratulations to the following winners Voted best team costume: Team Fagen (pirates) Voted best individual costume: Bonnie Soutar (Day of the Dead) Voted best pumpkins: Ellen Meredith (MWCC logo) and Joelle Green (pumpkin eating a pumpkin) Voted best dish: Angie Marszalek (sloppy joes) Mystery candy jar: Jonathan Knight (guessed 160 beans, and there were 161 jelly beans!) Quiz champions: The Dead Curlers (Mark Romer, Bonnie Soutar, Genevieve Lemieux, Tom McPherson) Quiz 2 nd place (by 0.5 points!): Jack-O-Lantern (Jonathan Knight, Norm Savoie, Francine Jones, Mike Farsidakis, Joann Berg) Quiz 3 rd place: Par for the Corpse (Rob Philion, Daniel Philion, Marc Philion, Dominique Jean) Other creative quiz team names included: Frank-In-Stones, The Gravestones, Game of Stones, and Hell Hounds of Sloppy Joes! The trivia night, hosted by Trish Dempsey, included four rounds: monsters and villains, fall traditions around the world, pot-pourri and a photo round of horror films. Thanks to Mark Romer, Bonnie Soutar, Joann Berg and Jonathan Knight for bringing in extra decorations including an authentic Day of the Dead banner from Mexico! I would also like to thank Dominique Jean and Daniel, Marc and Rob Philion for helping me run around and setup for the evening and tabulate the scores. I m looking forward to planning the December holiday party I promise the quiz will be slightly less challenging! For more photos, check out our BLOG post

10 The Wilkinson Christmas Party will be held on December 8 th. This one will be similar to the last party, non-friday curlers can bring a themed-dish or pay $5 to participate in the potluck. All MWCC members and friends are invited to the trivia night, beginning at 9h30pm (teams of 2-5 players). Everyone is encouraged to dress festively (covered in snowflakes, ugly holiday sweaters, etc.), and bring in a "snowman" for the contest. Prizes will be awarded after the quiz! WILKINSON (as of Nov 24th) RANK TEAM TM# GMS PTS 1 Ivo Duarte Marc Philion Stephen Fagan Norm Savoie Joelle Green Jeff Cohen John Ford Mark Romer Martin Jacobs If you're North American when you enter the bathroom, and you're North American when you leave the bathroom, what are you while you're in the bathroom? European. EHL Here's a report from Claude Tellier: Now that we are two months into the fall round-robin, Mark Romer and his teammates JB Allard and Lauren Barrett have assembled a four-game winning streak to find themselves in sole possession of first place. With one month remaining, there are four teams in hot pursuit, so this might just go down to the wire. From one week to the next, we are always looking for replacement players to fill in for whoever is out of town, stuck at work, or otherwise unable to play. So far, we have had players from the Instructional League, Ladder, and 2

11 Wilkinson-TGIF play with us, often on very short notice. On behalf of the entire executive, I would like to thank you all. In January, 2018, we will be adding more players (and thus more teams) to our roster, so if you are interested in being part of this very sociable group, please contact our Match Coordinators at match.ehl@gmail.com EHL Standings (as of Nov 27 th ) RANK TEAM TM# PTS #GP WIN TIE LOSS 1 Mark Romer Claude Tellier Angela Marszalek Robbie Sproule Sophie Belanger Mike Allen Karoyln Brault Marnie Linder Dave Dubeau Geneviève Lemieux Frédéric Fabry Jeff Cohen Après deux mois de tournoi à la ronde, Mark Romer et ses coéquipiers JB Allard et Lauren Barrett ont remporté une série de quatre victoires pour se retrouver en première position. À un mois de la fin de la session d'automne, il y a quatre équipes en poursuite, donc cela pourrait aller jusqu'au dernier match de la saison. D'une semaine à l'autre, nous avons besoin de joueurs pour remplacer ceux et celles qui sont incapables de jouer pour quelque raison que ce soit. Jusqu'à présent, les joueurs de la Ligue d'instruction, Ladder, et Wilkinson-TGIF ont joué avec nous, souvent dans un très court délai. Au nom de l'ensemble de l'exécutif, j'aimerais vous remercier. En janvier 2018, nous ajouterons plus de joueurs (et donc plus d'équipes) à notre liste, donc si vous souhaitez faire partie de ce groupe très sociable, veuillez contacter nos Coordinateurs de Match à match.ehl@gmail.com I took my dog to a flea circus and he stole the show. 3

12 Senior Interclub and Super Senior Bonspiel Here's a report from Bill Lynam and Ray Dubrule: The Senior Interclub activities are off and running. In November we visited Baie D Urfe, Mount Bruno, Laval, St Lambert, Pointe Claire and we also hosted Glenmore at the MWCC. Our schedule for December has us competing against TMR, Hudson Legion, Laval and Royal Montreal. (Please note - there are a few good tickets left for each of these matches if you want to attend). We have consolidated our position in the league and I am pleased to report that all our skips have recorded wins in November (James Botsford, Dave Dubeau, Doug Allan, Jean-Marie Martin and Pierre Dufour). Next month we will feature the 3rds. A special note of thanks to long time MWCC member Al Rogers and his team (Chester Sawczyszyn, Greg Kehoe and Gordon Bowles) for the terrific Brisket meal served after the match with TMR. This has become a tradition we look forward to. On November 1st, 2017, MWCC held its first Super Senior Bonspiel of the season. We hosted a total of 14 teams from Ontario, Montreal as well as Montreal s north and south shores. As always, there was good competition and great curling over this two draw event. A good time was had by all. The success of this event KUDOS could not have been accomplished without the tireless efforts of the many volunteers. A very special "Thank You" to Bill Lynam. RESULTS 1st Draw 1st prize Gilles Dumas (St. Lambert) 2nd prize Philippe Rouleau (Hawkesbury) 3rd prize Michel Legault (Laval) 2nd Draw 1st prize Pierre Lesage (Baie d'urfé) 2nd prize Jacques Léparé TMR 3rd prize Claude Benoit TMR The President s Grand Match Team: James Botsford, Doug Allan, Rick Hughes & Ray Dubrule I knew it was going to be a plane flight with a difference when a naked man rushed down the aisle shouting, This is your captain streaking..." 4 To our Past President and Mixed Day curler Paul Doyle who has been nominated as the 2018 Irishman of the Year by the St Patrick s Society of Montreal.

13 K4K Paint Nite Fundraiser Trish Dempsey hosted a Paint Nite fundraiser on Sunday November 26 th, to raise funds for Kurling for Kids (K4K). With 47 participants, a whopping $800 was collected for K4K!! Everyone left with a door prize, many of which were donated items and gift certificates from local shops and restaurants. Nacy Gallant and John Stone, two of the MWCC K4K coordinators, came by to welcome the painters and talk about K4K, and how the funds generated from this fun evening of painting might be able to help children at the hospitals. Thanks to everyone who made the event possible, whether it be through buying a ticket, helping with the setup and cleanup, or popping in to support the painters: THANK YOU!! 5

14 Juniors Here's a report from Jim Cochrane: The Junior Program is in full swing. We have a dedicated group of players and parents that are making this year a success. We are experiencing a bit of a growth spurt with several kids new to curling wanting to try out our great sport. We expect more try-outs throughout the year because of two events. Firstly, the Winter Olympics this February always inspires new curlers. But secondly, Montreal West will host a Curling 101 day for school-aged kids who have recently completed the indoor curling program Rocks and Rings. On Saturday, December 9, there will be two onehour sessions for these kids and their parents at 1:30 and 2:30pm. If any members wish to come coach one or both of these sessions, please contact Janet Walpole (janet.walpole@sympatico.ca). If you just want to help introduce curling to new potential junior and adult members, come on out! On November 26, both the Little Rocks and Big Rocks participated in their first Interclub game at Glenmore against their Glenmore counterparts. Though both teams came in second in a two-horse race, all played very well to their abilities, with competitiveness and sportsmanship. They had fun too! Little Rocks Team Clovis Leclerc William Zaifman * Robin Meldrum Tyler Lantigua Yikai Fu Big Rocks Team Andrew Moll Nathan Shepherd Aiden Cochrane Francois Gariepy The first bonspiel of the year will be the U18 Junior spiel at Glenmore on December 2. We hope to have a great result to report in the next edition of the Roar. Lastly, we are considering selling MWCC logo sweatshirts again this year probably a zippered-front, technical material hoodie. We will have them available for the Juniors, but will also look to make them available for the club as a whole. We are planning on having sizing samples available for more accurate ordering. Stay tuned for more information. 6

15 Canfir report from Christopher Babajko: Canfir is a mixed social curling league of various ages and skill levels. We play Sunday mornings from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm, followed by a light lunch. If you are interested in sparing for Canfir, please send an to canfircurling@gmail.com. CANFIR Standings (as of Nov 26th) RANK TEAM # WIN LOSS TIE PTS 1 4. Pierre Cadorette Bob LeMesurier Rob Williams Howie Myers Danny Boyd Sophie Belanger Nacy Gallant Luc Arseneau Please take a moment to check out Canfir s Facebook Page for the latest buzz about our league and the curling world. While you re there, don t forget to Like our page. My father taught me to swim the hard way...he threw me out into the middle of the lake! Learning to swim that way wasn't easy, but the really hard part was getting out of the sack. WMSCL report from Anthony Altobello: WMSCL ( Standings as of Nov 26th ) RANK TEAM WIN TIE LOSS DEF POINTS 1 Angela Marszalek Mark Dozois Mike Simpson James Botsford Richard Hughes Kathy Hebert Michael McKeown Anthony Altobello Position by points does not take into consideration head to head games won within the same position 7

16 What s happening over the coming Month? December 2 MWCC Women s Centennial Gala Dinner December 18 Turkey Shoot December 20 Mixed Day Christmas Party January 1 Vice President s Funspiel IN THE NEWS The Morris Curling Club unveiled their computerized (Robotic) curling rock thrower. Companies and individuals have been trying to do this for 50 years or more and no one has succeeded. We have done it with the help of a Winnipeg Company - Eascan Automation Inc. The thrower has the ability to throw accurately and consistently, various weights from guards, to draws, to light weight hits, peels and even speeds beyond the norm of most curlers. It can apply turns to the rock consistently for both clockwise and counter-clockwise motion and it can increase the amount of rotation from minimal turn to many rotations as it travels down the ice. Read the full news release HERE. Sign up in the lounge ASAP! What do you call it when your parachute doesn't open?..jumping to a conclusion. 8

17 Blast from the Past Celebrating 100 years of Women s Curling at MWCC The MWCC team skipped by Jean Mackay captured the top prize at the 50 th anniversary bonspiel of the Outremont Curling Club. Pictured from the left are Jean Mackay (skip), Edna Kuhn (3 rd ), Isobel Fyfe (2 nd ) and Betty Johnston (lead). As was the case with the male curlers of the day, team uniforms, pins and hats were standard apparel in the curling rinks. 9