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Curling Chatter – March 28-18

Local
Jeremy Rody
Author: Jeremy Rody
1 min.read

Spring may be just around the corner, but we’ve got a few more curling events to report on before we get there! This past weekend was the 30th Annual Curffle Tournament in Gore Bay. The event is a west end staple and enjoyed by so many curlers and curling fans from all across the Island.

Here is a rundown of the winners and runner-ups from the Gore Bay’s Curffle Tournament:

1st Event Winners: Scott and Karen McDougall

1st Event Runner-ups: Jeff Riching and Mark Addison

2nd Event Winners: Richard Noble and Drew Purvis

2nd Event Runner-ups: Sandy Lawrence and Erin Montgomery

3rd Event Winners: Brayden Newton and Sheldon Campbell

3rd Event Runner-ups: Lew Lanktree and Richard Whynott

Congratulations to Jennifer Jones’ Team Canada rink who won Gold at the Women’s World Curling Championship in North Bay, beating Olympic Champion Team Sweden on Sunday. The game ended in dramatic fashion as Sweden tied the game in the 10th end to force an extra end. Sweden’s skip missed a pick with her last shot to seal the victory for Team Canada.  Jones’ rink ran the table at 12-0 in the round robin, beat the Americans in the semi-final and finally won Gold on Sunday.

There are two more Island curling events coming up to end another year of great curling on Manitoulin. The Assiginack Curling Club is hosting their annual closing bonspiel being the Leona “the Hammer” Reid Memorial Curffle tournament this Friday and Saturday, March 30 and 31. The cost is $10 per person and there is still time to sign up if you want to get in on the action! This is a great opportunity for new curlers to get out and try this variation of curling.

The final bonspiel of the year will be the Little Current Ladies from April 6-8. I’ll have the winners and runner-ups for you over the next two weeks.

The Men’s World Curling Championship starts on Saturday, March 31 and will wrap up on Sunday, April 8 in Las Vegas. Team Canada will be represented by the 2018 Brier winners, Brad Gushue’s rink from Newfoundland.

Good luck to Team Canada and enjoy the last few weeks of curling to all the fans!

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Jeremy Rody
Jeremy Rody
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Visiting northern hawk owl causes a stir among birding communityby Chris Bell MANITOULIN––The handsome bird seen in the accompanying photo is a northern hawk owl, and its presence on Manitoulin has caused quite a stir among the birding community of late. A medium-sized owl, it perches upright, leaning forward and raising its tail, looking very like a hawk, thus its name. When hunting, it does not rely on hearing but locates its prey by perching on a high tree or phone wire usually in open country with scattered trees. Without moving its body, it rotates its head and scans the ground until it spots a mouse. Then, flying very fast, it swoops down on the rodent. We have noticed this individual is very active, often flying quite a distance to a new perch. A diurnal hunter, it is most active in daylight. This one, the only hawk owl on the Island right now, has been seen in several locations along Highway 6 between Sheguiandah and Manitowaning. The owl, first spotted on February 24, has been here for a full month. John and Sharon Savage are keeping track of the bird and John has taken many excellent photographs. Other birders and photographers have got word of the owl and have travelled here to look for it. A licenced bird-bander from Lively, who specializes in owls, banded and released the owl on March 11. He said the bird was healthy with plenty of body fat, indicating it has been eating well. The northern hawk owl lives in the northern forests of North America, Europe and Asia. If food gets scarce there in its home territory, it will fly south in winter, sometimes as far as Manitoulin. This one is expected to return shortly to the north country. We have found very few hawk owls on Manitoulin in the last few years but prior to that three or four were reported most winters, and one year a pair stayed to nest in a hollow tree on Barrie Island and raised young. Other types of owls reported on Manitoulin this March are the great horned owl, barred owl, snowy owl and northern saw-whet owl. Short-eared owls are expected to arrive in the next few weeks. April is considered the best month of the year to hear owls, usually at night.

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