The Athabasca Curling Club held another successful menís bonspiel on the weekend.
Club executive Stan Lyle noted that while they had hoped to attract more than the 16 teams that ultimately took part, the weekend was still full of good times and good curling.
ìWe would have wanted more (teams), but itís the time of the year with spring break next week and a lot of people were disappearing, so the numbers were a little bit down,î he said.
ì(But) overall, very good. Weíve had a good time.î
The competition was fierce throughout the weekend on the way to the final games; the ëAí championship went to Team Balay while Team Leach and Team Even Par won the ëBí and ëCí events, respectively.
ìIt feels awesome (to win),î noted Rob Balay, who won alongside teammates Tony Kiselyk, Greg Roszmann and Brian Pysyk. ìWeíve had a really good season, and this is a great way to cap it off, by winning the menís open.î
The final game of the ëAí championship was a close one with Balay and his teammates coming down to the wire with the Schinkinger rink. That made the game entertaining for the participants as well as the onlookers, according to Lyle.
ìAll any curler wants is a nice competitive game. You donít want to get thumped, and you donít want to thump anybody. You just want a nice, well played game,î he said. ìYou donít want short games. You want to play it to the last rock.î
With a successful menís event and a very popular ladies bonspiel the weekend prior that saw 28 teams compete, the Athabasca Curling Club is bringing the season to an exciting conclusion.
