Beginning Thursday, Feb. 9th and going until Sunday, Feb. 12th, the Carlyle Curling Rink will be host to the Â鶹ÊÓƵern Senior Playdowns.
"To be eligible to enter in the competition, senior curlers, both men and women, must have been 50 years of age by Dec. 31, 2011, curl in a club that is affiliated with the Saskatchewan Curling Association and the Canadian Curling Association and each be an affiliated member of the SCA," explained event coordinator, Myrla Holland.
There are 14 regions provincially, with seven regions in the north, and seven regions in the south. Sixteen teams will compete at both the Northern Playdowns and the Â鶹ÊÓƵern Playdowns. The number of teams per region that will be able to play in the Playdowns is determined by how many entries per region were made. Region 5, the Esterhazy/Melville area, will have three teams at the Â鶹ÊÓƵern Playdowns, while Region 7, Regina, will have eight teams in the competition. This means that regions 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6, will only be able to have one team represent each region, as two or less entries were made per region.
Carlyle, which is in region 4, has entered a team, along with Whitewood. As only one team can represent region 4, a playoff will be held in Whitewood to determine which team will compete in the Â鶹ÊÓƵern Playdowns.
The competition is a triple knockout format. Four teams from both the Northern Playdowns and the Â鶹ÊÓƵern Playdowns will advance to a Provincial Playdown at the Foam Lake Curling Club, which will run from Feb. 22nd to Feb. 27th.
All teams will start in the 'A' event. Any teams that lose during the 'A' event will drop down to the 'B' event, and losing teams during the 'B' event will drop down to the 'C' event. Any teams that lose a game in the 'C' event will put the team out of the competition. The winner of the 'A' event, 'B' event, and the two remaining teams in 'C' will advance to the provincial competition.
The opening ceremonies and introduction of all participating teams will be held Thursday, Feb. 9th at 5:30 p.m. The first draw, or game, will take place that Thursday, at 1:30 p.m., and the second draw will be at 7 p.m. Four draws will also be held Friday, Feb. 10th, with the first being held at 8:30 a.m.
A curlers luncheon will be held at noon on the Friday in the upstairs area of the Carlyle curling rink. Tickets to the event will most likely be available for purchase, however the number of tickets needed for spouses and fans with participating teams must first be determined before it will be known how many will be available to be sold locally.
"The curlers will be here but we are hoping for a really good contingent of spectators to come out, pick their favourite teams and cheer hard! A weekend pass for all 11 draws is available for $15, a day pass is $10 and a game pass is $5," explained Holland.
The first team to advance to provincials will be announced Saturday, Feb. 11th and the final three teams advancing to provincials will be declared on Sunday, Feb 12th.
Affinity Credit Union is the title sponsor for all Senior Playdowns in Saskatchewan. Locally, Merit Ford will be sponsoring the curlers luncheon on Friday, and the Senior Curling Club will be sponsoring other food as well as the piper for the opening ceremonies. Various businesses and individuals throughout Carlyle are donating gifts, food, raffle prizes, as well as their time and talents for the event. Donations of all sizes are very much needed and appreciated.
"During the event there will be two people present at the draws. Barb Swallow from Maryfield is the SCA Assistant Region Director and Ron Kidd from Lumsden is the competition official. Locally we have had a group of dedicated people making the plans and attending to the details so that we can have a successful event. We have also had many people offer to help with the various jobs that will need to be done during the event - the behind the scenes details that insure everything runs smoothly."
"The rink kitchen will be open for spectators and curlers all four days except from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm on Friday when the luncheon is on. There will be a supper special the first three days. Thursday is chili and buns, Friday is roast beef and Saturday is stew and biscuits. The rest of the time there will be a variety of
soups, sandwiches and desserts with things like hot dogs and other interesting additions available from time to time," continued Holland.
Additionally, Rusty Relics Museum will be setting up a display of curling memorabilia specific to the Carlyle area. "Perhaps people would want to come and find out if they or their ancestors made local curling history."
"We encourage everyone to come out to watch some good curling, to swap curling stories with each other and the players and to share some good old fashioned Carlyle hospitality with these visitors to our community!"
For any further questions or information, or to make any donations to the Senior Playdowns, contact Myrla Holland at 453-6087, or by email at [email protected].
