7am breakfast and MC on the bus. It’s an early start after a long, long day before. Catching up with our colleagues from the East tour last night was good fun and a great chance to exchange battle stories. Now we are into the meat of the campaign. Time to score points.
RCMP CC is another wooden ceilinged curling hall with a lot of history to it. The Bison is their club emblem and is evident everywhere. The bison alludes to the prairie grasslands where the police force performed their first duties, the early members of the police force depending on the animals for food, fuel, and clothing. This is the only RCMP curling club in the world.
I am willing to bet that nobody else noticed this but this is the only ice rink we’ve played in so far that had no advertising on the walls whatsoever. I liked that. I knew this place would be special and I was proud to be flag bearer this morning. I also loved the hog-line that said “Police Line. Do Not Cross.” That kind of stuff appeals to me.
There was a lovely golden Labrador wandering around the clubhouse all morning. Very friendly and not a moocher at all. Nice doggie. We came away from RCMP with a plus 4 points score. That was reasonable.
City View was only a short bus journey away. Their 4 sheet ice rink was built 8 years ago to replace the 3 sheeter, which had been a troublesome structure for a few years. The club was actually established in 1957 and has a good bit of history behind it. It was a good afternoon all round. Positive points score again. We are back in the black which has always been our target. If we keep that for the next two days, we will all be content with our achievement
It’s been a long day and we have had very kind and generous hosts.
Stephen McClymont