The Shawville Curling Club was packed Saturday night for the last games of the 48th Shawville Community Bonspiel. This year, Southwest Bristol beat out the tournament’s 41 other teams for the honour of the toilet seat trophy.
Longtime curler Joe Morris led the team as skip, with Peter Haughton as third, Carson Rusenstrom as second and Jennifer Haughton as lead. This wasn’t Morris’ first time being handed the trophy. Last year, as skip with the Aggies team, he also won the tournament.
When asked how he managed to pull off back-to-back wins, Morris gave the credit to his teammates.
“The team just curled well,” Morris said. “The team I had last year, there were two brand new curlers. This year, two people play on Tuesday nights in the beginner league, and they played really well.”
The teams that won the six other divisions were Broom Shakalaka, Armohr Farms, The Youngsters, Pontiac Hospital, Cedar Creek Farms and Lions and Friends.
Roger Younge, president of the curling club, hopes that tournaments like this inspire more people to join the club.
He said a membership will only cost $50 for the rest of the season, which runs until Apr. 11, and it gives you access to play in any of the club’s leagues.
“People think you need to be experienced to have fun,” Younge said. “But we have about 25 new members this year. There are always new curlers and you don’t have to feel nervous about joining the club.”
Morris said that these types of events remind people that curling can be fun and intense.
“I love to play, I love to curl,” Morris said. “Anybody can play at any age, and you don’t have to be good. It’s a social game that can be competitive too.”
This year, the tournament raised $1,920 in team entry fees. Teams were also able to enter the tournament with a sign sponsorship. Younge said that 18 teams took advantage of that opportunity.
