Image credit: CFJC Today/Anthony Corea

By Marty Hastings

ON PEBBLED ICE

Barriere Curling Club relishing exposure during B.C. Stick Curling Championships

Feb 6, 2025 | 5:02 PM

BARRIERE, B.C. — Bernice Randrup and a crew of volunteers were bustling in the Barriere Curling Club kitchen on Thursday (Feb. 6) morning.

Long-awaited guests are in town for the B.C. Open and Women’s Stick Curling Championships, which are scheduled to run from Thursday to Saturday.

“It means a lot because we’re getting exposure,” said club director Randrup, who is handling public relations duties during the tournament. “We take a lot of pride in this building.”

Twelve two-person teams from across the province are competing – four in the women’s division and eight in the open division.

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Sticks extending from hand to rock handle enable curlers to deliver from a standing position.

“Anybody can play stick curling. There’s no age [limit],” said Luci Tremblay, a Curl BC official from Kamloops. “Somebody with a broken back, they like the curling but cannot slide anymore, can get back in the game with friends for the social part, and now you have provincials, you have nationals, so it’s way more interesting for them. There is some competition.”

Representatives from Armstrong, Abbotsford, Summerland, Penticton, Kelowna, Prince George, Chilliwack and Kamloops will compete at ice level before heading upstairs to socialize.

“Oh, it’s very important,” Armstrong curler Sheron Sears said of off-ice camaraderie. “And quite often we will see the people again at another competition and it just feels like you’re meeting an old friend again.”

Not all of the curlers suffer from mobility issues that preclude them from using a slide delivery.

“I’ve been fortunate not to have that problem,” Sears said. “I was doing both for a while and then I decided, well, I should stick to one. I’m not getting any younger, so why not just go for the stick?”

Randrup said the curling club is the only recreational facility in Barriere and it is supported through fundraising and grants.

“We have bingos and we have the concession at the fall fair because we need to raise money to have this building open because we are not owned by the municipality,” Randrup said.

“Come on out. The concession is open. The lounge is open. We’re going to be doing a 50-50 every day. We’d love to see you. It means a lot for our little club.”

Teams did not have to win qualifiers to reach the provincials, which were open to all comers. The finals in both divisions are slated for 1:30 p.m. on Saturday.

Sears said the rinks that win gold will get financial help from Curl BC for their trip to the Canadian Stick Curling Association National Championships, which are scheduled to run from April 2 to April 6 in Grande Prairie, Alta.

“We’re going to give it a good go,” Sears said.