The fact that Bryan Bonot’s rink hadn’t ever played together before last weekend didn’t seem to matter much as the Stratton foursome topped all comers, winning the annual “Icebox of the Nation” here.
“We played some real good games and some a little shaky, but we were able to make the right shots at the right time,” Bonot said as he walked off the ice after a 7-6 win over Tom Mayer of International Falls in the ‘A’ final on Sunday afternoon.
“This is a great bonspiel. Always has been,” he added.
Bonot had to rally from an early deficit, then could only watch as Mayer’s final shot—a near-impossible piece of angle mastery designed to knock Bonot out of the house—missed its targets cleanly.
“It just came down to the last shot,” Mayer said. “That was a tough game. These guys are curling against some veterans.”
“It was quite a game,” agreed Bonot. “Good game. Good competition, good guys to curl against.”
The Stratton quartet was made up of a group of seasoned curlers that had seen each other on the ice, but hadn’t played together on the same team.
They joined up to throw their hat in for some serious seniors’ competition later in the season. They only came to the Icebox bonspiel to “get some games,” Bonot said, and, of course, have a good time.
Despite the loss, Mayer said his rink thoroughly enjoyed themselves, and raved about the dinner and dance held at the Holiday Inn over in the Falls the night before.
“It’s a fun bonspiel, it’s just a lot of good camaraderie between all the different teams. It just seems like a great, sociable bonspiel,” Mayer said.
While the ‘A’ final didn’t feature anyone from town, the three other finals featured all-Fort Frances showdowns.
Ron MacKinnon beat Dave Bondett 7-4 for the ‘B’ title, Kathy Windigo topped Raymond Roy 7-2 for the ‘C’ crown, and Brian Angus beat Mike Cawston 7-4 in the ‘D’ final.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
