Joey Payeur
Odds-makers would have a tough time handicapping this field.
Nine rinks will descend on the Fort Frances Curling Club beginning Friday for the Northern Ontario Curling Association Travelers 2014 Men’s West Qualifier.
Three teams will advance through the ‘A’, ‘B,’ and ‘C’ sides of the draw to play in the provincial showdown Feb. 5-9 in Timmins.
The local favourite will be Adam Bolen of Fort Frances—a young gun who won’t be lacking for veteran guidance on his team.
That’s due to the presence of multiple local men’s champ Lorne Jackson, who will throw third stones for Bolen.
Jackson has made a number of appearances at the provincials and will be a vital cog in the quartet, which also includes Neil Haw at second and Andy McCormick at lead.
Punching their ticket to Timmins won’t be easy given the calibre of the field this weekend.
No less than six teams from Thunder Bay will be here, including two with local connections.
Stratton native Trevor Bonot will skip one of the three teams representing the Port Arthur Curling Club, with Bryan Burgess and Brian Adams Jr. being the other two.
Bonot and his rink of third Al Macsemchuk, second Chris Briand, and lead Tim Jewett won a cash ’spiel in Thunder Bay earlier this season and currently sit third in the TBaytel Major League of Curling standings—one spot back of Burgess and one ahead of Adams.
The Fort William Curling Club also is sending three rinks here, with one of those featuring Devlin native Mike Badiuk playing third for skip Dylan Johnston.
Ben Mikkelson and Mike Assad also will carry the Fort William banner into the competition.
Dan Lemieux (Sault Ste. Marie) and John Cummine (Sioux Lookout) round out the field.
The first draw, set for Friday at 9 a.m., will include Bolen taking on Cummine, with the winner playing Burgess at 2:30 p.m.
Other afternoon contests will feature Mikkelson battling Johnston, Adams challenging Assad, and Lemieux locking horns with Bonot.
There also will be an evening draw Friday at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday will see action kick off at 9:30 a.m., with the ‘A’ final set for 2:30 p.m., followed by another draw at 7:30 p.m.
The ‘B’ final goes Sunday at 9 a.m., with the ‘C’ final set for 2 p.m.
