The Gordon Shimizu rink from the Grand Forks Curling Club has won the Zone 1 berth in the 70 plus category of the BC Interior Masters Curling Association playdowns which were held last week in Grand Forks. Shimizu and his team of Johnny Ikari, Homer Good and Art Stavenjord went through the round robin event undefeated and will now participate in the BCIMCA/Pacific Coast MCA provincial championship in Trail next month.
 
The Shimizu foursome convincingly won their first two games of the round robin, as did Norm Arnott, which set the stage for a winner take all deciding game. Scoring in six of the eight ends the winners handed Arnott a 7-3 defeat. Arnott’s team included Jim Field, Ed Wantamaniuk and Dave Dale. Paul Beattie, also from the host club, and Earl Mason from Castlegar, were the other entries in the playoff.
 
Curling is a sport in which one can participate well into their senior years. Players on the above teams have years of experience in league play and playdowns, and are still excellent shot makers. The BC playdowns in Trail will also include the 60 plus division and there is currently some interest in a Mixed category, as up until now the BC Masters Curling Association has limited the participation to men. This branch of curling in the province traces its roots to Walter Hobbs (Kelowna) and Jack McAllister, who promoted wider competition for retirees beyond their local curling leagues. The trophies now awarded to the Interior and Combined champions bear their names. The Coastal winner receives the Guy Philip award. Grand Forks curlers have regularly entered teams in this competition.