The seaweed is always greener… at the Peace Arch Curling Club.
At least, it was for the ocean-themed High Tides Bonspiel, which was held Nov. 24-26 at the White Rock club.
Event organizer John Bogar said the event was more than just about curling.
“It became an affair about family, friendship, fun and yes, some curling,” he said in an email summing up the event.
Two teams from Seattle travelled to White Rock for the 20-team competition, and those teams also brought along their children, Bogar noted.
The first team, Poseidon and His Daughters, was a father curling with his three daughters, while the second team, Amphitrite and Her Sons, was the mother, Jessica Schultz, forming a team with the three sons-in-law. The four children were all cousins ranging in age from six to 12, Bogar noted.
“What can the kids do for fun while their parents are curling? They blow up hundreds of pink balloons! And why would they do that? So, they can have the absolutely best costume in the High Tides ‘ocean theme’ costume competition,” Bogar said.
He recalled how, when the Saturday night dinner was starting, the Fish and Chips Foursome made a grand appearance and the Jelly Fish lit up the room with their electric costumes.
“Then suddenly, the room exploded as four sea anemones entered the room. People rushed over to take photos of the spectacle as the four Seattle kids arrived dressed up in hundreds of pink balloons,” he said.
Bogar said that meant the agenda for the evening had to change.
“These kids dressed up as the anemones absolutely stole the show and there was no question about the winner of the best costume. But the judging was supposed to happen after dinner,” he said.
“Unfortunately, with two-foot balloons protruding all around their bodies, these kids were unable to sit down and eat. So, we declared them winners to allow them to shed their costumes and have dinner.”
All the final games were held on Sunday afternoon (Nov. 26).
The team skipped by Darrell Zbeetnoff – Zbeetnoff (skip) his two daughters Nadia Krestanovich and Barbara Zbeetnoff and Greg Christofferson (lead) – won the main event.
Other event winners were Team MacMak: Christine Makasoff (skip), Michelle MacKinnon (vice skip), Blaine Makasoff (second) and Fran Hocken (lead), and Boats and Throws, comprised of Ken Henry (skip), Rick Vandusen (vice skip), Jen Saltman (second) and Simon Potts (lead).
Schultz said the weekend was great.
“We had a fabulous time. The High Tides spiel was fantastic,” she told Bogar.
“Such great fellowship in the warm room and competition on the ice. We had a blast and will be back next year.”