Cochrane Curling Club hosted their first ever Mixed Doubles Bonspiel over the course of Nov. 20-22, and it was a resounding success.
“We had 20 teams, so 40 people in total,” said Judy Rahn, one of the tournament organizers and Cochrane Curling Club board member.
“That was the maximum number of teams that we could accommodate, so we were quite pleased.”
The main event, was won by the junior team of Cole Adams and Hannah Phillips from North Hill Curling Club in Calgary.
They were awarded a $360 prize after defeating Morgan Kokoroyannis and Brad Muise by a score of 10-6.
Consolation events winners was the team of Dixon and Kiist, who defeated Morrison and Toews by a score of 8-7.
Teams were not just restricted to locals, but many curling enthusiasts from Calgary and surrounding areas took part as well.
“A lot of the teams were from Calgary,” Rahn confirmed. “We had 12 junior teams from Calgary, one of which curls in our Thursday league, and we had eight adult teams for this spiel.
“Everything met our expectations.”
The relatively new style of curling, which involves two teams of two players (man and woman), sounds like it would be ideal fit for husband and wife teams, but Rahn says there is a, “wide variety” when it comes to team makeup.
“A lot of the juniors are just different juniors in programs getting together and making a team,” she said.
“Sure, there are a couple of husband and wife teams, but a lot of the teams are just people who curl together in a league and decided to give this a try.”
What does the future hold in store for mixed doubles?
“Next year, we’re going to continue with the mixed doubles league,” Rahn confirmed.
“We’ll probably make the mixed doubles bonspiel an annual event just like our mens, ladies, and regular mixed ones.”
Does Rahn feel that there is still a growing interest in mixed doubles?
“Hopefully the interest will continue to grow,” she said.
“It’s a relatively new sport, so we hope to get more and more people and eventually, we hope we can split it off and have a junior mixed doubles league, as well as an adult one.”
Cochrane Curling Club next plays host to the sixth annual Super Seniors Square Spiel.
The event runs from Nov. 25 to Nov. 28.
Spaces for the upcoming spiel have already been filled, (27 teams, 108 curlers), but the general public is welcome to come and observe the games.
Cash prizes are available at the event.
