Tag Archives: curling

10 Sports Films You Should Watch If You Have Actual Taste

Yesterday, my good friend Jason Kurylo demonstrated just how wrong he can be at times: he published a list of the ten sports movies that you really ought to re-watch. The post’s purpose was the same as all posts of that nature: to make people argue with the author. So argue with him I shall. Cool Runnings, Jason? COOL RUNNINGS?? Continue reading 10 Sports Films You Should Watch If You Have Actual Taste

Sunday? That’s my Fun Day.

Faithful readers know that we at Pucked in the Head set the Guinness World Record for Longest Table Hockey Marathon a while back. We are thus pre-eminent in our trustiness when it comes to judging worthwhile table hockey-related events. It’s a burden, really.

The kids, they like their table hockey. Smart kids, I say. Photo by Jason Kurylo for Pucked in the Head.
The kids, they like their table hockey. Smart kids, I say. Photo by Jason Kurylo for Pucked in the Head.

On the other hand, we get word of some pretty cool happenings, all ahead of time and stuff. THIS VERY WEEKEND the River Market in New Westminster brings table hockey, indoor curling* and a massive hopscotch… Track? Court? What the heck do you call the grid for hopscotch, anyhoo? Whatever you call it, the River Market has one, and they’re sharing it with individuals and families from 11-4 on Sunday, February 15.

Great event, mere steps from New West SkyTrain station. Had tons of fun with my daughter there last year. Give it a go!

* Isn’t all curling indoor? I’ve never seen outdoor curling, but I’d love to give it a go. 

Oh, THAT indoor curling. My daughter Milla shows exquisite form during last year's Family Fun Festival at the New West River Market.
Oh, THAT indoor curling. Portable ice substitute and plastic “rocks” with ball-bearings. My daughter shows exquisite form during last year’s Family Fun Festival at the New West River Market.

Tweet at River Market on the mighty Twitter using @RiverMrkt. Or, you know, go after them on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram instead, if you feel like slumming — they’ve adopted the very same RiverMrkt name on all four social media channels. (Why so predictable, River Market? Huh?)

The River Market in New West offers awesome chicken sandwiches (Re-Up BBQ), Mexican conchas (Pamola Bakery), and dude: a circus school upstairs. This Family Fun stuff is freaking gravy.
The River Market in New West offers awesome chicken sandwiches (Re-Up BBQ), delicious Mexican conchas (Pamola Bakery), and dude: there’s a circus school upstairs. This Family Fun stuff is just freaking gravy.

Canadian women pick up Olympic slack

Canadian bobsledder extraordinaire Heather Moyse flashes her inhumanly perfect chicklets with her 2010 gold medal. Photo borrowed from www.heathermoyse.com
Canadian bobsledder extraordinaire Heather Moyse flashes her inhumanly perfect chicklets with her 2010 gold medal. Photo borrowed from www.heathermoyse.com

Obligatory shout out to Canadian athletes in Sochi this month, all of whom are representing Canada with style and grace. A special set of props go to our Canadian women, who have in the past few days tipped the hardware scales in favour of the women during the 2014 Winter Games. Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse joined an elite group in defending Olympic gold this week, taking first overall in the four-heat, two-(wo)man bobsleigh competition. In related news, Moyse may just have the most perfect teeth in the history of, well, teeth.

Dentistry aside, she and Humphries had an uphill battle in the third and fourth runs of the bobsleigh, as first-time American competitor Lauryn Williams and her partner Elana Williams pushed the Canadians to the final run before relinquishing the top spot. All of this despite undergoing hip surgery and taking nearly two and a half years away from sliding after the Vancouver Games. On the US side, Williams only started bobsledding in 2012 after taking a break from a career as an Olympic-level track star. She previously won gold at the Summer Games with the American 4x100m sprint relay.

Twice more, women took centre stage. Jennifer Jones skipped her rink to the first-ever perfect Games in curling history, going undefeated through the round robin and playoff matches. Team Jones beat a jittery Swedish rink, who made Canada sweat for eight ends before coming apart in the ninth. It’s the first Olympic medal for Jones & Co, and the first Canadian gold in women’s curling since Sandra Schmirler won the 1998 Games in Nagano, Japan.

On bigger ice down the road, Marie-Philip Poulin provided the heroics to bring Canada its fourth consecutive women’s hockey gold this morning. The United States was this close to wresting hockey supremacy away from Canada, up 2-0 with less than five minutes to play. Then goals by Brianne Jenner and Poulin sent the game to sudden death overtime. Poulin capitalised upon a rare 4-on-3 power play, as British referee Joy Tottman called a flurry of penalties — sending the Americans packing and the Canadians into a celebratory frenzy.

I’ve yet to see any stats on CBC viewership, but apparently NBC’s online feed was live-streamed on more than 1.2 million computers in the United States alone. That number is higher than any other piece of programming in the network’s history with the exception of this year’s SuperBowl.

Now it’s up to the men. Brad Jacobs skips the men in the curling final, and Sidney Crosby looks to lead the hockey squad past the Americans in the semi-final on Friday morning. The only advice one can give them is, “Boys, play like girls.”