MEOTA ‑
What a mixed bag of weather we have seen in this past week or two, but, as always ,we survive and come through stronger than ever. The warm day Sunday last, saw much of the ice drop away. By noon it was possible to scrape it off windshields easily. The roads were plowed and treated, so were passable by Sunday morning. No doubt though they had been skating rinks for a while. Haven't heard of anyone falling and breaking a limb, maybe because it was so visible that more caution was used than other times.
A shuffleboard tournament was held at the Do Drop In Jan. 22 with 21 people taking part. Under the leadership of Nestor Fransoo, all went smoothly even though there were late additions and late cancellations to his list of participants.
Starting off at 9:30 a.m., with a stop for lunch, and ending at 4 p.m., it was a long day, but one filled with fun and laughter. While not playing at the shuffleboard, there were games set up that many enjoyed such as Chit Chat, Sequence and Tile Rummy. The pool table was even used, in its crowded corner, and some enjoyed just visiting or watching others play.
Top winners at shuffleboard were Gordon Klein and Carol Dyck. Second were Albert Huys and David Sayers and third was Gail Hilderman, who had several different partners. The next tournament will be held Feb. 12.
Three tables of Norwegian Whist were played at the Do Drop In Jan. 21. Top score there was Albert Huys, way ahead of Joyce Luckey. Third were Vivianne Lesko and Rita Peterson. It was a pleasant time.
Bridge Tuesday afternoon in the Pioneer Hall had two tables, so participants played individually. Top score went to Margaret Dyck. Tied for second were Mary Phelps and Donna Scherman and tied for third were Alfred Blais and Fraser Glen. Thursday afternoon there were two and a half tables and top score went to Mary Phelps and Eric Callbeck. Second were Margaret Dyck and Dave Creegan.
Here to take part in the sturling bonspiel on Jan, 15, were two of my girls from Alberta, Donna and Joyce. They were pleasantly impressed at the whole set up at the rink ‑ the ice, the building and the kitchen. The kitchen prices were so reasonable and the food was so good. They found the ice very slippery and had sore muscles for a day or two, but otherwise had a pleasant experience.
Another daughter Sally Bouvier, came down from Beauval to share the fun Saturday, with her sisters and friends here. I have had some needed help moving snow around, as it surely piled up in the yard and around the vehicles. Because of the weather conditions I ended up with all three here for a week ‑ one lucky mother. I had to share with Auntie Linda Ard, but that was all good.
When Donna and Joyce drove to Edmonton Sunday, they report the roads were fine to Lloydminster then it rained hard all the way to Edmonton, with wipers on next to high speed. Their only two challenges were passing the big trucks and coping with the spray they send out. The rain settled the snow considerably there where it was warmer than here.
We followed a snow plow going into North Battleford Sunday and, if there weren’t sheltered spots where we could see it, the snow he was throwing out completely hid him from view. The one white light was all we could see, at times, and the blue light doesn’t show up in daylight. We felt that he should have more lights, like a tow truck, for safety.
About 40 fish shacks are to be seen from the berm area, so it is proving to be a popular winter sport.
Some homes have been broken into in Meota and Lakeview, so people should be alert to what’s going on in their neighborhood and keep their eyes open for suspicious activities and people.
Meota Curling Club
It was an action-filled week at the Meota Curling Club with six games on the schedule.
It was an emotional roller coaster of a game Tuesday night between the Pat Mohr and Derek Welford rinks in what ended up being a 10-10 tie game. This barn burner had three ends where four or more points were scored, three lead changes and it all came down the final stone.
The two hottest teams in the league kept up their winning ways as both the Demontarnel and Becotte rinks extended their respective winning streaks. Darcy Demontarnel and her team dominated the Schmidt rink 7-1 to extend her streak to three games. The Becotte rink, relying heavily on the strong play from recent sturling spiel winners Robert St. Amant and Ed Cadrin, extended their winning streak to four games with a 7-4 win over the Doom rink that was skipped by Wayne Payne.
It was a valiant effort from the Tait rink in a tightly contested battle with Pat Mohr, but Mohr was able to fend off the comeback and win 8-6. Zane Lacousiere had a beautiful draw for one in the fifth end, but it was far too late as Team Czuy fell to the Welford rink 10-1. With confidence running at an all time high, Bru defeated Weber 10-3 as they quietly creeped upwards in the standings.
The prestigious honour of Curler of the Week goes to skip Darcy Demontarnel. A devoted curler with an impeccable attendance record, Darcy called a masterful game Tuesday night that was perfectly executed. Darcy played to her strengths of using a combination of draw and down weights that left nothing for her opposing skip to work with, resulting in numerous ends where they stole. Considered the top curler of her household, Demontarnel has been trending in the right direction and will continue to lead a tough team to beat in the coming weeks.
