Len and Ron Vanderstar, along with two other teammates from the Northwest will be competing at the 2012 Canadian Direct Insurance BC Mens Curling Championship next week to secure a berth to the 2012 Brier in Saskatoon.
This year’s event is a bit different than previous years with a new 16 team triple knockout format and a four team playoff. Although they have played in provincial tournaments before, this will be the first time the brothers have played side-by-side at the mens provincials.
“I think we’re as ready as ever,” Len said. “So we’re either going to win all the games or lose them all, no second.”
Curling is a game of strategy and unyielding focus. Every rock counts and every player has to play at the top of their game. Teams come from all over the province, some that have been to the show before and know what it takes to get there. The Vanderstar rink definitely has their work cut out for them.
“Everyone is going in with pretty good expectations,” said Len. “You have to focus on good expectations in order to have high performance, you can’t think you’re going to lose, it’s a rock by rock game. So we’re going against the best and we’ve done that before and we’ve beat teams that have gone to the Brier so I think mentally and physically we’re ready for it.”
The Vanderstar rink knows they are going up against some tough competitors which according to Ron means they will have to play more basic curling and keep it simple. They will be going up against seasoned curlers like Jim Cotter, the current Brier champ as well as a former Smithereen that has won his fair share of championships, Ken Maskiewich.
“Every team down there can win and go to the Brier,” Ron said. “It’s tough competition.”
Although it will be a challenge for the Vanderstar rink they are still very optimistic and will surely be a top competitor them selves. “My aspirations are to make the top half,” Ron said. “Obviously if we can make the playoffs that would be special, that’s what we’re striving to do. If we can make the top half I think that would be a success.”
The Men’s BC Championships start sliding rocks Feb. 8-12 in Parksville B.C.