Be careful what you wish for

Guest Column by Ben Hebert

When I look back 10 to 15 years in our sport – to when I was a real youngster around the rinks – and think about who I looked up to in curling, some familiar names come to mind. Wayne Middaugh. Kevin Martin. The Howards. Jeff Stoughton. Kerry Burtnyk. The Ferb. Ed Werenich. Al Hackner. Oh, and lets not forget Brad and Bruce Hebert! Ha ha.

I have had the pleasure of playing only once or twice against The Wrench and The Iceman himself. For the rest of the crew, they are all – still today – the top dogs, 10-15 years later… and we have to respect that.

The only difference between then and now is Middaugh doesn’t yell “Geez!” as much; Kevin lost his moustache (and his hair) and Furball doesn’t sweep!

If you’re a true curling fan and you enjoy great players, great minds, unreal shotmaking and, most of all, great people, then watching the names I have mentioned from the past 15 years is just about as good as it gets. And I would dare to suggest we should enjoy it while it lasts.

I would say consistency is the toughest part of curling, and somehow these players have done it day in and day out for so many years (with great teammates, of course). You guys know who you are and I can’t name all the players on the great teams that have supported these legends.

When I hear people say that they want to see new teams on television, or that they’re sick and tired of seeing the same teams in the finals, it kind of bothers me. Be careful what you wish for, folks.

Was anybody sick of Jack Nickalaus, Wayne Gretzky, Michael Jordan, or Pete Sampras? What these athletes were to their sports (and still are) are what the names listed above have done for curling!

Will anybody ever toss the heat like The Bear (Martin) or Middaugh?

How about the soft touch like Glenn and Jeff?

Or what about making the most in-offs and Hail Marys known to man, Mr. Kerry Burtnyk (or as I like to call him, the Ol’ Chip ’N Dip)?

How about sweeping? Will anybody bend the broom like Scott Bailey, Steve Gould, or Marty and Pfeif? (Well, I can think of two guys!) Hahaha.

Trust me curling fans, I play week in and week out against the same teams and it’s going to be a sad day when they all decide to pack it in.

I do feel that day will represent a much more wide-open race to the top. Naturally, you will have your front-runners – who are also front runners today – like Kevin Koe, Pat Simmons, Brad Gushue and… after that? Maybe John Morris, if he decides to skip again.

Some people may like The Changing Of The Guard and some young teams will definitely benefit from it as well, but it just won’t be the same when you’re not out there learning from the very best. And perhaps that will become obvious on television, too.

Some Sunday mornings (or Mondays) it really is cool to check the draw and say, “OK, to win this ’spiel we have to beat Stoughton, Middaugh, and Howard!”

I hope this core group of players and builders of our sport manage to stick around for years to come, but I know there will be a day – one Sunday or Monday morning – when somebody will say “OK, to win this ’spiel we have to beat Charley Thomas, Reid Curruthers, and Gushue!”

Doesn’t quite have the same ring to it, eh?