Curling Towel – Redux
Be still our beating hearts.
As one drooling poster on CurlingZone noted, Colleen Jones looks simply smashing wearing nothing but a wet head and a towel (above). She did so for this sketch on the CBC-TV comedy show This Hour Has 22 Minutes, which spoofed the network’s horrid new drama – supposedly centering on “hockey wives” – called MVP.
No, we’re not linking to it. It’s appalling. And there’s no hockey.
But CJ’s cameo is great. As is the sketch. But this isn’t her first time wearing a towel on TV.
The first – at least we think it’s the first – was for a CBC Newsworld story taped during the last Olympics in Turin, where Jones threw a spotlight on the new fashion trends – specifically skin-tight clothing and near-nude calendar appearances – many of the female curlers were sporting. Of course, what was fairly nouveau back then is nearly omnipresent now, but we digress.
The point is, Jonesy will do whatever it takes to get the shot, and now she’s done it twice. And so we add our applause, too.
Speaking of Jones, her how-to book Curling Secrets is doing quite well, and her publisher’s contest – where you can win a private, one-on-one curling clinic with Colleen herself – closes on January 31. We invite you head to the website right now and follow the specific e-mail instructions.
Elsewhere:
• Two good reviews for a couple of fine curling books – the aforementioned Jones book and this wonderful Doug Clark tome – in Sunday’s Winnipeg Free Press. Here’s our take on The Roaring Game, and Resby Coutts’ Rock Talk interviewed both Clark and Jones last month (see two-part interviews on December 5 and November 12) ...
• The Scotties – Canadian provincial women’s, that is – are off and running. Quebec wraps up this weekend with big guns Bélisle, Osborne and Larouche all undefeated ay 6-0, while PEI starts today. The rest of the provs go next week with most finals on January 27 ...
• Ontario’s final two men’s provincial teams will be decided this weekend, via two Challenge Round competitions – 32 teams in each East and West playdown, with only one winner from each. Late news will see Mike Harris – who has a new Capital One Curlers Corner websiode up and running here – call the game but hand skip rock duties over to third John Epping ...
• According to the Edmonton Journal, Randy Ferbey has recovered from his heel injury and is raring to go, after throwing his first practice rocks in five weeks yesterday.
“I’m a quick healer,” said the Ferb. “The doctors told me to stay off it and not to exert myself – which is something I’m very good at.”
• It’s looking good for tomorrow’s outdoor ice exhibition in Waterloo, as this new blog attests. As we reported last week, The Wrench will be there, too ...
• By now y’all have heard that Paul Boutilieris stepping down from six years of curling politics, effective the end of this season. You can read more recent stuff with new quotes here and also here.
The pundits are correct. “Boots” brought a couple of disparate groups together for the betterment of the sport, and it was a lot tougher slog than just taking some people golfing. It’s also worth noting the 2005-06 season, when IMG left the Grand Slam in the lurch and it was left to Boutilier to soldier on himself, with some last-minute help from Rogers Sportsnet (another year of TV committment) and the ever-present guys at CurlingZone.
Compared to the Slam property’s current status, those days were a near-disaster. Congrats and thanks – from all curling fans – on seeing things through those difficult times ...
• Who won the Toronto city championship? The Beermakers... er, the Leermakers ...
• And Manitoba’s massive MCA Bonspiel ain’t so massive anymore, which means big changes are in the works after today’s start to the 120th edition. ’Tobans can look forward to some good reportage from Chris Cariou, and of course The Bender, while Paul Wiecek is in rare form today with this absolute gem ...
• Seniors, shmeniors... British Columbia’s Rick Folk is yet another decorated veteran – hi there Bob Turcotte and Eugene Hritzuk – who wants back in at the men’s provincials ...
• China is leading the way in both men’s and women’s play at the 2008 Pacific Junior Championships in Jeonju, Korea ...
• WGRZ in Buffalo went curling in Niagara Falls, and that sure looks like TCN columnist Matt Hames chucking bricks...
• From the Where Are They Now file, Bob Weeks updates us on former world champions (and now non-curlers) John Kawaja (1983 and 1990) and Jane Hooper-Perroud (1996) ...
• Asham Curling Supplies has quietly opened a brand-new store, and it’s located in downtown Winnipeg ...
• They’re watching curling grow at the Scottish Borders – and we have video here and a print tale located here ...
• Oich! What’s this? East Lothian’s curling season is going to end... in January?! Over to our Scottish Curler friends to please explain the early finish ...
• And now for this weekend’s big WCT-E women’s event, also in Scotland. Here’s some advance press (here... and also here...) and we note the new event trophy is quite cool. However, yesterday’s mayhem at London’s Heathrow airport has caught some of the teams – and the spiel organizers – in a real bind, as Curling Today told us last night and again today. Hang on guys; the Russians are coming! The Russians are coming!
• Irrelevant believes that all cash curling is... well, irrelevent. He says so here, and then here, again. Agree? Or not? ...
• We have a new convert, although she doesn't have much to say. Yet ...
• The Frankfurt Lions hockey squad tried a miniaturized form of curling (starts at 8:48) ...
• CapeCast (Jan. 8) visited the local curling club (from 1:00 to 4:30)... and here’s a recent area print story, too ...
• And the Superior CC in Wisconsin is on the rise ...
• Mark has uncovered more ancient outdoor curling documentation, circa 1903 in Boston ...
• Here’s Jessica, in Utica, with round three ...
• Lauren is online with 8 End, a CommonGate community blog-slash-Wiki-slash-networking, er, thingy, focusing on four Colorado guys with big curling dreams ...
• So here we are, reading a fairly well-written story on sport definitions, and we come across this clunker: Curling is an Olympic medal sport, but requires about the same level of effort as sweeping the back porch.
Uh, he’s kidding, right?
• At least this Alabamian has a healthy respect for the sport ...
• D’oh! ...
• D’oh! again ...
• Sounds like James was the first to throw a curling stone at the Toyota Centre...
• Glenn Howard got cornered, and he reveals much: his team is operating a brand-new fantasy curling camp, and he is fed up with his favourite hockey team (also excerpted and reprinted in the vicious metro hockey media market here). Indeed, the Maple Laughs would kill for his brand of on-ice consistency ...
• And finally, we are delighted to report that Team Courage went 3-2 in recent games, including victories over Team Dreams and Team, er, Orange Towel. How about that?