Tim Nordin rink heading to Northern Ontario Curling Championships

By Ken Johnston
Editor

They say third time is the charm and Tim Nordin of Dawson Township is hoping that rings true when he and three other curlers travel to Sudbury next week for the Dominion Northern Ontario Provincial Men’s Curling Championships.
Nordin who has been to the provincials on two other occasions was not expecting to be there this year when the season started. He curls regularly in Rainy River and his three team members were actually going to university in Thunder Bay and came to him asking him to play with them.
His third is Mitch Seguin of Pinewood, Mike Badiuk of Devlin and Travis Showalter of Nestor Falls. They are considerably younger than the veteran Nordin, but it rings a bell of a team that so many have followed on the national level; Russ Howard teaming with up and coming Brad Gushue and his team mates in 2005.
While Nordin does not lay any claims to being a Russ Howard, he connected quickly with his younger teammates. “They gave me tips as to how they each play and I caught on real fast to them as they did to me.”
Nordin said that he feels his rink is, “going in as a dark horse. Most of the other teams there play together all the time.”

The format is much different than Nordin saw the last two times. There are now 12 instead of 8 teams going to the provincials. “It is much the same as the brier now,” said Nordin on Monday. In his last two appearances he finished 3-4. He is optimistic this combination of his experience/skill and the younger enthusiasm as well as their talents will see them go far and possibly all the way! “However, we will take it one game at a time.”

If they win there, they earn the right to go to the 2010 Tim Horton’s Brier in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Another thing that has changed since Nordin went to the provincials last is that the Northern Ontario Curling Association used to cover most of the costs to go. “That is not the case now. They do not pay anything.”

For that reason the team has began soliciting sponsors to help with the costs. Anyone interested in helping them out can contact Nordin at Lowes Lumber in Sleeman, Ont. at 807-852-3218.
The public will be able to follow the team’s progress on the internet at www.2010northernontariomensprovincials.com.