Heading home...

It sound's like the old ladies have had a wonderful, fantastic trip! I received one last email from Cathie (I received this on Sunday evening) before they head home.

i still have to laugh when Aija says we are the best team that didn't win!! We are okay with it. You know it would have been great to be in the final four, but the whole trip has been so fantastic and curling was just the half of it.

today we went out to the Otaga Penninsula. We drove clear to the end and saw the Albatross colonly. It was very interesting and we did see albatross flying and fledglings sitting on the cliff.

We also went to Larnaugh Castle which is really just a gothic revival mansion, but it was very interesting too and the grounds were lovely. We have had the BEST weather. Only a few cloudly days with sun later and only one evening when it was drizzle. Today was gorgeous. We are going out for our last meal tonight. LAMB SHANKS ALL AROUND!!!

I hope they enjoyed their Lamb Shanks! I sure have enjoyed living vicariously through them!

Update from Cathie

I received this email from Cathie yesterday evening:

Darn! that's about all I can say. Aija says we are the best team that didn't win!! We have really, really had a lot of fun here. I do wish the curling could have gone a little better. We should have beat Japan. but a heavy guard messed up our opportunity to tie or even get one up on them. they were really hot. their coach is a Canadian and she said that it was the best game they had played the whole competition.

Oh well. We found out next year is in Russia.

Everybody is doing good. We had the party last night. It was really fun. Everybody danced, including Murphy. I have not seen anyone this am. Murphy got up and had breakfast by himself. I stayed in bed and finally got up and showered. We were talking about going somewhere today, but we may not after all. I'm going to walk up to the store after I finish with my email and look for something for Cori.

I know tomorrow we are going to the Otago Penninsula. that is where the albatross
colony and yellow eyed penguin colonies are. this really a pretty town. I can't believe the beaches. They are gorgeous and not even overly developed!

I think you'll have to wait until Emily gets home for photos. I know she has taken over 2000 photos or some such number. there's bound to be a lot of good ones. We all want to get together eventually and share photos with everyone. Murphy took 3 video cassettes worth of stuff too.

We'll be home late Tuesday night.

Well, it sounds like they had a great time at the Awards Ceremony! And who knows, maybe Russia next year???

We will post photos and more after they get home, I know I am looking forward to seeing some pictures! Especially of Penguins OUTSIDE the zoo, somehow that seems really weird to me....

Have a safe trip home!

Canada Sweeps the Senior World Curling Championships

The Senior World Curling Championships have concluded with the Canadian Women victorious over Switzerland and Sweden taking the Bronze Medal over Scotland. On the Men's side, Scotland takes the Bronze medal over Switzerland while Canada and USA battled for the title. In a game of 1's and blanks Canada and USA went into the 8th end tied 3 - 3. Canada had the hammer and scored the final point in the 8th end to win the Men's Senior World Curling Championships 4 - 3.

Congratulations to the Senior World Champion teams and all of the competitors. I hope all the old folks have enough left in them to party all night at the Awards Banguet!

Team USA 3 - 4

With the final game of the Round Robin last night Team USA finished Round Robin play and tournament play with a 12 - 1 loss to Switzerland. A tough way to end the week that started off so well for Team USA.

Heading into the Semi-Finals of the event Team Canada is in first place with a 7 - 0 record followed by Switzerland 5 - 2, and Scotland and Sweden both 4 - 3. The men's teams have one more round robin game to play, USA's Pustovar rink is in strong contention with a 4 - 0 record going into this final round robin game. The Semi-Finals will be played at 9:00am Saturday (NZT) followed by the Finals at 2:30pm (NZT). The final event of the World Championships is the Award Banquet on Saturday night. I am sure that their will be much wine drinking and celebrating happening there! I for one can not wait to hear the stories from that party!

USA 7 - Italy 3

Team USA is once again on the winning side of the game with today's win over Italy. The old ladies came out strong, scoring 2 in the first end. After Italy scored 1 in the second end USA took 1 in the third, stole 1 in the fourth followed by stealing 3 in the fifth end. They maintained control the entire game, great job ladies!

A good way to start their day, now they need to carry this momentum into tonight's game versus Switzerland (Midnight PST).

Good Curling!

Team Japan wins 8 - 3

Alright ladies - time to get back into this! Today they play Italy and Switzerland. According to Cathie's last email they play at 9am and 6pm NZ time again today (2pm and Midnight PST). Italy is 0 - 5 and Switzerland is 3 - 2. If we can play well today I believe that they can get back into position for the top four.

Either way - have fun and Good Curling!

Update from Cathie - Canada 7 - USA 5

Cathie sent an update this evening:

The game against Scotland was just a dog. We couldn't get anything going. We had trouble with our weight. We were all very flat. Anyway, that is curling for you!

We played Canada (the reigning Champions) this a.m. and really only had one bad end (the second where we gave up 4). At half it was 6-2. Then we stole 2 ends, they got one, then we got 2. The final score was 7-5. We felt good about the game.

We play Japan tonight. They are 1-3. There are a bunch of us at 2-2. With a win against them tonight that will bring us to the front of the pack. Actually, I think Sweden is 3-1 now, but they still have Canada to play. We have Switzerland, Japan and Italy. Italy has no wins.

We basically want to be in the final four and go from there.

Sounds like a great plan ladies! Good luck tonight against Japan (Midnight tonight PST).

Scotland 9 - USA 2

Tough loss tonight for the ladies. They gave up 7 points in the first three ends and just couldn't get back into it.

Well, at least that was their only game today - now they can enjoy a nice bottle of wine, have a relaxing evening and be ready for action again tomorrow! I do not know what time they play next, but it will be a big game against undefeated Team Canada. I will post the schedule as soon as I know what it is.

NZ website hasn't been updated...

I am fairly certain the game is over. It has been almost three hours since the game started but the website has only been updated thru the 4th end and it is not pretty for Team USA. Team Scotland took 3 in the 1st end, stole 1 in the 2nd end and stole another 3 in the 3rd end. Team USA took 1 in the 4th end to make the score 7 - 1. Nothing has been updated since then, and believe me I have been wearing out my f5 button hitting refresh!

Wait, let me try again... Nope nothing new.

As soon as it is updated I will post the results here.

USA 2 - 0

With a 7 - 4 win over Sweden last night Team USA has a 2 - 0 record going into the second day of play. The ladies took control from the beginning with a steal of 3 in the first end followed by another steal of 1 in the second end and remained in control the rest of the game. They were up 3 with the hammer heading into the 8th end and it looks like they ran Sweden out of rocks, since no score is posted for the 8th.

Great momentum for the old broads heading into today's game! They play against Scotland at 1:30 pm NZ time (6:30pm PST). Scotland is currently 0 - 2, losing to Japan 8 - 6 in the first draw and losing to Switzerland 7 - 1 in the second draw. This is their only game today, I hope they had a good nights rest and are not too tired out after two games yesterday!

Keep it up ladies - you are doing GREAT!

In the News...

Joan Fish and Aija Edwards were featured in an article today in the Kitsap Sun newspaper.

http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2009/apr/26/hansville-curlers-in-the-house/

Update from Cathie - BEFORE the curling started

Cathie sent an email last night about their last few days of sightseeing before heading back to Dunedin for the World Championships.

I last wrote from Balcutha. We were on our way up to Nazby so that we could practice before coming back to Dunedin. We got in sort of late, but ended up staying at the Royal Hotel which is over 200 years old! the next day we had two practice sessions on the ice. We ate lunch in the restaurant owned by the NZ skip. Oh, before all that, we were still in the Caitlands and went on 3 hikes. Two were up to waterfalls and the 3rd was to Nugget Point Light House. Nugget Point was gorgeous. Absolutely spectacular vistas. There we saw seals and penquins and shags (birds).

It felt like home getting back to Dunedin. the rooms here at this hotel are really nice. they are quite European looking. Murphy took Aija back out fishing (the way we had come in), but she did not catch anything. She was after the elusive brown trout. Joan, Emily, Sharon & I went to the farmer's market. The vegetables were all huge! Everything is organic too. We ate food there and some treats. Later, Joan and I went to the Cadbury factory and had a tour and bought some chocolate. Yesterday was a holiday here: Anzac Day. It's like Memorial Day in USA. Every town here has a memorial to WWI & WWII. Most everything was closed until 1:oo p.m.

I've been trying to get to the library because there is free internet there, but it's been closed both times I've gone. I finally had to bite the bullet and buy time at the
hotel. It's really not bad. $8 NZ for an hour. it's convenient.

We had our practice session today at the arena. there are five sheets of ice. the circles are black and silver! Those are NZ colours. We did great. Murphy is so proud of us. He says we look like winners! I sure hope so. We were all very steady today. tomorrow is the opening ceremony at 10:00 and our first game is against NZ on center ice. We have a second game tomorrow too, but I can't remember who it is against. Tuesday we have 1 game and the other days are all 2 games until the round robin is finished. I must say our uniforms look very smart. Tonight is the meet & greet party. This after noon I signed my first autograph for the Japanese, who were running around collecting them!

It sounds like they had a fabulous time touring around and "training" for the competition. I hope they bring back some treats from the Cadbury factory! Now it is down to business, and they are off to a great start with their first win today! Keep on rocking ladies!!!

USA 8 - New Zealand 4

With a steal of 1 in the last end USA won their first game of the Senior Women's World Championships versus the home team. Great job ladies, we are all proud of you!

They play again tonight at 7:00pm NZ time (Midnight Seattle) against Sweden. Sweden punished Italy in the first draw today, 15 - 0 after 6 ends! Let's hope our ladies can turn the tables on Sweden tonight. I know I will be dreaming of well played shots for them, since I won't be staying up to watch the scoring (especially since it took 50 minutes for them to update the end of this game!).

I have an update from Cathie regarding their "training" period. I will post it later tonight once I am free of children.

GREAT JOB TODAY LADIES!!!!

Your guess is as good as mine...

The USA vs NZ game is the only game that has not been updated on the website, and more than enough time has passed for them to finish the game and update the site. I am starting to think that they forgot to post the final score... So your guess is as good as mine on what happened in the 8th end. I will keep checking and update the blog as soon as something new is posted. Here is the link again if you would like to check for updates:

http://2009nzwscc.co.nz/home/results/1-monday-april-27/

Team USA scores 2 in 7th end...

Of course right after I posted they updated the score.

USA = 7
New Zealand = 4

Playing the 8th end....

Game On!!!!

I have an update from Cathie that I will post later tonight, but I just realized that the games have started!! Silly time difference... Anyhow here is the link to see the scoring:
http://2009nzwscc.co.nz/home/results/1-monday-april-27/

As of right now, they are playing the 7th (of 8) end against Team New Zealand. We have the hammer and the score is 5 - 4 USA leads. Looks like a nail biter...

GO TEAM USA!!!!!

"Athletes in training"

It sounds like the old broads have been having a wonderful time. Cathie's latest updates:

We went to milford sound and went for a cruise, we saw seals &
dolphins. We stayed out in the boat for the night. It was really
really great.

Then we went down to Land's End in Bluff. It is the furthest point
on the southern island. We stayed in a B&B there and it was most
excellent! The food here has been unbelievable. Everyone is so
happy with that portion of it!

From there we headed east to the Caitlands which is also down on the
southern end of the island. We have just been following our noses.
Going to beaches, hiking to waterfalls, etc. We have not traveled very
far, but just going places and seeing things and having a great time. We
are taking a lot of pictures, but have not had time to download them and send
them on. We will hopefully be able to do that when we get back to
Dunedin.

As you can imagine we are laughing alot and having a grand old time.
Atheletes in training as we like to say!

That is my kind of training program! Keep on having fun ladies, can't wait to see the pictures!

No jet lag? And HAPPY BIRTHDAY CATHIE!!

Cathie sent an email update yesterday. I am thrilled to hear they all slept on the plane and there is no jet lag. We had many discussions at the curling club regarding the best way to sleep on the plane, what "sleep aid" would work best, and should you take Ambien for the first time on an airplane. Here is what Cathie had to say:

The flight was not bad at all. I don't even think we had jet lag. We all slept on the plane and stayed up the whole next day and were right on schedule after that.

We stayed the first night at the Southern Cross in NZ. We were met at the
airport by a curling rep and the shuttle bus. The hotel was super nice. We
explored the city that day. The hotel is right down town so we are right in the
midst of all the shops and eateries.

The next day we headed for Queenstown. It was about a 5 or so hour drive through very beautiful countryside. Lots & lots of white sheep dotting the hillsides. The weather has been GREAT. Yesterday was warm and sunny. We took the gondola to the top of the hill and could look out over the entire beautiful bay.

We went to a small town called Arrowtown which was having their fall festival. It's an old gold-mining town. From there we went on to Te An au. This is where we celebrated my birthday. We went out for the most fabulous meal. Everyone had lamb. It was so good! The girls even arranged for a cake.

Today we are driving to Milford Sound where we are catching the boat for the overnight cruise. After that we're heading south towards Invercargill.

We have met the icemakers who are also at the southern cross hotel. I don't think I need to tell you that we are having a wonderful time and the people are absolutely wonderful and the country itself is so clean and beautiful.

Sounds like they are having a great time! I can't wait to hear more...

Old Broads go Abroad...

They left on Tuesday, April 14th and they were going to arrive in Dunedin, New Zealand at 9:00am on Thursday the 16th (NZ time). That is a crazy long trip! I have not heard anything from the team yet, but I am sure they are still trying to get over the jet lag (and they have probably gotten some New Zealand wine to help them along :-).


I can not wait to hear how things are going, and to see pictures from some of the places they will be visiting! As soon as I hear anything I will post an update here on the blog...

We Leave Tomorrow!

The time has finally come and we leave tomorrow.  It has been approximately 6 weeks since we won the Senior Women's Nationals.  Back then it seemed like the time to leave was so far away! Thursday night we received our jackets and shirts with our names embroidered on them and a big ol' USA on the back.  The uniforms are really nice and are all Nike products.  I've been busy the past two days getting my house ready for my sister-in-law, Barbara, to move in to.  She and Irl will be staying the next three weeks with our children while Murphy and I are in NZ.  We are all so excited to be going and we are all proud to be representing the USA.  Here we come!  Cathie

THANK YOU~THANK YOU~THANK YOU

We want to thank the Women of Granite Curling Club for their wonderful generosity and support of our team! We received a wonderful gift from the Wednesday night Women's League at Granite Curling Club and can not possibly thank them enough for their support.

We did promise not to spend it all on wine, we will try our best to keep that promise ~ but no guarantees... We can guarantee a toast to the Wednesday Night Ladies while enjoying some New Zealand wine!

Thank you again for your support! We plan to make you proud in New Zealand!!

Player Profile - Joan Fish, Third

Joan has been curling for 36 years. She has represented Washington State at 9 US Curling National championships. This will be Joan's third time representing the United States at a World Curling Championship. She also was a runner up in the 1987 US Curling Olympic Trials, for the 1988 Calgary Olympics.

Joan is a Graphic Designer and Photographer and also works in an Art Gallery in Poulsbo. She enjoys many outdoor activites when curling season is over, including kayaking, gardening, camping, and golfing. Joan also loves to read and volunteer her time helping others. Her newest passion is glass work. She can frequently be found with band aids on her finger tips from grinding glass and prepping her art! Her curling rock glass work is a fan favorite!! She lives in Hansville, WA. with her big wonderful dog, Grizz.

Joan is looking forward to travelling to New Zealand, seeing the country and competing against Senior Women from many different Countries and Cultures.

Player Profile - Cathie Tomlinson, Second

Cathie has been curling for over 25 years. She lives in Seattle with her husband, Murphy, and children, Michael Murphy and Corianna. Cathie has represented Washington State in the US Curling Nationals in 6 different Women's or Mixed events. This is her first National Title and World Championship. Cathie is not the only curler in her family, Murphy has represented Washington State in the US Curling Nationals 4 times and has been a National Champion twice. Both Michael Murphy and Corianna are aspiring Junior Competitive curlers as well.

Cathie is also a small business owner, running Donnelly & Donnelly Appraisals & Estate Sale Services for 12 years. When she is not running Estate Sales or at the Curling Club Cathie enjoys playing the piano, kick boxing, hanging out at the lake, reading and gardening.

Cathie is very excited to travel to New Zealand and see the countryside before the World Senior Ladies Curling Championships in Dunedin. Murphy will also be making the trek with the team and will be cheering the team on!

Player Profile - Aija Edwards, Lead

Aija has been curling for over 30 years. She has won the Women's United States Curling championships twice and curled in World Championships in Perth, Scotland and Lake Forest, Illinois. She was a runner-up in the Olympic playdowns in 1987 in St. Paul, MN. for the Calgary Olympics in 1988 when curling was an exhibition sport. Aija has also represented Washington State in Mixed and Women's National Championships.

When not curling Aija enjoys bicycling, both mountain and road. She is an avid fly fisherwoman. Aija also enjoys golfing and gardening. When she is not outdoors, she loves playing racquetball and attending Pilates and yoga classes at her local health club in Poulsbo.


Aija is excited to go to the Senior Women's World Curling Championship in New Zealand and cannot wait to travel around New Zealand. She is looking forward to seeing the countryside and hopes to have a chance to hook a big one in New Zealand, fish or medal!

Preparing for New Zealand

Well, the tickets are bought and hotel reservations are made. The old ladies really are going to New Zealand to represent the United States Curling Association. They leave for New Zealand on April 14th, but the competition does not start until April 26th. They will have plenty of time to get acclimated to the time difference and do some travelling/sight seeing before the Curling will begin. They will be keeping to the Southern Island in New Zealand, if you have been there and have any ideas on sights they need to see please send your suggestions to them. They can be emailed at seniorladiesrock@gmail.com or you can leave comments here on the blog.

The old bats will not be updating the blog for us, but they have agreed to let some of the whippersnappers help out and keep the rest of us informed and current on their travels, plans, and games. Nicole Way and Emily Good will be doing the updating to the blog and getting photos from the trip to share with those of us that are not able to travel with them to New Zealand. Emily Good is lucky enough to travel with the team and give us insider information and updates from the ground in New Zealand. Nicole Way will be left behind (bitter at the blatant age discrimination!) and will update the blog with the tidbits that they decide to share with the rest of us. Join us as we live vicariously through the Senior Ladies as they Rock their way to the World Championships!

Welcome!

Thanks for checking out our blog. We will be using this blog to follow our journey to the Senior Womens Curling World Championships in Dunedin, New Zealand. Check back here to see updates about our fundraising plans and travel arrangements.

We will be traveling to New Zealand early to get acclimated to the area. If you have been to New Zealand before or if you know of any places in New Zealand we should try to visit while we are there we would love the ideas! You can email our team at seniorladiesrock@gmail.com