Team Tuck is trying to make the most of the 2021 Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Championships in Calgary.
The duo of Kim and Wayne Tuck, a married couple from Strathroy who compete out of the St. Thomas Curling Club, is facing off against some of the best curlers Canada has to offer.
Team Tuck is 1-4 and wraps up round-robin play Tuesday against a team of Jennifer Jones and Brent Laing, just some of the big names in curling in the competition.
The stiff competition on the ice hasn’t been the only challenge the Tucks have faced. Even though it wasn’t their first time competing on a national stage, it was their first time doing so during a pandemic, which Kim Tuck says took some getting used to.
“We had to do daily temperature scans and health checks, scan in and out of buildings, to make sure we aren’t going anywhere other than the hotel and venue,” Kim said.
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“Getting used to those extra protocols that we wouldn’t have had at another event took a couple of days.”
The championship is being held in a bubble environment in Calgary, which previously held the Brier and Scotties tournaments.
“They certainly had a good handle on how things were supposed to move,” Mark said.
The schedule was a little different this time as well, as teams competed only once per day.
Kim Tuck says normally games would be played over eight ice surfaces, and they would play multiple times throughout the day.
She said the lighter schedule presented its own challenges.
“It’s been a bit more drawn out so it had been a bit harder for us to get going,” Kim said.
“It’s been a bit rusty, obviously, not having any kind of a curling season this year, and even with that one game a day, it’s hard to get your feet under you quickly.”
It has resulted in a lot of downtime for the couple, with their spare time spent in the hotel room or at the rink.
“This weekend was a big test, for sure,” Wayne chuckled.
He said once teams successfully completed their third COVID-19 test, they were able to use the hotel’s restaurant while keeping socially distant.
Team Tuck will play their final round-robin draw Tuesday against Jones and Laing.
They curled against the team of Brad Gushue and Kerri Einarson earlier in the competition. Einarson is coming off her second straight championship at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts.
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