The way to go is through Espanola.

I’d be lying if I said that any member of the Middaugh team had come back down off the clouds we are flying. What a great week at Espanola. To get us kick-started, three of the team attended the Dominion of Canada General Insurance hosted CPA (Canadian Parapalegic Association) Charity event held earlier in the week at St. George’s Golf and Country Club. I am still bowled over by how much money they were able to raise (even higher than last year’s target!) of $150,000. What a great event, they treat the curlers so well and it really puts things into perspective for us as a team and connects us with our love of the sport, as well as with the people at Dominion who help make this season happen for us, and of course also allows us to help a truly special and worthwhile cause. A very special thank you goes out to Douglas Hogeboom , who was generous enough to pass on his ‘pick 6’ winnings to our team in support of our quest for reaching the Scotties. The generosity of such people is truly amazing and we were all very touched by his gesture.

Then onto the grind we went, knowing the field was one of the best at a Ontario Provincial Scotties every team was looking forward to some really good competition. Team Middaugh did our thing, got into our routines (starting with our lovely driver Evelyn who took us wherever we wanted to go!), put our head down and won our way to first place post round-robin. Then came the 1-2 game vs McCarville, and the nerves somehow settled in. In hindsight, we were in a good position even after we lost that game, as it placed our semi-final onto the same sheet as the final game, and gave us an opportunity to work out any remaining kinks. After our semi-final win vs Goring, we faced Team McCarville again. This time, an feeling of excitement and anticipation rather than nerves set in, we set out with a game plan and executed. Even though they kept it close and tied it up in the 10th, forcing an extra end, we felt confident and knew that we could bring it home in the extra. Keeping the four-foot clear allowed Sherry a nice “routine” draw to the eight foot, and wouldn’t yah know it stopped on the pin. What a ride.
We have lots to look forward to in the next few weeks before the Scotties Tournament of Hearts starts in Regina, and we wanted to take a minute to say thank you to our sponsors; M&M Meatshops, the Dominion of Canada General Insurance Company, as well as the product support from Balance Plus. Without them this journey would not have happened, cliché though that sounds we know how true it is. And our final thank you goes to our family and friends, who have supported us by cheering us on whether in person or via internet, we just can’t tell you how much your support means and it is also what makes this so much more special. Keep an eye on us in Regina, Team Middaugh is most definitely on a mission