Lyburn just getting warmed up

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 07/02/2020 (2346 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

This men’s stuff is just a precursor to what really matters on William Lyburn’s competitive curling calendar. At least, that’s how his 16-year-old daughter, Mikaylah, sees things.

“She says, ‘This will be a good tune-up for you, Dad.’ We’re playing the provincial mixed doubles next week in Brandon,” Lyburn said Friday. “So, she’s telling me I have to use this is a little tune-up.”

Admittedly, the family man is thrilled to join forces with his daughter on familiar ice in Brandon. However, the stakes are high this week at the Viterra Manitoba men’s championship on the makeshift five-sheeter at Eric Coy Arena in Charleswood.

Lyburn, who contemplated retirement from the game just a couple of seasons ago, is as motivated as they come after reaching last year’s final before falling to Mike McEwen.

He guided his Granite crew — third Daley Peters, second Kennedy Bird and lead Wade Ford — to three consecutive triumphs this week, a direct route to the playoff round, which began Friday night.

Kennedy and Bird are in Year 1 with Lyburn and Peters after spending last season with Tanner Lott.

“Great players and nice guys. You can’t not enjoy the game when you’re around some good people,” Lyburn said Friday morning. “I love the game. The big part of that is when you don’t have the right horses or the guys aren’t going to dedicate themselves. But the younger guys don’t act like I acted when I was their age. They act more mature.

“So, I’ve been giving it year by year. And the body’s been feeling better, the knees are feeling better. I’ve been doing some strength and training, not to get ripped or anything, just to keep limber. If I can play pain-free, I enjoy it.”

The former Scottish junior champion, who immigrated to Brandon with his family in 1992 before moving to Winnipeg with his wife, Jody, said the sting from the defeat in Virden was temporary. 

“Once the month went by and the Brier was done, I actually had time to reflect on it and I was very proud of what we did. So, I actually smile when I think of Virden now,” he said. “It’s just a really tough sport, a really tough game. It’s a game of inches and it’s slippery out there.”

+++

Success has turned Jacques Gauthier’s world upside down.

The 21-year-old Winnipegger recently skipped his Assiniboine Memorial team to the Canadian junior men’s title in Langley, B.C., a dream fulfilled but one that necessitated immediate alterations to regular life as a university student.

Gauthier, third Jordan Peters, second Brayden Payette and lead Zack Bilawka depart Monday for a four-flight, 30-hour trek to Krasnoyarsk, Russia to represent Canada at the world junior championship. That’s meant working on contingency plans with the blessing of their professors or asking for time off from work.

“It’s absolutely an interruption but it’s one that we can’t believe we have. It’s a great problem to have,” said Gauthier. “It’s a one-in-a-lifetime opportunity and we can’t wait to take advantage of it.”

Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter

The Warm-Up

Winnipeg Jets Game Days

On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop.

Sign up for The Warm-Up

Sign Up

I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

A terrific run at the Manitoba men’s championship could further complicate matters.

Team Gauthier, seeded 12th, won a B-side qualifier Friday afternoon to make the playoffs and met top-ranked McEwen a few hours later. Regardless of the outcome, the juniors are playing Saturday — a day before they’re the guests of honour at a sendoff party at Assiniboine Memorial. And that bash is just an hour or two after the Viterra final.  

“We keep this going, we’ve got even more stuff on our hands. But we’re welcoming it. Every game is just practise for us, so the longer we’re in it the happier we are,” he said. “We’re just happy to be here.”

jason.bell@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @WFPJasonBell