Surge puts Brier on the button

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 07/03/2008 (6666 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Barry Greenberg is breathing easier this morning.

The chairman of the host committee of the 2008 Tim Hortons Brier will now almost certainly be remembered as the man who put on the best attended curling event in Winnipeg in at least the past 10 years.

Thanks to a last-minute Brier ticket-buying surge that has seen the number of pre-sold tickets swell to 139,000 as of Wednesday evening, it now seems clear that the 2008 Brier will eclipse the attendance marks of both the 2003 Worlds — 153,571 — and the 1998 Brier — 147,017.

That’s still a far cry from the quarter-million attendance figures seen at recent Briers in Calgary, Edmonton and Saskatoon. And it’s also going to take a lot of work to get to the 200,000-ticket figure that Greenberg publicly announced as his goal last fall.

Still, with curlers getting their first look at the MTS Centre ice today during practices this morning and a skills competition this afternoon, Greenberg had to admit that he’s relieved to have the sales numbers he does have right now.

“It was so slow in developing,” Greenberg said Thursday. “You were just never sure if what you heard was correct — that people will buy at the last minute.

“The success of these events depends on the number of people who attend. So, sure we were concerned that people might not buy at the last minute in the numbers that they are. And yeah, we’re feeling better.”

Ticket sales were stalled at 110,000 for most of January. But since all the provinces declared their Brier reps in mid-February, sales have jumped by almost another 30,000.

Canadian Curling Association officials have said previously that they need ticket sales in the 160,000-170,000 range to turn a profit. That goal is now within reach with a modest walkup.

Greenberg said that what happens to ticket sales from now on will largely rest on the shoulders of Team Manitoba and their skip, Kerry Burtnyk.

“If our provincial team can get on a bit of a roll, it will attract more people. How many more, I don’t know,” Greenberg said. “We seem to be gaining momentum. I don’t have any specific number in mind — I just hope people keep coming.”

With a soft early schedule, Manitoba could easily be 4-0 heading into their first tough test of the Brier on Monday afternoon, against defending champion Glenn Howard of Ontario.

LOOSE HAIRS — Former Manitoba Brier champs — from Terry Braunstein in the 1960s to Don Duguid in the 1970s to Mike Riley in the 1980s and Vic Peters, Jeff Stoughton and Kerry Burtnyk in the 1990s — will be recognized at an opening banquet at the Convention Centre Friday evening.

paul.wiecek@freepress.mb.ca