The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
This information came from the collection of Phyllis Hume (Pete) Hume, provided by Doreen Hume-McKenna. "Flin Flon Students win Provincials" was the headline in local and provincial papers after the 1962 school boy provincials in Winnipeg. Unlike Flin Flon's Tom Howat team of 1955, which went to the provincials but lost in the round robin, the 1962 team of Jim Wilcox (age 18), Alan Hume (16), Tom Longmore (15) and Bob Green (16) lost out in the premier event but came back to win the round robin. On New Year's Day, 1962, the Wilcox team became the Manitoba School Boy Champions by defeating Borland 8-7 in a sudden death final game. The final two teams were the survivors of 307 rinks that began the Manitoba High School Bonspiel. It was said that in that final game, the tall and lanky skip from Flin Flon played a flawless game, making all of his 20 shots (ten end games), including two double takeouts. Mayor Jack Freedman had the team directed from the airport to the Jubilee Hall for a reception in their honour. The team was also recognized by the local curling clubs (Uptown, Ross Lake and Willow Park), and the Flin Flon Community Club at a Bomber game on the following Sunday afternoon. The team was showered with gifts at the Whitney Forum after the RCMP, Hapnot cheerleaders, the HBMS Pipe Band and the winners headed up a parade around the ice. A telegram was read from Lt. Gov Hon. C.H. Whitney, among others. Presentations to the team included: Town rings (presented by Deputy Mayor Forbes Duncan); vouchers for flannel trousers (Joe Sochan representing the Town of Creighton, Flin Flon Community Club, Royal Canadian Legion, Flin Flon Chamber of Commerce and the Flin Flon District Labour); school sweaters (Karen Henke and Bob Simpson of student council); $20 for each curler (from Parkview Confectionary); vouchers for blazers (Ted Daubert, representing all three curling clubs); travel bags (representatives of several organizations, including Cy Gilmore of the Flin Flon Community Club, Al Anderson of the Legion, Bill Marsh of the Chamber of Commerce, and Bill Axtell of the Labour Council); pictures of the curling teams (Eric Austin of HBMS); Hudson Bay blanket coats (Bob Prime, Hudson Bay store); and curling brooms (Sam Hankin). A banquet was sponsored by the Flin Flon School Board and held in the team's honour with Mr. John Spencer, head of the school board, as chairman. Best wishes for the Dominion Title to be held in Halifax in February 1962 were given by: Coun. Forbes Duncan; Mayor Alex Clark of Creighton; Ivan Hamilton, Superintendent of Schools; Eric Austin of HBMS; Al Anderson of the Legion; Bud Simpson, MP; Elmer Thompson of the Chamber of Commerce; Hal McKenzie from all three curling clubs; and Larry Guenther, coach of school curling. Also, Alex Imrie, a councilor at the time, read a letter of congratulations from "Mr. Curler" himself, Ken Watson of Winnipeg. A second letter came from former school division staffers Ruby and Claude Joyce. The local champions were also honoured at a Hapnot dance. All the boys expenses' and that of their manager, Charlie Wilcox, were to be paid by Pepsi Cola. A rule of the finals was that the team had to be accompanied by an adult. As the team traveled for the airport, heading east for the Dominion finals in February, 1962, each team member was presented with a gift wrapped brief case bearing the TranAir Crest from First Officer Gordon Jones, Captain Len Lavoie and Miss Winstone. After two rounds of play in Halifax, the Manitoba team was tied for second place with one win and one loss after two games. After six rounds, Manitoba ranked third with four wins and one loss. In the final standings after ten rounds (each team got a bye except Newfoundland), Saskatchewan ranked first with nine wins and no losses, B.C. was second with seven wins and two losses and Manitoba was third with six wins and three losses. Quebec, Alberta, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Northern Ontario, PEI and Newfoundland followed, in that order. As a reporter wrote in the Halifax Chronicle Herald, "Manitoba was beaten here 6-5 Thursday night by a band of sharp shooters from Speers School in Saskatchewan and the defeat just about dashes all hopes for the Flin Flon foursome of winning this year's Canadian School Boys curling championship. "The victory was a key one for Mike Laconic, the skip of Saskatchewan's team, extending their undefeated record to eight and clinching at least a tie for the top at the end of regulation round robin. In defeat, Jim Wilcox and his team of Alan Hume, Tom Longmore and Bob Green curled their finest game of the week" The boys curled well and did Manitoba, Flin Flon and Hapnot Collegiate proud! The Extra End runs Wednesdays. Gail can be reached at 687-3344.
