Scottish Curlers Visit The Club – Part VII

The Royal Caledonian Curling Club team arrived on the evening of Saturday January 28, 1967 at Willow Run Airport in a fierce snowstorm.  The worst part of the storm hit Lansing, Flint and northward with over 20 inches of snow.  Eventually they deplaned and were met by Nels Brown and they were taken to the Pick-Fort Shelby Hotel for a dinner reception and a good night’s rest.

Sunday morning started with a bang.  The team was invited to join the Sinners Club for breakfast at The Club.  Scottish curler David Duncan described it like this:  “This was a regular Sunday morning ritual when the men all turn up. Cook the breakfast, make a draw, curl, stack brooms and sometimes curl again before lunch.”  We can only imagine the goings-on that Sunday morning.

The games played Sunday were won by the Scots:  61 – 46. 

Dinner Sunday evening was at the Grosse Pointe Yacht Club.  Each member of the team was presented with a magnificent trophy - a silver figure of a curler in action - by courtesy of Samuel M. Renfrew (Sam was a member of the 1962 US team to tour Scotland).

Monday morning games saw the Detroiters victorious:  53 – 50.   Lunch was served at The Club followed by a trip to Windsor to tour the Hiram Walker Plant.

No curling on Tuesday.  The visitors were taken to Dearborn for a tour of the Ford Motor Company and lunch at the Dearborn Inn.  At 6:00 p.m. they all headed to the airport for a flight to Cleveland.

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The Scottish Curlers Visit to the USA in 1977 did not stop at The Detroit Curling Club.  The 1976-77 curling season on Forest Ave was rather hectic.  The members had accepted an offer from the city of Detroit to buy the property.  Many people were quite busy looking for a new location for The Club and making plans for the move.  Secondly, Detroit was to host the 1977 Junior US Curling Nationals in February.  This event also involved the time and effort of many of the members and the dates conflicted with the Scots Tour. 

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Haste Ye Back,

Angus MacT.

Scottish Curlers Visit The Club – Part VI 1955

1955 marked the first RCCC Tour exclusively to the United States.  In 1952 a group of American curlers toured Scotland.

Twenty Scottish curlers arrived on Sunday January 30, 1955 at Willow Run airport from Chicago at 7 p.m.  They were immediately whisked away to Olympia Stadium to watch the Red Wings give the Montreal Canadiens a shellacking 7-1 before the largest crowd to date at the “Old Red Barn”.  Then onto the Hotel Fort Shelby.

Monday morning five 8-end games were played at The Club on Forest Ave.  The visitors won 50 to 48.  After the games they went to lunch at the Dearborn Inn followed by tours of the Ford plant, the Rotunda and Greenfield Village.  By 4 pm back to the hotel.  But, not for long - 6 p.m. dinner at the curling club followed by 8:30 curling.  The evening games were also won by the Scots:  90 – 78.

Tuesday morning and afternoon saw more games at the Detroit Curling Club followed by a dinner banquet at the Fort Shelby Hotel.  At 9:30 pm they were at Central Station boarding a private train car for Utica.

Whew!  Busy schedule.

The Scots brought along their old brooms explaining that, “although a brush sweeps clean, mony a mickle maks a muckle”.

When in Detroit the Scottish curling team was introduced to some of the DCC members who were to oppose them.  Chairman John McKinlay introduced them to Ken McLeod, Ian MacDonald, Stewart MacLaren, John MacFarlane, Mac MacGlashan, and A. MacTavish.  John Watson, captain of the Scottish visitors grinned:  “You have more Scots here in Detroit than we have in All of Scotland”.  He didn’t know then that he was also to compete against a Speerschneider, a L’Heurex, a Sweeney, a Slyziuk and a conglomeration of other names not quite so Scottish.

Failin’ means yur playin’,

Angus MacTavish