PACKING THE HOUSE: Bonar reflects on accomplishments with Fowler

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 21/01/2025 (241 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As the RME Women of the Rings, formerly the Scotties Tournament of Hearts, gets underway today in Pilot Mound, the buzz in the curling community continues to build.

With two of the province’s top teams not in the field having pre-qualified for the national event, the door is wide open for a relative newcomer to make a mark at the provincial women’s curling championship.

Championship season also creates an opportunity for those that are on the other side of competition to reflect on past experiences, relationships made, and those that are no longer with us.

Maureen Bonar’s journey in the game started as a student in Deloraine before taking her across the globe and the highest levels of competition.

Most of those were with dear friend Lois Fowler, who died in 2023.

We spoke this past weekend, on what would’ve been Fowler’s 70th birthday.

Bonar’s beginning in the game was simple yet full of promise, starting as a Grade 6 student that was recruited to play in a high school bonspiel that needed more players.

“Two feet in the hack, give it a push and hope for the best. It was really that simple,” said Bonar.

“It was an eye-opening experience, but led to me playing throughout all of my high school years.”

Influenced by her mother Moira, who encouraged her to join the local ladies’ league, her progression through the sport was quick.

Provincial champion Shirley Bray came out to Deloraine to put on Curling Canada Clinics, providing an incomparable education before coaching her local team of Linda Weidenhammer, Val Sambrook and Alison Laval, a group that has since been inducted into the Curl Manitoba Honour Roll, having won the 1982 provincial junior championship.

One of Bonar’s first trips to Winnipeg to compete was an eye-opening experience, switching from the small three-sheet community rink in Deloraine to the Highlander Curling Club, which had 24 sheets of ice at the time.

“I remember just walking around the waiting area and couldn’t believe just how big it was.

“It seemed bigger than life at the time… That was the pivotal moment for me and I learned there’s a lot more to this game than what I was used to in rural Manitoba.”

Following her high school and junior days Bonar qualified for her first Scotties in 1983 at 19, fresh out of juniors and playing lead for Patti Vandekerckhove.

The opportunity provided a valuable experience to train and learn how to process the game at a higher level.

Bonar’s second Scotties appearance came in 1993 and was a special one, and for many reasons that are still often talked about today.

Her team of Fowler, Allyson Bell, and Lois’ daughter Rhonda played in the provincial playdowns, but with no real expectation of making it to the national stage.

Seeing as the national event was happening right here in Brandon, both Bonar and Fowler had been tasked with helping plan and organize.

Fowler was Chair of the national Scotties and Bonar was V.P. of Facilities.

The provincial playdowns were a double-elimination event, and after losing one game early, it meant they had to string seven wins in a row.

The team managed the improbable, earning the right to represent Manitoba on home ice.

“We had no expectations, but it was amazing. We were beside ourselves to win that and have the chance to reach the national Scotties.”

Going from helping plan to playing in was no small feat, but they had no idea the pressure that lay ahead.

“Playing in our hometown was going to me that much more pressure, but Team Canada also was Connie Laliberte’s team, so there were two Manitoba teams,” Bonar said.

“We couldn’t believe the names we were going to be competing against. The (Julie) Sutton team from B.C., the (Sandra) Schmirler, then Peterson, team from Saskatchewan, Colleen Jones from Nova Scotia, Shannon Kliebrink from Alberta, they were toting it as one of the toughest fields ever.”

Reaching the national stage was one thing, but competing against a veritable who’s who in the history of the game meant the stakes couldn’t have been higher.

Combine that with playing in front of a home crowd and a national television audience watching on CBC, eagerly waiting one of the most memorable events in Canadian curling history, the tension and pressure were palpable for the local rink.

It also didn’t take long for the local celebrities to have to change how they handled the festivities, as after the team’s first game it took 35 minutes to climb the stairs of the Keystone Centre before the team’s first and only trip to the lounge.

“I had to get home because people were so excited and slapping me on the back and congratulating us.”

“Brian Fowler was our coach and he said, ‘Yep, let’s get out of here’ and were not coming back until we’re done the event. Brian recognized that because we were at home so many people knew us, coming up to us and congratulating us, and we were expending so much energy and hitting me on the back that I could hardly lift my arm.”

“There were over 5,000 people in the building I bet I knew half of them.”

The team had to adapt quickly too, having lost three games in a row after that one and only trip to the lounge for postgame festivities.

Good thing too, because after dropping three in a row, they pulled off the improbable for a second time that year, stringing another seven wins in a row to reach the final against Saskatchewan’s Sandra Peterson.

Not bad for a team that many would have counted out long before that.

The pressure of playing on home ice, in front of 5,200 people in the Keystone Centre and in front of a national audience kept increasing, but they felt supported by both the local crowd and community that was behind them

That 1993 final was beyond memorable. It was the days before the no free guard zone, so Bonar’s team kept putting guards in play while Peterson kept taking them out.

Bonar took a risk to try and force Peterson to take one, but Bonar’s attempt at a corner freeze over curled by millimetres, giving Peterson the chance to take two in the sixth end.

The teams traded points until Bonar took one in the tenth, forcing an extra end.

“It was so hot in the facility with that many people, I remember going down to throw my last rock to draw and the rock was soaking wet,” Bonar said.

“There’s no time to process it, and all I can think what’s going to happen? I knew I had to give it to the sweepers, and I let it go. They had to pound it, and they did get it to the 12 foot.”

From there, Peterson hit and rolled in to count one in the extra end, giving her team its first national title.

More importantly, it treated fans of the game to an incredible and memorable piece of Canadian curling history.

“We had such a tight game that we didn’t really feel like we lost. It was such a good final against a great team that could’ve gone either way. It was exciting and having the support of the crowd was incredible. I can still hear Willie Lyburn yelling ‘Mo Money! Mo Money!’ and hear people yelling shoutouts that made you giggle while you’re out there.”

Bonar and Fowler went on the share many more memorable feats in the game.

They both competed in a handful of national Scotties, as well as the 1997 Olympic trials.

As the years went on they both had many memorable experiences in the game before another unlikely feat.

The team of Bonar and Fowler as well as Cathy Gauthier and Allyson Stewart won the 2014 Canadian senior women’s championship, earning the right to compete on the world stage.

The kid from Deloraine that dreamed of competing in the Olympics now had the chance to compete in Olympic venues in Sochi, and for the world title.

“She said I’m only playing this one time, but let’s go for it,” Bonar said of her conversation with Fowler ahead of traveling to Russia.

“It was the most incredible team spirit. I don’t even know how to explain it. The chemistry we had was magical… I’d never experienced that type of team. It was incredible.”

The dream was realized as they returned with gold medals, bringing both of their curling careers full circle, but the fact the experience was shared with a dear friend that had shared many moments in the game with her made it a fitting end to their competitive journeys.

“When Lois was around, we wanted to play as many years as we could. Our chemistry was special and it made it so enjoyable.”

Whether a past champion, one just starting, or even simply a fan, it’s hard to not get sentimental about the sport and the shared experiences the game brings us.

“It really is a simple game,” Bonar said. “It’s a hit or a draw. For us, it was more about lifting each other up.”

» mpackwood@brandonsun.com