VITERRA: Slide in style
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 09/02/2023 (1151 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
NEEPAWA — For the most part, curling attire is pretty simple.
If you have some curling shoes, a pair of black pants and a jersey or jacket with sponsors plastered all over it, you are in business.
However, more players are starting to put a little more style into what they wear, especially when it comes to their footwear.
B.J. Neufeld watches his stone for Team Matt Dunstone at the 2023 Viterra championship at Neepawa's Yellowhead Centre on Wednesday afternoon. (Thomas Friesen/The Brandon Sun)
B.J. Neufeld, who throws third stones for Matt Dunstone’s top-seeded rink at this week’s Viterra Championship in Neepawa, has been rocking Nike Metcons for nearly eight years.
“I love ‘em,” Neufeld said. “It’s no secret that Nike makes great shoes and these ones are super comfortable and breathable.
“We play in a lot of arenas over the course of the season, so you want to make sure that you are keeping your feet a little bit cooler out there.”
Neufeld got a new pair of Metcons during the off-season and he’s been slowly breaking them in ahead of the provincial men’s playdowns.
This year’s shoes are white with gold accents, feature his nickname “Beej” on the heel and have an aftermarket gripper and slider pads put on the traditional cross-trainers.
“All the different shoe companies put in a lot of research and development for their products and it’s something that you can feel when you are wearing them,” Neufeld said. “I think a lot of curlers are finding that out and starting to go this route.
“Obviously, you want to be as comfortable as you can out there with anything that you are wearing. As far as shoes go, you are doing a lot of standing during the course of a curling game. If you don’t give some love to your feet, you definitely start to feel it and that shoots through your knees and your back.”
Dunstone is wearing a pair of black Nikes at the Yellowhead Centre, but he’s gone back and forth between them and his traditional curling shoes for the last few seasons.
“BJ’s shoes are in way better shape than mine are,” Dunstone said with a laugh. “I’ve got a bit of wear and tear on them.”
Two new members of the custom shoes brigade are Jared Hancox and Justin Twiss, who are the front end for Riley Smith’s team from the Thistle Curling Club in Winnipeg.
B.J. Neufeld sports custom Nike Metcon curling shoes with his nickname "Beej" on the heels. (Thomas Friesen/The Brandon Sun)
Prior to this season, Hancox got his black and white Nike’s converted for curling, while Twiss is rocking a striking pair of red Under Armour sneakers that match the team’s jackets.
“There was definitely a bit of a thought process in trying to figure out what was comfortable as some shoes work on the ice and some don’t,” Hancox said.
“These shoes are pretty comfortable to play in and I can see why so many curlers are going this route.”
Over the course of the last decade, there has been a bit more variety with what curlers have worn in the course of the game.
The late Thomas Ulsrud and his team for Norway donned Loudmouth Golf pants at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver and made them part of their attire for several years.
Dunstone rocked a 1997 Labatt Brier hat on his way to his first Grand Slam of Curling title four years ago and Sweden’s Niklas Edin has incorporated Norse themes into his squad’s jackets as of late.
“Ultimately, I think that’s a good thing,” Dunstone said. “You want to have characters and unique personalities in the sport as that is what attracts fans.
“We want to have as many eyes as we can on our game and if we get more people doing different things out there, the better that is for all of us.”
While it’s one thing to look good on the ice, it doesn’t matter if you aren’t able to back that up with results.
The Dunstone and Smith rinks have done that so far as both qualified for ‘A’ event finals this morning against Ryan Wiebe and Justin Richter respectively.
Justin Twiss, left, and Jared Hancox of Team Riley Smith have both switched over to custom sneakers on the ice this season. (Lucas Punkari/The Brandon Sun)
Smith, who also has Nick Curtis at third, opened the week with a 10-4 win over Steve Pauls and edged out JT Ryan 4-3 on Thursday afternoon.
Dunstone’s squad — which includes second Colton Lott and lead Ryan Harnden — beat Tuffy Seguin 10-1 and defeated Justin Richter 5-4.
“To have one game go as it did on Wednesday and the next game where it came down to a last rock draw doesn’t surprise any of us,” Dunstone said.
“That’s just the product of the territory here and we’ve come to expect anything to happen during the course of a provincial.”
» lpunkari@brandonsun.com
» Twitter: @lpunkari