Terry Fox never reached Mile 0 in Victoria, but his statue stands in Beacon Hill Park as a reminder of the enduring Marathon of Hope. Fox's statue is the first thing Newfoundland and Labrador skip Heather Strong plans to visit, following her arrival in Victoria tomorrow.
"I'm extremely excited to see the statue. It'll be a personal high for me," said Strong, the provincial director of the Terry Fox Foundation in Newfoundland.
Strong has childhood memories of Terry Fox runs near the other Mile 0, more than 5,000 kilometres away in St. John's.
"In Newfoundland, we take great pride that Terry Fox started his cross-ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ run here. I grew up with that connection."
Although Strong and her team of third Cathy Cunningham, second Laura Strong, and lead Peg Goss might need directions to find Terry Fox's statue, they'll have no problem finding their way around the Scotties Tournament of Hearts next week at Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre. The experience among the four players adds up to 33 appearances at the Canadian women's curling championship.
"We're sufficiently stocked with Scotties diamonds," Strong said, referring to the tradition of each participant receiving a diamond to add to a Scotties necklace. "We have a lot of experience, and we're hoping that'll pay off on the ice."
Strong has never made the medal round at the Scotties. She lost out in tiebreakers last year and '06, when she was named an all-star skip, but Cunningham and Goss were runners-up in '03. The biggest hurdle for the team, which has been together for two years, is getting game experience leading up to the Scotties. Just as Vancouver Island curlers struggle with the limitations of distance and expense, the Eastern Islanders are even more isolated when it comes to participating in major events during the year.
"It's tough, but we also don't have anything else to compare it to. It is what it is," Strong said, adding her team takes the philosophical approach. They want to play well at the Scotties, but they also plan to cherish every moment.
"This is my ninth, and you never know when it's going to be your last."
So far this season in cashspiels, the Strong team has been steady and consistent on the ice, but hasn't quite been able to win those key games to put themselves into the money. They lost out in three C-event qualifiers.
"We haven't quite been able to flick the switch," she said. "I think the competition has been tough, but it's just been a shot here and there. We haven't been coming unhinged or anything."
Apparently, the team was just waiting for playdowns. Strong won seven straight games at the Bally Haly Golf and Curling Club to roll to her fifth straight provincial title. Besides experience, she said the strength of the team is a nice blend of personalities -- she laughed about outgrowing those old sisterly blow-ups with Laura -- and all are focused on the task at hand.
"We really aren't shooting for anything less than the playoffs," Strong said, although she did see one disadvantage about curling in Victoria.
"The ocean is going to be on the wrong side."
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IN THE HOUSE
Newfoundland and Labrador
Home club: Re/Max Centre
Skip: Heather Strong, age 32
Scotties appearances: 9
Third: Cathy Cunningham, 49
Scotties appearances: 12
Second: Laura Strong, 29
Scotties appearances: 6
Lead: Peg Goss, 49
Scotties appearances: 6
Fifth: Susan O'Leary
Coach: Glenn Goss
Team's last Scotties: 2008, lost in tiebreakers
