Gillian and Angela had the opportunity to go to the Grand Slam of Curling Player’s Championship with their school curling team. This years event was at Ryerson’s Mattamy Athletic Centre at the old Maple Leaf Gardens. Claudia wanted to go, so I bought tickets for the two of us and we headed down as well. The corner of Carleton and Church. We went into the Loblaws to buy some snacks.

The main entrance on Carleton.

There is an NHL sized hockey rink on the third level. The facility can seat 2,539 people. Seating is mainly on the east and west sides, with a couple of rows of end balcony seats.

The Players Championship is the world’s 15 highest ranked men and 15 highest ranked women curlers competing for high stakes, but more importantly for some of the Canadian teams a berth in the Olympic Trials in Winnipeg in December.

We were there for the 7th and 8th draws. Here is Team Howard warming up.

Manitoba’s Chelsea Carey.

Team Koe’s Rycroft and Simmons.

Mirjam Ott of Switzerland, Kevin Koe and Glenn Howard.

Team Gushue, they played Team Howard in the feature game. Team Howard won 5-4.

Brad Gushue.

Kevin Koe lost to Team Frans 7-6 in extra ends.

The curling zamboni.

Gushue pondering his next move.

Glenn Howard.

Jennifer Jones watching the action.

After each draw they kick everyone out of the seating area.

Warm-ups for the 8th draw.

Rachel Homan and Heather Nedohin were playing on the far sheet.

Claudia had a good time, any time you get off school is a good time.

The Mount Carmel curling team.

Angela hidden in the photo above.

Team Jones beat Team Tirinzoni (SUI) 8-6.

Claudia and I moved down to sit in the first row. Nkeiruka Ezekh of Team Sidorova of Russia.

2013 World Champion Eve Muirhead.

Stephanie Lawton of Saskatchewan defeated Team Muirhead 7-5.

Team Jones third Kaitlyn Lawes.

We had a good time, our seats were up in the end balcony right above Claudia’s head. It gave you a good view down the sheets of ice. It was kind of tricky figuring out how to get there initially and to get food or go to the washroom you had to go out and then go to the side areas. For the second game we had a waitress come around and take orders.

Afterwards the Mount Carmel curling team got to meet Team Middaugh, the lead for the team is Leigh Armstrong who one of the coaches knows well.

They sign autographs for the kids who bought scarves.

Angela and Gillian came with Claudia and I instead of going back on the school bus. We walked down to Yonge to have dinner at Kenzo, the Japanes noodle house on Dundas, west of Bay St.

We stopped at Dundas Square to watch Billions Cobra a street performer.

He uses fire in his show, he starts with some juggling.

Then moves up to a flaming bull whip.

And his grand finale is fitting his body through a tennis racquet on fire.

A little contortion juggling.

The flaming tennis racquet.