A pair of appearances at the Brier (in 1974 and 1977) is but the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the curling memories of local septuagenarian Russ Tate.
The second youngest of four boys in the family, all of whom at least dabbled in curling, with Bob (the eldest) joining his brother on their initial trip to the national championship bonspiel, Russ would take to the sport at an early age - or at least what was considered an early age in the mid-1950's, long before the advent of Little Rocks.
"The Campbell brothers from Saskatchewan (Garnet, Glen, Donald, Lloyd) came through Sudbury and gave clinics at the old Granite Curling Club on Riverside," recalled Tate, now 77 years young. "My dad took me down there, I was maybe eleven."
Still, it wasn't until Tate had begun his secondary schooling that he would play the game with some regularity - and even then, it was far more for fun than competition. "After school, once or twice a week, we would take taxis from the old Sudbury High down to the Granite Curling Club. That was my first introduction to schoolboys curling."
In fact, the term "schoolboys curling" would stick as the moniker of what would become the Canadian Junior (U21) Championships in 1975, though in the early days, all four members of a rink must have attended the same high school.
Following in the footsteps of his brothers (Bob and Dave), Russ decided to enroll at the University of Western Ontario. Both older siblings would play football with the Mustangs, a sport that Russ would tackle upon completing his degree at Laurentian, while the youngest in the family (Bill) would go on to become an airline pilot.
And though he curled for one year at UWO, it was only upon his return to Sudbury, teaming up initially with skip and 1964 Canadian Schoolboy champion Bob Ash, that Russ Tate would really begin his ascent in the sport.
It's also the era with which Tate can recall, with uncanny accuracy, the specifics of big game moments that covered the better part of a decade-long stretch where he and his team remained a constant threat to capture the Northern Ontario Tankard, and with it, a trip to the legendary Brier.
Battles against the likes of Bill Grozelle (Cobalt-Haileybury), Bill Tetley (Thunder Bay) and Jack MacFarlane (Sault Ste Marie), all names that adorn the NOCA hardware, were common place, etched in the memories of fans and curlers alike. And in those days, just trying to get out of your own club, out of your own city was a challenge into itself.
In fact, it was not long after a loss in the Northern Ontario final to two-time champion Bill Tetley when Chucker Ross decided to add a second Tate to his team. With Russ hopping aboard, the brothers comprised the front end of the foursome that would attend the 1974 Macdonald Brier in London (Frank Bell was the vice).
"I've been a competitor all my life, and I think we went in believing that we could do well," said Tate. "I remember opening ceremonies, there were 6000 people in the stands and they're parading us around with the bagpipes - and I couldn't lift my head. I was so overwhelmed. But once you throw you first rock, you're into it."
The local rink started well enough, but a tough loss to Jim Ursel (Quebec), after leading by two coming home, would ultimately set the tone for a record of 4-6 for Team Ross. "The ice conditions were a lot different in those days," noted Tate. "It had rained the day before we started, so we were sweeping water off the ice and hitting people in the sheet next to us."
To be sure, there was a different atmosphere as well, both on and off the ice. Tate had enjoyed his first actual taste of Brier experience in 1969 in Oshawa, making the drive on a Thursday to catch eventual champion Ron Northcott of British Columbia in action. "We were right down close, at one end of the ice," Tate reminisced.
"These guys would hit the broom and the straw would start flying like you wouldn't believe."
It created a sound that so many of the forefathers to the likes of Brad Gushue, Kevin Koe and Brad Jacobs dearly miss. That, and the camaraderie that was evident without thousands of dollars on the line. "It was competitive, no doubt, but it was likely a bit more friendly," said Tate. "In London, our hotel room was right next to Paul Savage (Ontario skip)."
"We would get together for drinks at the end of the night."
And while the avid curler of 2020 might come to the rink, complete with his own personal trainer and sport psychologist, Russ Tate would have been a little ahead of his time in the early 1970's. "When I played in the (local) league with Chucker, we had a cottage out on Long Lake," he said. "After work, I would run three to four miles, and then chop wood, just to get my shoulders in shape for the sweeping."
That skill would not be quite as critical, three years later, at least on a personal level, as Tate ends up skipping his own team. The Chucker Ross rink had been re-jigged, and Bob Tate backed away from the heavy time commitment of competitive curling. Now throwing final stones, Russ would guide a crew that included Bob Miller, Wayne Leavoy and LU commerce student George Medakovic.
That 1977 NOCA final also accounted for arguably the most memorable shot that Russ Tate has ever thrown, an angle takeout off his own stone sitting at the very edge of the twelve foot.
Almost twenty years later, Tate would feel the shivers of nostalgia when Sandra Schmirler duplicated a very similar effort against Shannon Kleibrink, paving the way to an Olympic berth for her team and a gold medal performance in Nagano.
Meanwhile, Tate and company would be off to Montreal, as the 1977 Brier was staged at the newly-constructed Velodrome. "The building had skylights, so when it was sunny out, during the day, it was slower and swingy," said Tate. "At night, it would be at least 20 feet faster."
A final record of 4-7 might sit as the main Wikipedia takeaway of that second and final visit to a national playdown for Russ Tate, but like so many for whom sport sits near and dear to their heart, results only scratch the surface of the memories and friendships that have been compiled.
