Curler Terry Pipkey's eyes don't see like they used to, but after 17 years of tossing stones on ice he's in no danger of losing sight of the big prize.
The 66-year-old from Prince George is intent on winning this weekend's West Coast Blind Curling Association championship.
Now playing lead as the most visually-impaired member on his five-player team, Pipkey will have the home rink advantage when he squares off against teams from 100 Mile House, Kelowna and Vancouver in the four-team round-robin tournament, starting this morning at the Prince George Golf and Curling Club.
All blind curling games are eight ends, rather than 10. Two points are awarded for each end a team wins and the team that wins the game is awarded 10 points. If there is a blank end, the teams each get a point. If the score is tied after eight ends, each team gets five points.
"There are no playoffs but the way we score it works well, it will differentiate the teams," said Pipkey. "Traditionally, Kelowna is usually the better team because they have more of a visually-impaired population base to pick from in the Okanagan valley. A lot of people retire there and a lot of people there have vision-loss issues.
"It's one of the few sports we can play that's reasonably safe for us."
Pipkey's vision is now rated close to a B1 disability (the most disabled) and as the lead he does not sweep. He is able to count fingers at arm's length and aims his shots using the flashlight mounted on the broom of his skip, Russell Gervais, who stands on the ice 15 feet away.
"With good lighting I can count fingers and that's where I'm at now," said Pipkey, a former mill worker born with a condition known as retinitus pigmentosa, which results in the absence of peripheral vision.
"It's hereditary, and it's been going on for 25 or 30 years."
Now president of the West Coast Blind Curling Association, Pipkey curled in high school in Parksville but didn't take up blind curling until 2001, when he started working for the Canadian National Institute for the Blind.
The other members of the Prince George team are second Dennis Noonan, third Eric Rosen and fifth Jack Nylund, who has full visual abilities and does not throw curling rocks. Nylund will be there as coach, helping the team plot its strategy. Teams are allowed guides and designated sweepers.
This is the third season the Prince George team has curled together.
"We're getting better, we curl in the seniors league in Prince George and we're starting to win some games playing against the sight leagues," said Pipkey. "We've had 11 or 12 games."
Prince George has a history of success at the provincial level, having won the competition in 2009, 2010 and 2011.
Participation in the provincial event used to number seven teams but there are no longer teams involved from Victoria, Nanaimo and Kamloops. The out-of-town skips have all been on the provincial scene for several years, including Donna Loewen of Kelowna, Jim Vinson of 100 Mile House and Rob Camozzi of Vancouver.
Today's draws are at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. A bagpiper will lead the four teams onto the ice in the opening ceremony today at 9 a.m. The third draw is set for Sunday at 10 a.m., followed by an awards ceremony.
The winner will go on to represent B.C. at the national championship during White Cane Week in Ottawa in February 2018.
The second- and third-place finishers advance to this year's Western Canadian championships in Winnipeg, March 15-18. Last year, that event was held in Lanigan, Sask., where the Prince George rink captured the silver medal.
