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Laura Walker expects to really feel comfortable come Friday.
Stepping again into the aggressive hearth of dwell motion — that being The Scotties to kick off Calgary’s curling bubble — will doubtless give her the consolation that’s been absent amid the pandemic of the previous yr.
“Yeah, it’d carry a little bit calm and peace to us simply to be on the market doing what we love,” mentioned the Workforce Alberta skip simply hours forward of the nationwide ladies’s championship. “We’d even really feel a little bit extra grateful than up to now stepping onto that ice — and having the ability to take action safely — after such a very long time with the whole lot happening on this planet.”
Sure, it’ll really feel oh-so good …
However nonetheless very unusual for the Edmonton staff of Walker, third Kate Cameron, second Taylor MacDonald, lead Rachel Brown — who replaces pregnant Nadine Scotland of Calgary — and alternate Dana Ferguson.
In spite of everything, every other yr right here, they might really feel the heat of the pro-Alberta curling crowd at Calgary’s Markin MacPhail Centre.
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However COVID is protecting the game’s supporters from filling the rink at WinSport in throughout the 10-day 2021 finale.
“We’ve been joking that being the home-town staff by no means actually crossed our minds as a result of there received’t be any followers within the stands to cheer us on, sadly,” Walker mentioned. “However we’re going to do all we will. Particularly this yr as a result of we have been chosen to be Workforce Alberta (within the face of COVID restrictions), we form of have that further drive behind us to make the folks and the province proud.”
Since competitors has been absent and practices restricted to simply a few weekends again within the fall and 6 days in a bubble lead-up to The Scotties — because of approval from Curling Alberta and Alberta Well being Providers — ‘all we will’ consists of leaning on something they’ll in trying to enhance upon their 3-4 document ultimately yr’s championship.
And the hammer in these troubled occasions has been sports activities psychology.
“Visualization,” Walker confirmed. “We use it to maintain practising in our minds main as much as the occasion.”
Particularly Walker, since she’s seen even much less ice than her Saville Neighborhood Sports activities Centre rinkmates due to changing into a brand new mom to boy Liam again in September.
When Walker & Co. did get an opportunity to hitch one another on the ice — along with the entire trademark 2020 digital conferences off it — the reigning provincial queens made probably the most of it.
Or so that they hope.
“It was form of robust to determine what precisely we needed to sneak into the time that we had,” mentioned the 30-year-old Walker. “If we might’ve stayed on the ice all day, we’d have. However we needed to share our icetime with all the opposite groups which are going into the bubble, so we have been restricted to what we might take a look at in our time on the market.
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“However I feel we’re simply feeling grateful that we obtained any time on the ice, to be trustworthy.”
Given the duty forward of them, any prep is welcome.
With a Scotties-high 18 groups within the area, it’ll be a slug-fest.
Notably with Alberta’s Pool A combatants highlighted by Ontario — skipped by three-time Scotties champ Rachel Homan — and Workforce Canada — with Kerri Einarson’s defending champion rink one of many few rinks nonetheless intact by means of the pandemic.
“We really feel quite a bit higher understanding that we had a minimum of these few days of apply that we wouldn’t have had in any other case,” Walker mentioned. “However we’re making an attempt to not let these issues that we will’t management stress us out. Everybody’s in the identical boat, and it’s what it’s.”
What it’s started lengthy earlier than Friday’s upcoming begin — with Alberta set to open in opposition to Nova Scotia’s Jill Brothers (6:30 p.m., TSN).
Each roller concerned in The Scotties took up the problem of a 14-day quarantine a number of weeks again, throughout which groups have been allowed — pending approval — to satisfy for apply inside their very own bubble, forward of a strict 72-hour home-bound isolation interval this previous weekend.
Upon arrival within the Calgary safe-zone this week, every participant was examined for the virus after which retired to their very own lodge room to await outcomes.
Till they bear one other COVID take a look at Friday, they’ll stay masked and social distanced within the bubble till the motion opens.
One more take a look at for the bug is then on the desk Monday.
“We’re fairly pumped to get again on the ice and competing after a yr,” Walker added. “We really feel assured. We really feel that with the circumstances that we’ve completed all we will to arrange for it — and that’s all you’ll be able to ask of yourselves.
“We all know the preparation appears completely different than every other yr, however contemplating what we needed to work with, we all know we did all we might.”
tsaelhof@postmedia.com
