The Parksville Curling Club began as the dream of three local curlers—George Gudbranson, Tom Boag, and Ross Stephens—in the spring of 1991. They first built a membership base, and on December 20, 1991, the Club was officially incorporated under the Provincial Societies Act.
Over the next several years, dedicated volunteers worked tirelessly to raise funds, recruit members, and negotiate with the City of Parksville and the Provincial Government to secure both a site and the resources needed to build the Club. Fundraising came in many forms—raffles, casinos, debentures, golf tournaments, delivering catalogues, and more.
During this period, members purchased 64 curling rocks from the Harrison Hot Springs Hotel when its curling club closed. However, progress stalled until the Regional District of Nanaimo (RDN) offered to lease the old arena to the Parksville Curling Club after building a new district arena.
In 2003, under the leadership of Tom Boag, the Club signed a lease with the RDN and hired Gordon Twanow as Ice Technician. Equipment from the closed Oak Bay Curling Club was added, and the Long Beach Curling Club loaned us 16 rocks to complete our fifth sheet of ice.
Parksville Curling Club is proud to be perhaps the only club in B.C. with dedicated arena ice, maintained by world-class ice technician Tim Kottsieper. We continue to upgrade our facility, including a new condesnser and compressors in 2025.
Growth and Community
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Membership & Leagues: Hundreds of our members take to the ice each week across multiple leagues, including stick curling, sturling and doubles.
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Programs: We host Special Olympics, school, and junior programs, ensuring curling thrives with every generation.
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Bonspiels: Each year we host up to 10 bonspiels, which historically included a Mixed Summer Bonspiel during the Parksville Beach Sandcastle Festival.
Championships and Major Events Hosted
The Parksville Curling Club has proudly hosted many prestigious events, including:
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2007: B.C. Masters Men’s & Ladies Championships
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2007: BC Senior Games (on behalf of Nanaimo)
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2008: 41st Nifty Fifty Bonspiel (40 teams)
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2009: BC Scotties Provincial Women’s Championship
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2012 & 2013: Canadian Direct BC Men’s Championships
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2014: BC High School Championships
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2015: Tim Hortons BC Junior Championships
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2017: AMJ Campbell Van Lines BC Mixed Championships
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2018: Belairdirect BC Men’s Provincial Championship
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2019: BC Firefighters Championship
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2023: BC Masters Men’s & Ladies Championships
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2025: 64th Annual BC Firefighters Championship
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2025: 60th International Tankard, celebrating curling volunteers from Canada & the U.S.
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2025: 55+ BC Games (on behalf of Nanaimo)
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2025: Scottish Women’s Friendship Tour
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2026: BC Masters Men's and Women's Championship
