Curling out of the Fort Rouge Curling club, the Meleschuk rink was competitive in the Provincial Brier for many years, perennial bridesmaids in the curling capital of the world. That all changed in 1972.

Orest Meleschuk. The Skip. Flamboyant, irreverent, smart as a whip and as good a shooter as there was in his time of the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. Dave Romano. The Third. A quiet, thoughtful, terrific team player but not necessarily subservient. He could shoot the lights out. John Hanesiak. The Second. They called him “Black Jack” and he was the cheerleader. Exuberant without overdoing it, he could sweep all night. Pat Hailley. The Lead. The strong, silent, bookkeeper type. A better shooter than he is given credit for, with excellent weight judgement.

The “Big O”, as Meleschuk is known, and his lads first had to get out of Manitoba, which was extremely difficult. If you took Manitoba, you were almost there. Then they had to win the Brier in Newfoundland which was not a picnic.

Then it was on to Garmisch-Partenkirchen in the Bavarian Alps. It was the warmest springtime on record for West Germany and everybody had a great time at and away from the rink, but mostly away from it. Inside, it became more than the Air Canada Silver Broom; it was the “Great Kicked Rock Caper” as the young Bob Labonte of the United States committed the most outrageous gaffe in the history of the grand old game. He had the final game won, and, in his premature celebration, jumped and fell on his behind and scrambled some rocks that led to an extra end in which Meleschuk was stupendous. In and around Grafton, North Dakota, Labonte’s stomping grounds, they still say that the “Big O” did not deserve the world championship. Sour grapes for the U.S.A., the sweet taste of victory for Canada.