It was summertime, but Howard and his good friend Wayne Middaugh were already focused on the Olympic trials.
“I want to be a part of (the Olympic Games),” Howard said. “I want to taste it, feel it and be a part of it in every way possible.”
A three-year journey ended for Howard and Middaugh this past weekend in Edmonton, with neither skip slipping on the coveted Team Canada jacket at Rexall Place. That honour went to Edmonton native Kevin Martin following a 7-3 win over Howard and his Coldwater and District Curling Club rink of Richard Hart, Brent Laing and Craig Savill.
In a post-game television interview, Howard flashed his trademark “little kid” smile and tried to make the best of a bad situation. But you knew his intestines were twisting, knowing full well that four key shots he missed were the difference.
While he did curl well, Martin and his rink didn’t execute to the highest degree, something that will leave Howard wondering what might have been if he’d just booted up the team average a few points.
“If we curl average, we’re going to get killed,” Howard told me before he headed to Alberta.
To get a sense of how much this one hurt, you needed to be in the hamburger joint with this scribe in August, when Howard talked about what the Olympic experience would be like.
He used phrases like “when we get to the Olympics” instead of “if.”
Mostly he talked about how great an experience it was to gaze at the gold medal his older brother Russ brought back from the 2006 Torino Olympics.
“It was inspirational to see Russ win and to see that whole story unfold,” said Howard. “I have touched, fondled, held and worn the gold medal since then, and it is a fantastic feeling.”
No stone was left unturned as the younger Howard prepared himself mentally and physically for what was the most demanding curling year of his life. He even hired a personal trainer to make sure his body could withstand the rigours of a busy season on the ice.
Now 47, and with decades of play beginning to take its toll on his knees, he hasn’t ruled out one last run at an Olympic medal in 2014.
Surrounded by a young team that has enjoyed tremendous success in the past five years, Howard has already indicated it will be a team decision as to whether they go down the Olympic road again.
But now is not the time to make snap decisions about a game that takes athletes on the road and away from family and work for incredible amounts of time.
Only time will provide the opportunity to reflect on what has just transpired in the often loud and slippery world of elite curling.
But I have no doubt Howard will find his winning edge again. It’d be foolish to bet against him.
mdodd@simcoe.com
