Episode 4 - Ernie Richardson

Curling Legends Podcast

Ernie Richardson still lives in Saskatchewan, a province he represented at the Brier 5 times. In 1959, Ernie and his family rink of brother Garnet "Sam" Richardson and cousins Arnold and Wes Richardson won their first Canadian Championship. They were swiftly flown overseas to compete as Team Canada in the first ever World Championship (originally known as the Scotch Cup) against Willie Young of Scotland. The Richardsons repeated as Brier champions in 1960 and '62. Wes departed due to back troubles in 1963, but with Mel Perry as his replacement, they captured a fourth Brier and Scotch Cup. In the 1964 Brier they fell 1 game short in the standings to winner Lyall Dagg from British Columbia.

Ernie shares stories from his early days and the formation of the famous Richardson Rink, to their Brier triumphs and International experiences, including the startled reception to a blank end during the first Scotch Cup . We'll hear about Ernie meeting John Wayne, his battles with Hector Gervais and learn how to succeed in a Calcutta (don't enter).

For more information on Ernie "The King" Richardson, check out "The Stone Age" by Vera Pezer, "The Brier" by Bob Weeks, and "Tales of a Curling Hack" by Doug Maxwell. There are also a number of older books Ernie helped author, including "Curling, an Authoritative Handbook of Techniques & Strategy of the Ancient Game" with Joyce McKee and Doug Maxwell and "Curling: Techniques and Strategy" with Mark Mulvoy.

You can watch coverage from the 1959, 1960, 1962, 1963 and 1964 Brier on YouTube. Also on YouTube, Ernie appears as a contestant on "To Tell The Truth" and the Richardsons join Ron Northcott on stage during the World Mens Curling Championship in 2009 (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 and Part 4). You can also visit the Curling Richardsons web page, where you can order a copy of "Say It Again Sam" by Arnie Tiefenbach or if you're near Regina, drop by Richardson Lighting to say hello.