February 19, 2009... Once again this year, the popular Ford Hot Shots, now in its 15th year, will be contested when the curling skills competition is conducted at the upcoming Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Victoria and the Tim Hortons Brier in Calgary.  

The pre-event shot-making competition requires curlers to execute six shots: Hit and Stay, Draw the Button, Draw the Port, The Raise, Hit and Roll and Double Takeout.  Each shot is awarded points on a scale from 0-5, rating the success of each.

The Ford Hot Shots consists of a preliminary round, final eight, semi-finals and final.  Four curlers per team can compete, including alternates.  Sweeping (qualifiers can select two sweepers) is permitted, beginning with the final eight.

Ford Hot Shots at the Scotties

Ford Motor Company of Canada, Limited, will provide the winner of the Ford Hot Shots at the Scotties with a two-year lease on a 2009 Ford Flex SEL FWD.  The all-new Ford Flex was recently awarded the 2009 Canadian Utility Vehicle of the Year by the Automotive Journalist Association of Canada (AJAC). A two-year lease on a 2009 Ford Flex SEL FWD has a value in excess of $20,000 and is full of class-leading technologies, including Ford Sync™, voice-activated navigation with reverse camera system, new premium sound from Sony and innovative, surprise-and-delight features like EasyFuel™ capless refueling and an exclusive refrigerated console.

For the Scotties Tournament of Hearts at the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre, February 21-March 1, the Ford Hot Shots preliminary round is scheduled for 1:00 – 4:30 pm PT on Friday, February 20.  The playoffs (Final Eight, Final Four, Final) begin at 10:15 am on Saturday, February 21, after the Opening Ceremonies.

Ford Hot Shots at the Tim Hortons Brier

Ford will provide the winner of the Ford Hot Shots at the Tim Hortons Brier with a two-year lease on a 2009 Ford F-150 XLT 4x4, with a retail value in excess of $20,000. The Ford F-150 was recently named the 2009 Motor Trend Truck of the Year, and for good reason - it gives customers unrivaled capability, unprecedented choice and a host of smart, game-changing features such as a 4.6L 3V EFI V8 engine, 6-speed automatic transmission, with XTR package (18" machined aluminum wheels, chrome front tow hooks, chrome exhaust tip, fog lamps, Power glass, Premium Cloth 40/20/40 Bench, box access step and tailgate step, tire pressure monitoring system, 4-wheel Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS), remote keyless entry with a keyless entry keypad, and the EasyFuelTM capless fuel filler which is a unique feature only available on Ford vehicles).

For the Tim Hortons Brier, March 7-15 at the Pengrowth Saddledome in Calgary, the Ford Hot Shots preliminary round will be held Friday, March 6 from 1:00 – 4:30 pm MT.  The playoffs (Final Eight, Final Four, Final) take place Saturday, March 7 starting at 11:00 am MT, following the Opening Ceremonies.

In addition to the two-year lease of the respective Ford vehicle for each winner, the second place finishers will be presented with a cheque for $2,000, while the third place finishers receive $1,000.  

Since 1995, the Ford Hot Shots event has provided not only an exciting beginning to each championship but has proven to be an extremely popular competition for curlers and fans.  Previous Ford Hot Shots winners at the Hearts are Saskatchewan's Kay Montgomery, Gerri Cooke of Manitoba, British Columbia's Sherry Fraser, New Brunswick's Allison Farrell (Franey), Alberta's Marcy Balderston, British Columbia's Kelley Law (twice) and Kristy Lewis, Prince Edward Island's Suzanne Birt (Gaudet), Ontario's Andrea Lawes and Jenn Hanna, Nova Scotia's Colleen Jones, Yukon/NWT's Kelli Turpin and last year's winner Jill Officer of Manitoba.

Past winners at the Brier have been Ontario's Ed Werenich, Rick Perron of New Brunswick, Northern Ontario's Mike Coulter, Greg McAulay of British Columbia, Manitoba's Steve Gould (twice), Alberta's Don Bartlett, New Brunswick's Jeff Lacey, Pat Ryan of British Columbia, New Brunswick's Marc LeCocq, Alberta's Randy Ferbey, Newfoundland and Labrador's Mark Nichols, John Morris of Alberta and Saskatchewan's Steve Laycock last year.

Ford Hot Shots On-line

To mark the 15th anniversary of Ford's support of the Ford Hot Shots competition, Ford, in collaboration with the Canadian Curling Association, has launched an exciting and interactive on-line version of the Hot Shots skills competition to be enjoyed by all curling fans this season. Fans can go to FordHotShots.curling.ca and play like the pros for a chance to win like the pros a two-year lease on a 2009 Ford Flex, with a retail value in excess of $20,000.

The Ford Hot Shots On-line game has drawn an overwhelming response with more than 400,000 games played to date. When the contest closes on March 31, 2009, the top two players will be determined and will both receive an all expenses paid trip to the 2009 Ford World Men's Curling Championship in Moncton, NB, where they will compete online in a one-game winner takes all playoff to be held Friday, April 10th to win their own two-year lease of a brand new 2009 Ford Flex.

All information, from player registration to playing the game, is available at FordHotShots.curling.ca.

For further information:

Warren Hansen
Director, Event Operations and Media
Canadian Curling Association

Cell: 604-329-9850
e-mail: whansen@curling.ca