SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
To put on one of the biggest curling events in the country takes a lot of people power.

Bernie Giacobbo tries on one of the volunteer vests he'll be wearing when he helps out with the 2014 Canadian Seniors Curling Championships at the Yellowknife Curling Centre, which begin March 22. - James McCarthy/NNSL photo

The organizers for the 2014 Canadian Seniors Curling Championships in Yellowknife are making sure those who have already signed up to help out know their offers haven't gone unnoticed.

The Yellowknife Curling Centre was the site of a volunteer rally this past Sunday and several of the approximately 120 people who have put their names forward came out to register and pick out what they would like to do and get an orientation of what to expect for the festivities, which lasts from March 22 to 30. There is a pre-qualifying event, or the relegation round, and that starts March 20, where the teams who aren't in the main draw will try to play their way in.

Maureen Miller, the tournament's organizing chair, said the goal is to get to 150 people and that number is becoming more of a reality as the days go on.

"(Monday), we had about another 10 more people sign up and it seems every day, there's a lot more interest," she said. "That's the norm for Yellowknife, it seems – as it gets closer, people tend to get a bit more excited about it."

Most of the positions have been filled but there are still several jobs which need to be taken care of, such as timing for each game, ticket-takers at the door and keeping stats.

The issue is there are two draws each day for the men's and women's and with draws being held during the day, that's where there may be issues because people are working.

Miller said when it comes to timing, there is no experience or even knowledge of the sport required.

"We do a training session and if anyone has daytime hours available, we would be happy to get them trained," she said. "Each game takes about two and a half hours so when it comes to time, they would volunteer for about three hours."

Miller also said there are spots that need to be filled in the Polar Vortex Patch and the beer gardens inside the Yk Arena, where action will also be taking place. Those areas are where entertainment will be happening and where plenty of socializing will occur.

"We need people to help with clean-up, selling tokens, serving of the drinks," she said.

But most importantly, it's all about the teams and there will be a total of 27 – 14 men's and 13 women's – coming in from around the country. The only team not coming is a women's team from Yukon.

The NWT will be represented by Yellowknife rinks, skipped by Glen Hudy and Ann McKellar-Gillis respectively, but Miller said there will be several big names in the world of curling coming North, especially on the women's side, where several of those skipping teams have either won or done well at the Tournament of Hearts.

"There's Kathy Cunningham coming out of Newfoundland and Labrador," she said. "New Brunswick has Heidi Hanlon and Cathy Floyd. Manitoba has Lois Fowler and Maureen Bonar, along with Cathy Gauthier and she's a former world champion. British Columbia has Penny Shantz, who's a former Olympian from 1988 with the women's team that medalled, and Kate Horne, who is a Canadian and world champion."

Alberta is also bringing a former Olympian in Glenys Bakker, who played with Shannon Kleibrink in the 2006 Winter Olympics. Ontario is being represented by Marilyn Bodogh, who is a two-time Canadian and world champion.

As for ticket sales, Miller said they are selling well and the demand for those is picking up as the start draws near.