Mark Dacey can’t help but wonder how loud the Metro Centre will be if a Nova Scotia team wins the 2010 Brier.

The veteran Mayflower skip looked on at the Time Out Sports Lounge yesterday morning as the Canadian Curling Association officially announced Halifax had been awarded the annual Canadian men’s curling championship.

Dacey heard the crowd roar in 2003 — the last time the Brier was held in Halifax — when he advanced to the championship  game, only to lose to Alberta’s Randy Ferbey.

“When we walked out from underneath the stage into the open arena, it was probably the loudest roar I’ve ever heard for a curling event,” said Dacey, who went on to win the Brier a year later in his home town of Saskatoon, Sask.

“When I think back to that, I’d love to have that experience again, only finish it with a better final chapter.”

Dacey’s excitement about yesterday’s announcement echoes that of Nova Scotia’s entire curling community.

The event, which has an estimated economic impact of $25 million, will be held from March 6 to 14, with tickets on sale next February. Premier Rodney MacDonald, CCA chief executive officer Greg Stremlaw, and event co-chairs Hugh Avery and Graham Harris were all on hand to unveil the news.

Halifax had little competition for the Brier, and Stremlaw said it was essentially “their championship to lose.”

The 42-year-old Dacey did not curl last year, but is back again with third Dave Stevenson, second Andrew Gibson and lead Kris Granchelli. Bruce Lohnes is the fifth man.

“I’m still trying to get back into it right now,” Dacey said. “You’re not going to be great right off the bat.”

Dacey, a Tim Hortons franchisee, said the team has committed to stay together through the 2010 Brier. He said stability is crucial for any team aspiring to contend nationally.

“You don’t see teams winning these days that are first-year teams,” Dacey said. “The successful teams out there, (Kevin) Martin, (Glen) Howard and Ferbey … They’ve all been together for long stretches, and that’s a key.”

Competition will be fierce just to get to the Brier. Brian Rafuse and Shawn Adams, two of Dacey’s toughest opponents, were on hand yesterday, and many others will be eager for a chance to compete for a national title on home ice.

“There’s a script there to be written,” Dacey said. “Let’s hope it’s a positive one for a Nova Scotia team.”

Olympics won't hurt Brier

Even though the 2010 Brier will come on the heels of the Winter Olympics in Vancouver, the Canadian Curling Association doesn’t believe Halifax’s attendance will take a hit.

CCA chief executive officer Greg Stremlaw said he expects the Canadian men’s curling championship at the Metro Centre to set a new Halifax attendance mark.

The five-time host’s previous best attendance was 158,144, a total set in 2003 that stands eighth all-time.

“It’s two-fold,” Stremlaw said, of the Olympic impact. “It’s a challenge and it’s an opportunity.
“Will there be a post-Olympic letdown? We hope not. If we leverage the 2010 Olympic experience, it may elevate and accentuate the tournament here.”

The fact that the Olympics are being held in Vancouver actually helped Halifax land the Brier.

Because most of the major curling events that year are being held on the West Coast, including the Roar of the Rings Olympic trials in Edmonton, the CCA didn’t want to the East Coast to be shut out.

Stremlaw hopes curling fever will hit Atlantic Canada.

“There’s going to be such a passion for Olympic amateur sport in that year,” Stremlaw said. “I think it’s actually going to help the attendance. It’s going to help the event.”