THE WORLD CURLING ALLIANCE TO PERFECT and PROMOTE

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HOW do I join a club?

Don't hesitate to contact local and neighboring town clubs. Every club needs and wants new members. Being retired with extra time, I belong to five clubs which entails driving 60,000 km. per season to gain practice and game experience.

WHAT equipment do I need?

As a beginner, you only need "runners" and a brush. Most clubs have loaner brushes and sliders. You do not need a slider until after 20 self-lessons/practices! When you do buy a brush, buy a small 6" soft foam- nylon-covered style (BROWNIE) which you can recover later with a wool duffle if you want to brush/control a rock. See the brushing chapter and visit: http://www.curling2000.com. The Hammer Co. makes a sheep skin covered brush.

GYM SHOES:

For traction, wear real gym shoes and NOT street runners when on the ice. Gym shoes have sips on the soles and are made with soft rubber. You must start your training with basketball/gym shoes until you gain your "ice legs." After 10-20 practices of stepping out ONE STEP from the hack as you are learning to push the rock, you can graduate to a short slide of, maybe, 6 feet.
 Now you need to put DUCT tape on your gym shoe. And this will be on your right dominant shoe for rightees! You are stepping out with the right foot? Start with one short strip near the ball of the foot. If you can't slide easily enough, try a full strip down the center of the sneaker until you can slide "a little bit." After 10 more practices, and after learning to slide only 6 feet, then you may cover the entire sneaker with duct tape. After 100 practices/games you can buy a full foot slider for your DOMINANT foot.

KNEE SLIDER: Wide Stance is Better, like the "Wide Track Pontiac."

Once you start your slide, you will need a knee slider. At the present time there are no knee sliders manufactured so you will have to make your own. See: A later picture and explanation. With practice and a Teflon knee slider, you will be able to slide hack to hack. Presently, only a few very skilled curlers can do that with the slider on one foot only--and the wrong foot at that (non dominant). You will easily learn to slide hack to hack in one season. You say, "What's the purpose of a long slide?" It proves to you that you are sliding on the target line of sight to the brush. Any errors in your delivery slide will be magnified. With today's old style delivery, you show me someone who can slide as far as the rock slides, and I'll show you someone who is "hitting" the brush - at least 70% of the time which is what the best professionals do now. With your newly learned technique, there is a potential of hitting the brush 90% of the time. I can hit the brush within 3 inches 90% of the time. The other 10%? ---- guess I'm thinking about girls!

WHEN?

When do I get started trying to find out about the ? : Who, What and How?

Many large city clubs start up in August with early leagues starting in September. Most clubs "put the ice in" about the first of October. You must call the club office and leave a message. Most clubs will run an ad in the paper before starting the season. If you miss this opportunity, you miss the chance to be on a team; however, you may be able to join as an associate member and practice with the chance to spare. Teams are always short of players during league nights. Show up with a handy dandy sign like this.