Curl San Diego

Regional Playdown Information

sdcanuck — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 17:38:10 +0000

MOPAC, which is our region within USCA, is beginning to organize the regional playdown schedule for this year. The regional playdowns determine the teams that represent our region in the national championships. There are several different team categories with varying signup deadlines. Below is an e-mail sent out by the MOPAC organizer. If you are thinking of entering a team in any (or several) of these categories, please let me know (send an e-mail to curl@curlsandiego.org). For planning purposes the organizing committee would like to know how many teams each club is likely to send.

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Below is a complete list of the registration deadlines for upcoming USA Curling national events. Registration links using the Compete-At system will be finalized in the near future so athletes can begin signing up.

Sign-up deadlines:

Wheelchair Team Tryouts, 9/10

World University Games, 10/22

Mixed Doubles, 11/4

M/W Nationals, 11/29

Junior Nationals, 12/6

Seniors, 12/16

M/W Club Nationals, 1/6

Mixed, 1/20

All registration fees will be $290 per team with the exception of Men’s/Women’s Nationals, which will be $540 per team. The wheelchair event is an individual sign-up. That fee is $50 and the Compete-At link is live for registering.

There is no number restriction on how many teams can register to participate in the regional playdowns. But (depending on our numbers) 1 or 2 teams from a region can advance to the Nationals event.

Safety First

Alan — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 18:05:10 +0000

Whether you are just attending a Learn-To-Curl or have been Curling for 15+ years, safety should be your first concern. Curling does not have safety gear. Sure there are gloves to protect your hands from getting a blister from sweeping to hard, but that’s as much of a safety feature as it is in golf. What is it about Scottish games not using anything other than gloves for protection?

In curling, there is very little risk of injury, so helmets and pads are not a neccessity. If you travel the curling circuits, you will find players wearing skateboard helments and elbow pads, but it is rare. I’m glad to see these people realize their limitations and ensure their own safety. I have been Curling since I was 13-ish. I’ve taken my fair share of falls and seen many ‘expert’ curlers do the same. In fact earlier this year, I did not give enough respect and thought to the fact that I was on ice and fell while walking. Oh did that hurt! The next week my team-mate did a similar fall. And if you watched the Olympics, even Kevin Martin (skip for Canada) almost fell while traversing the sheet after his shot; and he was probably on the ice more than not over the 6 month period leading up to the Olympics.

When you throw a stone, there is a good change you might fall over while trying to balance. I have yet to see anyone get hurt doing this. Its less of a fall and more of a collapse or roll. The two main accidents in Curling are falling while standing, walking, or sweeping OR being hit by a broom. Being hit by a broom typically only happens if someone falls and the broom is whipped while trying to stop themselves from falling.

The way to protect yourself best is: to not fall. Sounds simple, right? Well there are 2 VERY easy ways to avoid falling:

Remember that you are on ice and not on concrete, so keep your weight over your legs as much as possible.
Get yourself equipment that will help prevent falling! The biggest cause of falls is slipping on ice. Street shoes are not made for ice – especially in Southern California. There are curling shoes that will drastically improve your game by improving your control and balance, but they cost about $100 – $250+. There are great deals at Dakota Curling Supplies on some currently. If you’re new to curling or just don’t want to spend that kind of money on shoes for Curling at this time, then the next best option is to buy 2 grippers. A gripper is a very soft piece of rubber that fits over your street shoes and improves the traction on the ice by approximately 7,000%. This rubber never freezes up, like shoe rubber does, so it will remain as effective the last 5 minutes on the ice as it does in the first 5 minutes. The cost for 2 grippers is about $35.00 In terms of safety, they will pay for themselves in one night. Dakota Curling Supplies has these for sale; they are called a “Slip-on Gripper“. Remember, members get a discount with Dakota Curling Supplies!

The only other piece of equipment that some curlers use, is wrestling knee pads. No curling did not become a contact sport. These soft flexible knee pads are at any sporting store for cheap. If you drag your back knee on the ice when delivering or tend to find that your drag knee bumps into the ice when delivering, these pads will give you that extra bit of protection against brusing your knee.

Curling is a fun sport that rarely sees injury. So if this will be your 1st time on the ice or your 100th, please consider getting 2 Grippers or Curling Shoes to help you keep your balance so that Curling can fully be about the fun and social aspect of the game.

Curl San Diego Football

Alan — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 19:55:22 +0000

You might be wondering “What does football have to do with Curl San Diego?” Since Curling originated in Scotland and football there is what we know of as soccer here, the answer is the World Cup. Curl San Diego has adopted the World Cup’s playdown system to be able to house 16 teams in an 8 week period for our Fall League.

The way it will work is that the first 2 games will be used to establish four Groups of 4 teams. Weeks 3, 4, & 5 will be a round-robin play within each group. The top two teams from each Group after the round-robin will move into a 1st Tier playoff bracket and the bottom two teams will move into a 2nd tier playoff bracket. If you lose in the first round of either playoff bracket, you will be moved to a B-side playoff of the tier you were in.

The 1st and 2nd place of the A-side from each tier will be awarded trophies. The 1st place of the B-side from each tier will be awarded medals.

The great aspects of this are that as of Week 6, all teams still have an equal opportunity to take home an award; and the teams should be of similiar calibre at the start of the playoff brackets. With 6 out of 16 teams recieving awards, there is a pretty good chance of taking home some hardware.

If you haven’t yet signed up for our Fall League starting August 28th, please be sure to do so! If you have a team, great! If you need a team, we can help you find one. There are many curlers and small groups that have signed up so it is easy to find everyone a spot.

Remember: Unknown curlers are just friends you haven’t met yet.

Summer Curling Pickup Games

sdcanuck — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 18:02:09 +0000

Registration is open for all four of the remaining summer curling pickup games. Registration for all games can be found on the Shop page. Sign up for a Curl San Diego membership and use your 10% member discount!

Thursday, July 8th, 6:45pm-8:45pm
Wednesday, July 14th, 6:15pm-8:15pm
Thursday, July 22nd, 6:45pm-8:45pm
Tuesday, July 27th, 6:45pm-8:45pm

Curling Fashion

sdcanuck — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 23:26:26 +0000

While very fashion forward, open-toed sandals are not a good idea when curling.

At one of the downtown department stores in Vancouver, the windows were decorated with various sports themes during the Olympics. This picture was of the curling themed window. I know what you’re thinking – that looks just like a league game in San Diego.

Pickup Curling on July 8th

sdcanuck — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 04:23:14 +0000

On Thursday, July 8st, there will be a set of pickup games starting at 6:45 PM and finishing at 8:45. There will be four games played concurrently – a total of 32 spots are available. Teams will be organized at the beginning of the event.

No instruction will be provided at this event – curlers should have at least participated in one of our learn to curl clinics or played in one of our league games. Of course, the more experienced curlers are always happy to provide guidance and pointers (wanted or not).

Cost is $20 per person for the night (the zamboni is scheduled to be off at 6:45, so there will be a bit under 2 hours of playing time) – please register online in advance. To register multiple people, just select a quantity for the number you wish to register and process as a single transaction. If there is someone you want to play with, that will be worked out at the event (teams are not set prior to getting there).

Pickup Curling on July 1st

sdcanuck — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 17:31:01 +0000

The weather is always nice in San Diego, so why not go curling in the summertime?

The next pickup curling game will be on Thursday, July 1st, 6:45 to 8:45 PM. The zamboni is supposed to be off the ice by 6:45, so this will be a bit under 2 hours of curling time. Cost is $20 – more details can be found here.

We will also be having pickup games on the following dates:

Thursday, July 8th, 6:45pm-8:45pm
Wednesday, July 14th, 6:15pm-8:15pm
Thursday, July 22nd, 6:45pm-8:45pm
Tuesday, July 27th, 6:45pm-8:45pm

Registration for these nights will open later this week.

Pickup Game for Experienced Curlers

sdcanuck — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 00:23:20 +0000

Shorts - the bleeding edge of curling fashion.

We’ve been doing a lot of instructing of players new to the game lately – which is fantastic! – but here’s a chance to just come out and play for an evening. There will be an evening of pickup games on Wednesday, June 23rd – details and registration are here. Players that have participated in a Curl San Diego league are welcome to attend.

Thank you to Francesca for organizing this event!

Hollywood Summer Blockbuster Bonspiel

Alan — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 17:31:16 +0000

Two teams from Curl San Diego took honors this past weekend at the Hollywood Curling Summer Blockbuster Bonspiel. This is the largest curling tournament in the state (stated by: Hollywood Curling Club) and quickly becoming a favorite on the national schedule because of the fun and glitzy, Hollywood-themed festivities.

“Men With Brooms,” took second place in the Action Event (A) bracket, beating teams from Vacaville, Hollywood and Seattle, eventually succumbing to a favored team from Gourock, Scotland in the bracket final.

“Men With Brooms” consists of:
     Noah Wald (Lead)
    Bob Weber (Second)
    Terry Kolody (Vice)
    Jesse Coull (Skip)

“Three Men and A Little Lady,” took second place in the Disney Event (C) bracket, beating teams from Scottsdale and Scotland, ultimately losing to a Hollywood team in their bracket final.

“Three Men and A Little Lady” consists of (in throwing order):
    Francesca Somma (Lead)
    Owen McLachlan (throwing Second, but was the Skip)
    Ryan Malthus (Third)
    Alan Schmaltz (Fourth, acting Vice)

Some great photos from the event were taken by Curl San Diego’s member Mark Dossett.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/markjdos/sets/72157624177177108/show/

Learn to Curl Clinic and Summer League

sdcanuck — Wed, 19 May 2010 06:30:09 +0000

Where else can you wear a scarf in the middle of summer?

Two new events have been scheduled for the summer. On June 5th at 5:30 we will be holding a learn to curl clinic open to all beginners. Spots are limited to 64 total – online registration is available here:

Learn to Curl Clinic – June 5th – 5:30 to 8:00 PM SOLD OUT! - next clinics will probably be late August/early September

We will also be holding a summer mini-league. This will be a four game league with two Saturdays in June and two in July. For more information and registration (only a few spots remain!), go here:

Summer Mini-League – SOLD OUT! – sign up for our sub list.