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Nugget Column #04 – Wednesday October 12th, 2016
Calling all school-aged curlers!
Timbits Curling at the North Bay Granite Club begins November 1st and organizers are seeking new young curlers to help grow the program this season.
The fun-focused affair provides instruction and gameplay on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4:15pm – 5:15pm until March Break for only $100 + HST per person. Participants from JK – Grade 12 will be grouped according to age and ability so that that a valuable curling experience is provided for all. More information is available at northbaycurling.com/timbits.
Beginning in January, a Junior League for curlers in grades 8 – 12 will run on Wednesdays from 3:45 – 5:15pm. This will be a great opportunity to train for NDA and NOSSA championships leading to OFSAA being hosted in North Bay in March, 2017.
ATTENTION School Teachers and Administrators: the club also provides opportunities for in-school and on-ice experiences. Contact the curling office to reserve a session for your class this winter.
Update on Legal Brush Heads:
Surely you remember in 2015, athletes and sport experts began to observe unusual reactions when curling stones were swept with particular types of curling brooms using previously unseen techniques.
In response, the WCF convened a Sweeping Summit in May 2016 to better understand what was occurring and to determine if specifications for curling brushes or amendments to the rules for sweeping, or both were necessary.
It was accepted that to ensure the integrity of athletic performance is maintained, the curling broom must not be capable of providing excessive influence, causing undesirable deterioration of playing conditions, creating residual effects on the ice to the disadvantage of fellow competitors or diminishing the importance of a well-executed delivery.
It was also accepted that sweeping is integral to the broad public appeal and enjoyment of the sport, but sweeping is secondary in importance relative to the delivery.
Throughout the history of curling, participants have accepted there are two legitimate reasons for sweeping a curling stone:
To reduce the rate of deceleration of a stone (causing it to go further)
To delay the curling action of a stone in the direction in which the “turn” was applied (causing it to go straighter)
It was agreed that unacceptable effects of sweeping are:
To increase the rate of deceleration of a stone (causing it to slow down)
To cause a stone to move in the opposite direction in which the turn was applied (causing it to fall back)
To deposit debris in the path of the stone
Utilizing research data in addition to survey findings from curling fans and elite athletes, the WCF has established specifications for sweeping equipment, along with principles and references against which those specifications should be considered. They can be downloaded at: worldcurling.org/brushes
You’ll notice that all WCF approved heads are the same colour, sport yellow. Again, abiding to the specifications is only a requirement for curlers playing in a WCF, Curling Canada or Members Association event. When playing in a league here in North Bay, anything goes as usual.
Curling starts in North Bay on October 24th… Contact us to enroll!
Bobby Ray General Manager North Bay Granite Club