Frequently Asked Questions
What is Curling ?
The latest rage at the Winter Olympics, this ancient and venerable sport originated on the frozen ponds and lochs of 16th century Scotland. A TEAM sport, curling is both competitive and social yet steeped in a tradition of etiquette and fair play.
Each player throws or slides a 42lb.curling stone with a handle attached to its topside down a sheet of specially prepared ice. The immediate goal is to have your rock come to rest on the spot that the team captain or “skip” has requested. The ultimate goal is for the four-person team to have their rock(s) closest to the center of the target or “house”. Curling is often referred to as ‘chess on ice’. While the basics of curling are simple to learn, the finesse and strategy of “the roaring game” are never fully mastered.
Do I have to know how to ice skate?
No, curlers do not use ice skates and no skating ability is required. Instead curlers use special rubber-soled curling shoes. A “slider” generally made of Teflon is either attached to or slipped under one shoe.
What’s with the brooms?
To understand the sweeping, it helps to have an understanding of the ice and the rock first. “Pebbling” or spraying a fine mist of water droplets prepares the ice for a game. The rock which is thrown with a slight twist, rides up on the “ pebble” and will travel or “curl” in the direction of it’s rotation. The sweeping causes a slight melting of the ice, thereby reducing the friction along the path of the stone. The harder the rock is swept, the further and straighter it will travel. It’s important to note that every player on the team is involved with each stone that is played.
What’s so special about the rocks?
The bottom of the rock is not flat, but concave and the actual running surface of the rock is only about ¼” to ½” wide. This small running surface must combine with the rotation, the pebble and the sweeping to make the shot a success. The stones are made of polished granite quarried only on Ailsa Craig, an island off the coast of Scotland.
How can I join in?
The best way is to join us at one of our open houses. See our calendar on the home page for the next Open House!
We are VERY FRIENDLY and WELCOME NEW CURLERS. If you are interested and unable to attend an open house please feel free to contact us at (978) 724-3210 or email petershamcurling@gmail.com
What should I wear to curl?
Dress in warm loose layers. Avoid tight or binding clothing. Bring a pair of clean, flat, rubber-soled shoes. Please do not wear the same shoes outside as you wear on the ice as dirt and debris will ruin the ice. You do not need any special equipment!
How long does it take to play a game?
Most games are about 2 hours. In addition, you should arrive about 10 minutes before your game, and be prepared to stay and socialize after the game. For many, this is the best part of curling!
Fundamentalsofcurling.pdf an excellent pdf summary of some of the fine points of delivering a rock and strategy.
Curling Basics! |
|
Curling is a game of skill and of traditions. A shot well executed is a delight to see and so, too, it is a fine thing to observe the time-honored traditions of curling being applied in the true spirit of the game. Curlers play to win but never to humble their opponents. A true curler would prefer to lose rather than win unfairly. A good curler never attempts to distract an opponent or otherwise prevent him/her from playing his/her best. No curler ever deliberately breaks a rule of the game or any of its traditions. But, if he/she should do so inadvertently and be aware of it, he/she is the first to divulge the breach. While the main object to the game of curling is to determine the relative skills of the players, the spirit of the game demands good sportsmanship, kindly feeling and honorable conduct. This spirit should influence both the interpretation and application of the rules of the game and also the conduct of all participants on and off the ice. |
|
Curling is played within a curling rink on a playing surface ice called a 'sheet' with granite stones. The goal of the game is, after all 16 stones are played (8 by each team), to have a stone of your team's closest to the center of the house, called the 'tee' (see rink below). This is accomplished by sending your stone to rest in scoring position (a 'draw'), by knocking your opponent's stones out of scoring position (a 'takeout'), and by guarding your own stones with others. The team with the closest stone to the 'tee', inside the house, scores a point, or more if they also have the second closest stone and so on. Each round is called an 'end' and consists of two stones delivered by each player on each four-player team. The stones are delivered from the hack on one side of the sheet to the house on the opposite side. This consists of the player pushing off from the hack with the stone and releasing it with a spin, or 'curl'. |
|
|
|
The playing surface played on in a game of curling is ice. The ice playing surface is called a 'sheet' and is within a 'curling rink'. The 'sheet' is 138 feet long by approximately 14 feet wide. The main features of the sheet are the 'House', the 'Hack', the 'Hog Line' and the 'Tee Line'. The 'Hack' is where one delivers or throws the stone. The 'Hog Line' is the line that one must release the stone before during delivery of the stone, and the line at the other end of the ice that ones stone must pass to be considered in play. The scoring area - the 'House' - consists of three concentric rings, 4, 8, and 12 feet in diameter The small circle at the center of the house is called the button, and the center of the button is the tee. The distinct areas are marked underneath the ice surface by using either paint or ribbon. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The curling stone originated in Scotland from large chunks of rock bowled across the ice, none having any particular size or shape. They evolved into what are now matched sets of fairly uniformly made stones. The are all made of pure granite, and they are amazingly hard. The best stones come from a single granite mine on an island off the coast of Scotland. Shipping is quite expensive due to weight (16 stones in a set at 42 pounds a piece, not including packaging), and manufacturing is expensive because of the toughness of the material, which is ground with diamonds. The stone is concave on both the upper and lower surfaces.
On some stones, the degree of concavity is different on both sides to allow
for reversing the stone for 'faster' or 'slower' ice. A handle, usually on a
circular plastic disc, is bolted onto the stone through a channel running
through the middle of the stone to a bolt on the other end, as shown in the
red highlighted region in the cross-sectional diagram. The figure on the
right shows the top of the stone, more obviously concave, but without a
smooth running surface. The handle is affixed onto this circular surface. In the figure above, part A is the bottom of a curling stone, which is concave, although you can't see it well in this picture. The red circle is the actual running surface of the stone. This allows the stone to go farther, more accurately, and pick up more 'curl' than would be possible on a flat surface. There is a lighter-colored band in a ribbon around the
curling stone. This is the 'striking surface'. In manufacturing, the entire
stone if very highly polished. This surface is dulled down for the purpose of
improving collisions with other stones, both so that there will be a larger
contact patch in the collision and so that the stones will not chip. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The stone is delivered sort of similarly to a bowling motion. Actually, it's not that similar, but it's the only thing that even resembles it (see example of delivery below). You start off at what's called a 'hack', or basically a block sticking out of the ice. Your first motion is to take the
stone and pull it backwards to just in front of the hack in the backswing,
then you push it forward into a smooth glide down the ice. The broom is used
as a support during delivery. You slide on your lead foot, with you other
foot and leg stretched out behind you, dragging. However, to deliver a stone well, you should glide along
with the stone as far as possible. Good curlers usually glide very close to the ice, in an
odd, very stretched pose. You must release the stone by the 'hog line' (see the curling rink for
location of the hog line) As you slow down, the stone glides on, to come into play
on the opposite side, beyond the other hog line. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Curling is a social game, that is full of strategy. Although it is often described as 'chess on ice' for its strategy, it more closely resembles bocce or shuffleboard. The object of the game is to get closest to a target area and maintain that advantage while your competitor tries to get closer or knock you out. The strategy comes into play with planning shots like 'guards', 'takeouts', and 'draws' and ability to control the speed and direction of each shot. The matches are as social or competitive as desired depending on the curlers skill level and the nature of the match. A great deal of effort goes into planning an end so your team's stone ends up closest to the Tee. There are a number of different strategic moves, and here we show the standards: The Draw The Takeout Guarding |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The team consists of four players, called the 'Skip' the 'Lead', the 'Second', and the 'Vice'. The Skip is essentially the team captain -- generally the most experienced, well-tempered person on the team. Play rotates so that all four team members get to deliver two stones each. At any time, there is one skip, two sweepers, and one person delivering a stone. When the Skip is scheduled to deliver his stones, the 'vice' (also called the 'third' so called because he is the third in line to deliver stones) acts temporarily as skip. From this, we can pretty much guess that the later stones are more important to the outcome of the game. Sweeping is directed by the skip, and the type of shot, as well as the placement of the shot, is called by the skip. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
A large element of the game not mentioned so far is the 'curl' of the stone. As you can see in the above diagrams, the stone is not coming in on a perfectly straight path. This is due to the curl put on the stone by the curler. As the stone is delivered, a slight spin is put on it, acting like a very, very slow curveball. The pebble is what helps the stone pick up the lateral
motion. As is seen here, the ice is sprinkled before the game with a
'pebbler', which creates a smoothly hilly effect on the ice, much like little
pebbles. Without the pebble, the stone would not be able to travel as far.
Therefore, the small travelling surface of the stone itself combined with the
small contact area of the ice (created by the pebble) allows the rock to
travel further than on flat smooth ice. Sweeping also aids in
increasing the travel distance of the stone. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Either a curling brush or broom is used to sweep in the game. Sweeping fine tunes the shots, and sweeping is what makes curling truly a team sport. Sweeping affects the ice in front of the moving stone in three ways:
As a result, a swept stone will lose its momentum more slowly and thus travel further. For draw shots, good sweepers will sweep just enough to bring the stone to its desired position. On takeouts, sweeping will hold a stone on the line of delivery longer and reduce the amount of curl. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Each player shoots or delivers two stones each end, alternately with their counterpart on the opposing team. A twist of the handle on release makes the stone curl, a little like in bowling. All four team members shoot two stones an end and sweep for their teammates' shots. While one player shoots, two sweep as needed. Sweeping polishes the ice so the stone travels farther if delivered too softly, and vigorous sweeping requires fitness. In a typical two hour game, a curler walks almost two miles. The skip acts as team captain and strategist. Strategy is a major factor in curling, as important as shooting skill. Some people call curling "chess on ice". The playing surface is called "a sheet of ice", and is designed to allow play in both directions. The object of shooting is to get the stone, or rock, to come to rest at a predetermined place (a draw or guard) or to move another rock (a takeout or raise). The score is determined after each end of 16 stones. A 12 foot circle, the house, is the scoring area. Stones in the house must be closer to the tee (center) than any opposing stone to score. The maximum score in one end is eight points. Typically, one to three points are scored. Games are 8 or 10 ends, lasting 2 to 2.5 hours. |
Check out some excellent television coverage of our
curling club based on the excitement generated by the Olympics!
Click here. and here. and here.
| November 18. 2009 11:26AM Finessing the stone Sport of curling is about delivery, accuracy — and tradition By Laura Porter Photography by Tom Rettig
But the crowd gathered in front of the gallery glass for a game in this particular bonspiel, or tournament, couldn't be more aware of the intricacies of the sport. Spectators sit in chairs or perch on stools, watching with a rapt silence occasionally broken by murmurs of interest or approval. “People think it's not exciting, but everyone here is glued to the ice,” says Cindy Hartwell, club board member and the organizer of several bonspiels, including this one. “(The direction of the game) can change very quickly.” Indeed, a comment overheard in the hubbub drives home her point: “It doesn't get much more exciting than what we've done this weekend,” exclaims a voice in the crowd. For the past several days, curling teams from New York and all over New England as well as clubs in Canada have come together to play, eat and celebrate their love of curling. On this Sunday, the bonspiel's final day, they will cheer on the finalists and then disperse, at least until the next tournament. What, exactly, is curling? Originating in Scotland in the 1500s, the game involves four-member teams that face each other across a single sheet of ice. Each team takes turns throwing, or sliding, 42-pound polished granite stones toward its target, or house. “The immediate goal is to have your rock come to rest on the spot that the team captain or ‘skip' has requested,” notes the Petersham club's Web site. “The ultimate goal is for the four-person team to have their rock(s) closest to the center of the target or ‘house.' ” Before play, the ice is sprinkled with water, or pebbled, so it is not completely smooth. The stone is released with a slight turn of the wrist, turning it into either a clockwise or counterclockwise curl. The bottom of the stones are concave, with only a small ring of surface area, and so the spinning stone “rides up on the ‘pebble' and will travel or ‘curl' in the direction of its rotation.” To help direct the stone, players use a special broom to sweep the ice in front of it as it slides toward the house. Sweeping reduces friction and makes it possible to bring the stone 5 to 10 feet farther. It also helps it to stay straighter and hold its line. In the course of a game, usually about two hours long, each side throws eight stones, alternating between the red and the blue teams. Eight ends, or turns, are played in all. “It's really a game of finesse, not brute strength,” says Hartwell. “It's all about the delivery and the accuracy.” As might befit a sport with such a long and illustrious history, tradition is an integral part of curling, and sportsmanship is one of its most valued traditions. One shakes hands with one's opponents before and after every game. While the opponent is throwing, members of the other team stand still and out of the way. In the gallery, everyone claps when teams come off the ice, waiting long enough to applaud even the last straggling player. Hartwell's parents were among the founders of the Petersham Curling Club, which is to celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2010 and once counted its membership at more than 90 families. There are currently about 60 individual curling members and eight social members. The club welcomes new members at any time. The Petersham clubhouse features two regulation sheets of ice as well as a large, comfortable social area, framed by a roaring brick fireplace on one end and a polished, leather-fronted bar at the other. Trophies and plaques showcase the club's successes, filling display cases and standing tall on the mantle above the fireplace. A large photograph of the groundbreaking in 1960 hangs in a prominent spot by the door; the shovel used that day has been turned into a trophy. More than 60 people of all ages have attended this particular bonspiel, which as always, has revolved as much around food and fun as curling. A Friday night power outage forced some rearranging of the game schedule, but the traditional costume dinner went on as planned. Although there is no doubt these curlers take their sport seriously, it is just as evident from the sounds of laughter that they enjoy each other very much. John Brooks, who has belonged to the club since 1978, notes that “people are the reason people curl — there is great camaraderie.” Today, Brooks was asked to step in to play in the finals of the B event for a Canadian team that needed a player. “Where else are you going to meet people from so many different places?” he asks. The club no longer offers junior level curling, but the sport can often be a family affair. Twenty-four-year-old Aliza Paul Breault, who is waiting to play with her team in the finals of the A event, has curled for 15 years. “I grew up in the club,” she says. “My parents and grandparents are members.” (Her father, Ted Paul, is currently the club's treasurer.) She has two small children, both here today, so right now she only plays in the Friday night mixed league. Curling is easy to learn, but one could spend a lifetime working to master its intricacies. Notes Brooks: “It's a sport you can play without being good at it, but if you want to get good at it, it just takes practice.” Members have frequent opportunities to curl, with a men's league meeting twice a week, a mixed league every Friday night, and women's and open hours on Wednesdays. The season runs from fall through late winter, kicking off this year with a Golf and Curling Biathlon. In addition, Petersham members often travel to bonspiels sponsored by other clubs, both in the United States and in Canada. The Spring Fling Bonspiel at the end of March marks the official end of the club's season. After the last stone is thrown, club members pull the plug to drain the ice for the off-season. On this particular chilly day, the ice clears as first one and then the second game in progress comes to an end, and a few club members begin to prepare the ice for the finals. It is cleaned and swept after every game, but scraped and pebbled every third game. Inside, people gather in front of the fireplace, or return to the breakfast buffet laid out earlier this morning. Breault, thinking about the game to come, says only, “I hope to win. That will be the whole ball of wax.” Brooks says that his strategy is simple: “Get the stone in the house — all of them.” The sudden sound of bagpipes cuts into the conversation, and there is an instant hush. As the piper comes forward from the back of the clubhouse, the members of each of the four teams playing in the finals begin to line up behind him. Slowly, they bang the ends of their broom handles on the floor while everyone in the room starts to clap in rhythm. “I'm going to go real slow up the ice because I have on metal cleats,” says the bagpiper, and he turns to lead the players onto the ice. They proceed first to the back wall and then fan out in a line, 16 across, to face the gallery. Slowly, the group advances until they are only a few feet from the window. Cindy Hartwell slips out with a tray of shot glasses, filled with whatever liquid each has requested. The curlers each take one, and while Ted Paul stands in front of them to offer a toast, everyone raises their glasses. They then exchange handshakes and separate to prepare for the games. A few take a couple of practice throws, sliding across the ice on bended knee. Others warm up by stretching. In the gallery, spectators once again arrange themselves in front of the glass, looking forward to another session of excellent curling. Some of the teams, now out of the tournament and with a long way to travel, are preparing to leave. Many come up to Hartwell, thanking her for the Petersham club's hospitality. Hugs are exchanged, as well as good wishes to last until they meet again at the next bonspiel, either here or elsewhere. “There's something about curlers,” she says. “You meet people and you make friends for life.” Petersham Curling Club 250 Main St. (Route 32), Petersham February's Winter Olympics in Vancouver will dovetail with the Petersham Curling Club's 50th anniversary. Plans are under way for special events that will bookend 2010, scheduled for January through March as well as September through December. For more information about curling or to find out about attending an open house, call (978) 724-3210 or visit the club's Web site at www.petershamcurling.org |
see the great blog posting on curling and our club by Scott Coen of MassLIVE. click here.
and check out our latest (January 2012) television coverage by WGBY Springfield:
http://vimeo.com/34967432