Talk:Curling

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The spoken word version of this article is part of WikiProject Spoken Wikipedia, an attempt to produce recordings of Wikipedia articles. To participate, visit the project page.

[edit] Minor clean-up

I removed many "(See ________ below)" from the "Basics of the Game" section, as they really broke up sentence flow and made it harder to read, without contributing much to the section. I also incorporated much of the information in the parentheses into each sentence to increase readability.

[edit] Formatting clean-up

I just did some general formatting clean-up of this page and put the sections in order of oldest first (by date of first comment or question in the section). Please add new sections to the bottom.
— Bill W. (Talk) (Contrib) – February 14, 2006, 00:09 (UTC)

A major reformatting might include - directing the terms to the already existing Wiki glossary of curling terms. Also, the end sections - championships, clubs etc. could be broken out into their own pages (I don't know how to do this). this would reduce the size and make it more likely to featured. I would like to help do this but don't know how. Dsenese 16:28, 19 February 2006 (UTC)

Also, curling history and culture could be its own page - this would take the curling culture section and much of hte intro out and allow for more in-depth coverage of these. Dsenese 16:45, 19 February 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Sectioning

I hope that everyone likes the sectioning that I have done. It seemed to be getting a bit unwieldy. Also, a clarification on the four rock rule: it applies if the rock is removed, not moved. Timc 17:43, 20 Jan 2004 (UTC)

I like the sectioning and I like all the changes that have been made. I spemt some time on this article serveal months ago and it has been greatly improved since then. And thanks for correcting my error (I think it was mine) about the four-rock rule. Trontonian 01:53, 30 Jan 2004 (UTC)

[edit] Clarify?

Hi, I'm unfamiliar with this sport and I was thinking it might be beneficial if someone who is familiar could clarify what kind of "stick" is used to push the stone? You might want to consider adding an "equipment" section and folding the "curling stone" section into it. Also you may want to put the description of the game before the description of the rink/ice surface. Just a few thoughts. Rethcir 18:46, Aug 10, 2004 (UTC)

No stick is used. It is pushed by hand, sort of like the walk-up release used in bowling. The only sticks are the brooms used by the players sweeping in front of the rock to help control speed and direction and the broom that the player uses for partial support when throwing the rock. Rmhermen 19:04, Aug 10, 2004 (UTC)

If you are handicaped, you can use a stick to push the rock Earl Andrew 23:24, 10 Aug 2004 (UTC)

I guess they don't broadcast that on TV. Is handicapped curling an organized sport (like Paralympic ones) or just an adaptation? Rmhermen 13:50, Aug 12, 2004 (UTC)

There are different kinds of curling for handicapped persons, such as wheelchair curling, or blind curling. The stick allows people who have trouble crouching down into position to push the rock. The official rules of curling do not specify how the rock is delivered, just where it is to be delivered, however I believe there may be rules for the higher levels of curling about this. I coach special olympics curling, and some of the athletes have to use sticks, but most don't. Earl Andrew 15:53, 12 Aug 2004 (UTC)

I added some text on the "delivery stick" to the Curling stone section. The Rules of Curling says that they are indeed allowed. --Timc 18:31, 12 Aug 2004 (UTC)

[edit] Ice surface

"The curling arena is a sheet of ice ... carefully prepared to be absolutely level ..."

Is the ice really prepared to be absolutely level? I thought that ideal ice was actually very slightly bevelled, to make it a bit more swingy than level ice. --timc | Talk 19:11, 18 Oct 2004 (UTC)

Yes, the ice is supposed to be absolutely level. Efforts are made to ensure that the temperature is even when the ice is flooded, so that the ice freezes perfectly level. Over time imperfections develop though, so its re-flooded once in a while. Generic Player 01:52, 12 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Are you sure about that? I sat and watched the olympic games this evening and the commentator and her "expert", or whatever it is called in english, (the expert was Elisabeth Gustafsson, she has won the world championship several times). Well, anyway, they said that the ice is supposed to be a bit (a very little bit) like a bath tube, if you know what I mean. Slighly pipe formed. --Zoeds 22:13, 13 February 2006 (UTC)

It's definitely completely level. The swing comes from the pebble applied to the ice surface, not any kind of slope or bevel. In fact, we're re-flooding the ice at our club this Monday as Generic Player describes above. --Neil 18:59, 14 February 2006 (UTC)

If the ice was "bath tube" shaped, it would not be possible to make an in or out turn to either side of the ice, since you would not be able to throw a rock uphill. The ice is absolutely level with a "pebble" put over the entire surface as evenly as possibly by sprinkling water droplets, and then clipping the points off any excessively large "pebbles". Making the ice is as much an art as a science. I would honestly have to ask, though, how exactly is it that you would make ice freeze in any way EXCEPT level? That kind of engineering could take an awful lot of time, a lot more than they have between draws. Zoeds, I am sorry to say, I think you have either misunderstood or the broadcasters didn't understand. I can't imagine Elisabeth Gustafsson making a statement like that unless she was having a little fun with the commentator.--CokeBear 16:09, 17 February 2006 (UTC)

Quite possible I misunderstood what they said. Good point about how hard it would be to make turn "uphill"... I surrender ;)

No need to surrender. At the 2006 Olympics, the ice was indeed shaped slightly like a bath-tub...ever so slightly. At the beginning of the tournament, they were having a terrible time getting any sort of swing at all, so the ice makers built up the edges to allow more outside-in curl. Of course, this meant that there was very little inside-out curl! It is typically desired, hoewever, that ice be flat.

I'm positive that the consensus of the top 10 icemakers in the world would be that the surface of a sheet of curling ice should be "as close to level as is practically possible" (before pebbling) not "absolutely level". There is no such thing as absolutely level. To what infinitesimal incriment is "absolutely level"? Of the blades that are used to scrape the ice, the best are completely straight to less than .001 of an inch over a 5 foot span. Yes, at big events some icemakers will put a 'dish' into the ice to encourage curl in a certain direction. ICE DOES NOT FREEZE COMPLETELY LEVEL! This is a common misconseption. If you have a blade as precise as described above and you scrape the ice after a flood, you will see glaring differences in relative freeze height

[edit] Three Rock Rule?

Would it be useful to talk about variations on the Free Guard zone? When I occasionally watch televised curling from Canada, they seem to use a Three Rock rule for the Free Guard zone rather than the Four Rock rule used in international play. Jim Huggins 01:53, 10 Mar 2005 (UTC)

Canada now uses the four rock rule. - Earl Andrew 02:19, 10 Mar 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Even number of ends?

Games I've seen on TV don't always go to an even number of ends. Sometimes they stop after the ninth end, but I am not sure how this is decided. Is it just when one team is down so many points that they give up and don't bother playing the last end? As an example from today, Canada was up 6-4 over Denmark starting the 9th end. Canada scored 3 points that end, and that was the end of the game. How come? Generic Player 06:28, 6 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Yeah, a team will "give up" if you will, if they are are too far behind. This is what happened. It is incredably difficult to score 5 points in one end (what Denmark would have to have done) especially against a team like Randy Ferbey. Denmark chose to "shake hands" after 9 instead of wasting time by starting a 10th end. --

Earl Andrew - talk 06:58, 6 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Slightly expanding on that idea - in order to win the game, they would have had to score 6 points, which would be virtually impossible against a strong team. If they miraculously scored 5 to tie, Ferbey's team would then have the advantage of last rock in the extraend to score a single point. Being down by 5 points even with 2 ends left to play is a huge obstacle to overcome and is normally reason enough to concede. To score so many points you are counting on your opponent to make many mistakes, something high-calibre teams don't normally do. --CokeBear 20:16, 25 April 2006 (UTC)

[edit] The Button

"The button" is not really explained, should it appear in the sentence about the "pin or tee"? I've never heard of anyone drawing the tee... --130.91.50.231 19:48, 3 Jun 2005 (UTC)

I was just wondering this myself, the term just kind of pops up into the article without having been explained, I assume the button is just another name for the center of the house and belongs in the mentioned sentence, if so including it along with pin, tee, or spit would help clarify, especially as it seems to be the term of choice for the article (though I don't want to make the edit myself not being positive of the term's meaning). Gheorghe Zamfir 17:11, 13 February 2006 (UTC)

The button is the circle in the middle. -- Earl Andrew - talk 00:13, 14 February 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Huh?

Could you please make the intro more explanitive? I dont understand what Curling is, and as it is formated right now, I have had to read the whole artical to get a basic idea of what the rules are, and how one would go about playing a game of curling. I believe that this is a major problemand would apprecate if someonecould fix it. I am Broke n 10:59, 19 September 2005 (UTC) Sure, just let me know what explanitive means and I'll get right on that. 171.161.224.10 22:28, 13 February 2006 (UTC)

I added a description entitled Basics of the Game to the intro part. I also reordered the intro so the history appears together. Hope this helps. 17:06, 18 February 2006 (UTC) Dsenese 17:11, 18 February 2006 (UTC)

lennyzileg- >>== Huh? == Could you please make the intro more explanitive? I dont understand what Curling is, and as it is formated right now, I have had to read the whole artical to get a basic idea of what the rules are, and how one would go about playing a game of curling. I believe that this is a major problemand would apprecate if someonecould fix it.<<

exacly why i clicked on this discussion page. the page provides a lot of info but doesn't clearly explain what the heck is going during a game in terms an ignorant person can understand.

this one of the most fustrating wiki pages i've come across.

[edit] Equipment

It would be nice to have a little more detail on the brooms - specifically some mention of so-called "corn brooms." The photograph implies that there is really only one style of broom. I may do this myself, but what do others think? Fishhead64 00:19, 08 Feb 2006 (UTC)

There are many different kinds and different brands. I'm not an expert on all of them, as I just have my Brownie (the one in the photo) and it works just fine for me. -- Earl Andrew - talk 03:23, 8 February 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Strategy

Although the article describes the scoring, more on strategy would be nice, perhaps with a graphic or too. Thanks Jimaginator 12:52, 14 February 2006 (UTC)

[edit] A Little Confusing

I'm having difficulty understanding the following sentence in the article: "The two remaining players follow the rock and assist in guiding its trajectory by sweeping the ice before the rock, causing the rock to decrease the rate at which it curves in its trajectory, or curl, usually under direction from the skip or thrower and their own instincts for the weight of the rock, as well as stopwatch split timing." What is meant by the "weight of the rock"? Does this refer to the actual weight of a rock in pounds or kilos, or is this a slang term? Additionally I'm not sure what "as well as stopwatch split timing" means or refers to in the sentence (what exactly is it in addition to?). I'd much appreciate some clarification here, if not in the article itself. - 64.81.198.176 00:08, 15 February 2006 (UTC)

I'm going to add a section on curling terms sometime this evening. Check back in a couple hours and see if that helps. For now, weight in curling refers to the momentum imparted to the stone by the thrower. A physics person (which I'm not) could explain the difference between momentum and speed. — Bill W. (Talk) (Contrib) – February 15, 2006, 01:15 (UTC)

- I added a section "By the Numbers" which attempts to explain the timings used in curling (stopwatch split timings), mostly in reference to the numbers you hear on the TV coverage. A reference could be added to this section. This section could most certainly be cleaned up as well, because although I'm not new to curling, I've never played and so I might misunderstand these numbers. Bollinger 17:07, 21 February 2006 (UTC)bollinger

[edit] Major Rewrite

In the hopes af gaining featured article status while the Olympics are on, I rewrote several sections of this article. I added some more detail to several areas. I removed a lot of repetition and redundancy, cleaned up grammar and sentance structure, and probably introduced some new problems. ;-) Please everyone who watches this, add to (or subtract from if needed) what I've done so maybe we can make the front page.
— Bill W. (Talk) (Contrib) – February 15, 2006, 04:18 (UTC)

Well, I was planning a rewrite myself, being a keen curler myself, although I wont have time during the Olympics because I am working on Olympic articles, mainly Curling at the 2006 Winter Olympics. One thing I wanted to do was have an illustration of how to deliver a rock perhaps with photos. -- Earl Andrew - talk 11:58, 15 February 2006 (UTC)

One thing that really needs to be done is to re-record the spoken word version. If anyone wants to give it a go. I might have a chance to try it, but I've got a steep learning curve here, having never done it. Also, I have an artist friend who could give us a good illustration, but a photo would be best. I'll see what I can find.
— Bill W. (Talk) (Contrib) – February 15, 2006, 15:02 (UTC)

Photos are what I meant. Also, I like the idea mentioned above regarding a section on strategy :) -- Earl Andrew - talk 02:45, 16 February 2006 (UTC)

Well, it will take a curler to write that. I only curl in my dreams. ;-) — Bill W. (Talk) (Contrib) – February 16, 2006, 03:31 (UTC)

This article is really looking good. One improvement I'd like to see, to make it better still, would be some labeling on the graphic depiction of the sheet. Thanks to this article, I've learned some terms like "hogline" and "button," but it would've been easier if they'd been added, as labels, to the picture. If it doesn't clutter up the picture too much, perhaps the "tee line" and "house" could be labeled, as well.

By the way: is "hogline" one word or two? It's represented both ways in the text.--RattBoy 03:35, 16 February 2006 (UTC)

The google test states "hog line" and "curling" having more hits, but "hogline" is also common. Since you are forcing the issue so soon, I can have a look at the article on Saturday. -- Earl Andrew - talk 05:02, 16 February 2006 (UTC)

Please see my reply below under Updeting the audio file. — Bill W. (Talk) (Contrib) – February 16, 2006, 06:29 (UTC)

In all fairness, someone needs to take some time and mention the levity. Interest in curling is often attributed to the amusement of a sport involving sweeping with brooms... I know that my first exposure was a tongue-in-cheek protest in High School about Olympic recognition. PhatJew 21:58, 24 February 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Updating the audio file.

I would like to read this updated article for Wikipedia:WikiProject_Spoken_Wikipedia. I have a background in broadcasting (ok, it was 20 years ago in college, but it's like riding a bike), and I think I have a pretty good voice. I'd like to make the recording this Sunday (2/19/06). If you have any more changes to the text you've been thinking about making (like a section on strategy) please try to make them by Saturday night. I'll take the text as it appears first thing Sunday morning to develop a script to read from and have the recording posted by Sunday evening. Unless, of course, anyone objects to the plan.
— Bill W. (Talk) (Contrib) – February 16, 2006, 04:13 (UTC)

Earl Andrew — Sorry, I don't mean to "force the issue so soon." What I said is "I'd like to" do it this weekend, and I was planning to follow that schedule. If that's not good for any contributors, then I'm happy to wait. If you can get what you want added by Sunday, that's cool. But if you can't and you want me to wait, I'll do that too. One point to consider, since Strategy is a completely new section, it would be simple to just record it later and drop it into the recording. In terms of audio editing it's pretty simple. So if you (or someone else) can't write the new section by Sunday, then I can still make the recording and add the new section later. Much more important would be for anyone who plans major changes to the existing sections to get them done before a new recording is made. I'm working towards dialogue and consensus here, I'm not editing by fiat or deadline. Sorry if it seemed I was.
— Bill W. (Talk) (Contrib) – February 16, 2006, 06:31 (UTC)

[edit] Throw order

Someone recently changed the order of the paragraphs describing the players. The former order was:

Skip
Third
Second
Lead

This seemed to make sense because the Skip should be listed first as team leader, then the remainder of the players in the order they throw. If I understand correctly that gives us this:

Skip - throws last
Third - throws third
Second - throws second
Lead - throws first.

The new section order gives us this:

Skip - throws last
Second - throws second
Third - throws third
Lead - throws first.

I was just going to revert the edit, but I thought maybe I was missing something. What should we do here?
— Bill W. (Talk) (Contrib) – February 16, 2006, 21:01 (UTC)

As mentioned in the article, the skip doesn't necessarily throw last rocks. Some teams have him throwing third rocks. -- Earl Andrew - talk 03:19, 17 February 2006 (UTC)

Skip/Third/Second/Lead or Skip/Lead/Second/Third or Lead/Second/Third/Skip are defensible using different criteria. The current order makes no particular sense at all. Best might be a mention of the Skip as the leader of the team in the opening paragraph, and then listing the players in normal shot order Lead/Second/Third/Skip. unfutz 04:34, 17 February 2006 (UTC)

Ok, let's try that and see if there are any objections.— Bill W. (Talk) (Contrib) – February 17, 2006, 05:11 (UTC)

[edit] Introducing Concepts

Several game specific terms are used before they are introduced and explained. Consider this example: "Strategically, the lead usually has similar shots from end to end, usually throwing guards or draws. The lead usually sweeps for the second, third and skip." This example uses the terms 'end', 'guard', 'draw', and 'sweep'. These terms have not been explained to this point in the article, and are not explained for some time, yet. Perhaps the article could be restructured so basic game play is covered first, where 'end' and 'sweep' are mentioned. Then in this passage, care can be given to introducing 'guard' and 'draw' while waiting to fully expalin them.

[edit] Women vs. Men

Is there any difference in rules/weight of stone for women's curling vs. men's curling?

Nope -- Earl Andrew - talk 08:26, 19 February 2006 (UTC)

Just to clarify, there are differences in play but not in the rules. Due to the simple difference in physical strength, men will generally play a riskier strategy knowing that they can throw enough weight to get out of a bad situation with multiple takeouts or be able to carry a stone further by stronger sweeping, whereas women will play stronger positionally and must use more precise weight, more of a "thinking" game...--CokeBear 23:27, 19 February 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Curr as the root for curling

I can't find a reference for what is stated in the article. The article says that an "old verb" curr means "to rumble" and that the sound of the rocks travelling led to the word curling. The Oxford English Dictionary supports the idea that the word 'curling' came into being before the verb "curl" came to have its modern meaning. But the only reference to 'curr" I can find says it's a Latin verb that means "to run" (English words like 'current' and 'occur' come from it as does the Spanish 'correr'). So, my question is in what language does/did curr mean to rumble and what's the reference to suggest that this is etymology of 'curling'. Ideas? I've notice the article is well-reference on-line so we should be more explicit about this. Dsenese 22:17, 19 February 2006 (UTC)

AFAIK the cur or curr is from Scottish Gaelic, but I believe it may have been an old Gaelic dialect. I am trying to find a reference to help with this.--CokeBear 23:05, 19 February 2006 (UTC)

cur c.1225, curre, earlier kurdogge, probably from O.N. kurra or M.L.G. korren both echoic, both meaning "to growl." Etymology Online Lookup--CokeBear 23:08, 19 February 2006 (UTC)

Here is some further supporting information, in the M-W dictionary definition of cur: http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/cur

Main Entry: cur

Pronunciation: 'k&r

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English, short for curdogge, from (assumed) Middle English curren to growl (perhaps from Old Norse kurra to grumble) + Middle English dogge dog

1 : a mongrel or inferior dog

2 : a surly or cowardly fellow

--CokeBear 23:42, 19 February 2006 (UTC)

According to McBain's http://www.ceantar.org/Dicts/MB2/mb12.html#cur 'cur' means "a placing" from the infintive 'cuir' meaning to put. This seems equally plausible as the etymology - curling being "placing stones" There must be a dissertation somewhere on this!! LOL Dsenese 01:09, 21 February 2006 (UTC)

The reason that you guys seem to be getting so confused is that you are looking at dictionaries for the wrong languages!! Curr is not an English language verb, nor a Scottish Gaelic language verb. It is a Scots language verb (both the Scots language and the English language evolved from Middle English). If you refer to the Dictionary of the Scots Language, which is handily available online:

then you will find the references you seek. I did link to the relevant entry in the article, but for some reason that links to a page without the surrounding dsl frame.

Out of interest, also have a look at the entries for Spiel and Bonspiel.--Mais oui! 04:10, 23 February 2006 (UTC)

While I agree the word "curr" is the root of curling why do you choose the definition of the word to be "A soft, murmuring sound." rather than "A slight touch used to move something". Both seem likely to me given that curling is about moving and the stones do make a noise! So can anyone point to a source that says which it is? Otherwise it seems like original research to me. OoberMick 16:06, 20 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Pro Curling?

The article says there is no pro curling. But that's not true: http://www.worldcurlingtour.com/—The preceding unsigned comment was added by 129.72.130.88 (talk • contribs) .

I think you will find that most of the participants in the WCT are NOT curlers full-time. They usually have jobs outside of curling (or sometimes relating to curling, like sporting goods stores). There are very few curlers (or more likely none) who make a living from curling and curling alone, and I am quite certain that is what was meant in the article. No one is PAID to curl the way a professional baseball player or hockey player is paid. They win cash prizes by curling. --CokeBear 07:37, 15 March 2006 (UTC)

Then there are people like Sherry Middaugh whose only earnings come from curling because she is a "full time mom". There have been years where she has won more money than her husband. --

Earl Andrew - talk 07:01, 19 March 2006 (UTC)

Going with the same analogy on prizes - does this mean there are no pro golfers because they only earn money through prizes? The only reason there are no 'pro' curlers is that the money isn't 'big' enough to support a full time curling team. The other thing going against curling is that there are 4 (or 5) curlers on a team whereas there is only one golfer, ie. no need to spilt prize money in golf. Atrian 16:01, 19 March 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Naming of the players in the "Players" section

Hello all. As you all may know, the skip does not necessarily plays last. Thus the last player who is not the skip is known as "Fourth". Thus perhaps we can modify this section to better reflect this?

[edit] Stones and Rocks

Isn't using both terms interchangeably a wee bit confusing? Perhaps (while keeping a statement that both terms are used) we should use just one. Personally, I'd go for "stones" as it seems to be more of an official term, and is used internationally while "rocks" is North American. At the moment, we have one term being used in one sentence, and another being used in the next, which looks wrong to me. Anyone have any opinions on this? Lurker 11:43, 25 February 2006 (UTC)

I don't think there is any confusion at all, and using the same term over and over again would be annoying, especially when there's a perfectly good synonym available. unfutz 20:43, 28 February 2006 (UTC)

Especially since both terms are pretty much used interchangeably. When watching a curling broadcast they use both terms regularly in Canada... I think it would be more confusing to favour one over the other because they are so frequently interchanged.--CokeBear 07:40, 15 March 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Article removed from Wikipedia:Good articles

This article was formerly listed as a good article, but was removed from the listing because there is no references section. Also I think the lead should be longer and summarise more of the article content. Worldtraveller 21:47, 25 February 2006 (UTC)

I've expanded the lead a bit. unfutz 20:41, 28 February 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Lead does coin toss?

I was reading through the revamped article and noticed that the discussion on the lead says she's responsible for the coin toss. In our club that responsibility falls to the third. Is our club odd-ball, or is there a mistake in the article?

--Neil 06:16, 3 March 2006 (UTC)

I suppose it may well vary from club to club, but in every club I've been at, the coin toss has been the responsibility of the vice. Mgriffin 12:39, 3 March 2006 (UTC)

I think it varies by region. I was hoping someone would fix that, as I was unsure which player did it in other areas. I am just familiar with the lead flipping the coin, which is done here in Ottawa. --

Earl Andrew - talk 15:05, 3 March 2006 (UTC)

The official rules on the CCA site just say a coin flip starts the game, but says nothing about who is responsible. However, I found an article at the site (http://www.curling.ca/fan_central/features/from_the_ntc/article.asp?id=47) that never mentions leads doing the toss at all. How about we move the responsibility to the third, and just chalk Ottawa up to being oddball? :)--Neil 03:57, 6 March 2006 (UTC)

That would be NPOV. I suggest mentioning both. --

Earl Andrew - talk 05:12, 6 March 2006 (UTC)

I assume you mean non-NPOV :) How about we just remove all of this from the individual position descriptions and move it to the "Last rock" section. Then we can say something like "The coin toss is usually conducted by the thirds, although this may vary by club."

The coin toss is usually conducted by the thirds, or by the leads, depending on the club" :) --

Earl Andrew - talk 06:21, 7 March 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Player's stats

A section on this would be beneficial. For example, where is the accuracy rating come from when not every throw is neccessary aimed at the button. --Kvasir 08:54, 15 March 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Grafitti

The 01:02, 25 May 2006 24.89.250.251 (→Brooms (or brushes)) edit seems to be grafitti/defacement. --HunterZ 01:19, 25 May 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Criticism

There should be a section on the criticism of curling. After all, it is highly disputed whether or not curling is a game or a sport. Alot of people say that a sport where you can drink beer and play the sport at the same time is NOT a sport.

Um, you can pretty much do that with any sport, like softball or bowling. Doesnt mean the professionals do it, and therefore doesnt make it any less of a sport. --

Earl Andrew - talk 00:12, 1 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Skip and players

There is an article of Skip (curling) out there in Wikipedia. It is also found in this article. I suggest moving both to a Players of curling article, in an interest to make things simpler and shorten the Curling Article. I can't take the charge, but someone should. Minnesota1 22:12, 5 September 2006 (UTC)

It's the same thing, but I think it should be its own article. It should deffinately be expanded though. A picture of a skip in action would be nice. -- Earl Andrew - talk 22:57, 5 September 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Playing surface

I have added that the temperture is -6 °C, could someone more knowledgable expand on this (is it below, around, is it maintained thoughout the game, etc.). Rich Farmbrough, 10:51 22 September 2006 (GMT).

I have changed the temp. to -5C or 23F as this is a generally accepted surface temperature... also that is it maintained near, not at this temperature. Changes to the surface temperature are moderated by brine temperature, so the surface temperature isn't actually directly controllable. Different icemakers will keep the surface at different temperatures to their liking.

[edit] "Notable" curling clubs

This section is getting out of hand -- it seems to be getting used for link spamming. For example, I personally have curled at the Crestwood in Edmonton, and I don't think it's really notable within Alberta, let alone the world. If no one objects, I'd like to clear out all clubs from this list that don't have their own Wikipedia article. Indefatigable 21:12, 26 November 2006 (UTC)

At some point, I'd like them to be listed in their own articles. Eg. List of curling clubs in Ontario -- Earl Andrew - talk 03:52, 27 November 2006 (UTC)

I'd like to put forward a motion to either have the "notable" clubs in their own article, or have the list significantly trimmed. I'd like to see all clubs, without a blurb beside them telling why they're notable, removed. I'll suggest a tentative date of 1 March 2007, by which time this will happen unless someone objects or significant discussion is raised. H8jd5 12:40, 6 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] "Extensive" Knowledge of classical mechanics?

The "Additional Information" section begins thusly: " The means of preparation one must take to be competitive in the sport of curling go beyond physical fitness and above-average agility. The competitor must not only be able to have an extensive understanding of classical mechanics with an emphasis on friction, but must be able to apply this knowledge to the playing field. This is a commonly overlooked fact. Curling is an excellent example of the adage "easy to learn, but difficult to master". "

Am I the only one that finds this to be hyperbole at best? I've never seen anyone claim that a billiards player requires "extensive knowledge of classical mechanics," yet friction, inertia, and similar are all important ways of describing what is happening in billiards from a classical mechanics perspective. It seems to me that this same thing is true of curling: I doubt that the ability to work mathematical equations involving movement and friction would significantly help a curler, or that curlers as a group have a better than average knowledge of classical mechanics. I will, however, retract my complaints if someone presents a credible reference source that claims otherwise. Charlie 03:53, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Trivia: Broomball

Who put in the line about broomball dying out because they no longer get old brooms from curling. That is utter nonsense! I played broomball 20 years ago and we were using the hard plastic/rubber brooms that are shown in the broomball entry. That entry also mentions that broomball is strong in North America and growing globally.

Does all the trivia come from the same source and does it need to be verified? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Ydgrunite (talk • contribs) 21:59, 21 January 2007 (UTC).

[edit] No mention of WCT

There is no mention of the World Curling Tour, the boycott to get it started or the event as it currently exists. I think there should be at least a mention of it, if not a heading devoted to this. Thoughts? H8jd5 07:12, 29 January 2007 (UTC)

I was deffinately thinking of creating an article on it. If you can help me gather some info on the controversy, I can start one up. -- Earl Andrew - talk 00:32, 30 January 2007 (UTC)

I just created an article on the Grand Slam. -- Earl Andrew - talk 16:54, 24 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] minor vandalism

I tried to remove the last line of the current intro: "Curling is the most worthless sport ever." but that line doesn't appear in the text when I click to "edit this page." Alloy 22:37, 17 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Hans Wuthrich

I think the Hans Wuthrich link refers to a different person from what the context intends. The article is about a 1930s soccer player whereas the reference is to the modern day ice marker. 66.130.14.118 22:16, 24 February 2007 (UTC)gpaciga, 24 February 2007

Curlbacca is king

[edit]

Is curling really a sport?

Yes. If you've ever curled before, you would know.-- Earl Andrew - talk 20:28, 2 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] The whole article is getting overly long

It's great that everyone puts their bit of info in, but in general the article needs to be more concise. The noteable clubs section is rediculously long and the triva section is getting overly fluffed up. Really, is: "Ben Mayhew, son of Alan Mayhew, is competing for Nova Scotia under Team Dexter in the 2007 Canada Games." a piece of noteable curling triva? Could every team at every competition be justifiably listed as trivia? The length of the article makes it a difficult and frustrating read, start to finish. This article should be made much more brief.

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