Issue 33 Your Curler Oct 2015 The Royal Caledonian Curling Club Member Ezine CLUBS & RINKS Stirling Young Curlers and curlers across the country slide into action as new season gets under way. FEATURES COMPETITIONS Tony Zummack gives us an insight into curling This month’s competitions round-up including ice, we give you an update on recent RCCC Staff the Asham Slams, GSCT and the European changes and we find out more about outdoor Playdowns. curling in Switzerland. www.royalcaledoniancurlingclub.org 02 Clubs & Rinks OCTOBER 2015 ISSUE | YOUR CURLER | www.royalcaledoniancurlingclub.org BRIDGE OF ALLAN CELEBRATES 225th ANNIVERSARY Members of Bridge of Allan Curling Club were honoured by Stirling Provost Mike Robbins at a civic reception held on Thursday 3rd September to mark the Club’s 225th anniversary. Joined by members, representatives of the RCCC, Airthrey Castle, Blair Drummond, Doune, Dunblane, Keir and Pollok Curling clubs, the Wheelchair Curlers, the Stirling Virtual Club, Central Province and Active Stirling, as well as members of the Bridge of Allan Community Council, Stirling Council and the Dr. Welsh trust, the Provost spoke of the strong association this area of Scotland currently has with curling and of its historical connections too. He commended Bridge of Allan Curling Club on its longevity and toasted its continued existence for another 225 years! Report and photo courtesy of Graham Russell Glynis McKeand, the Club President, thanked the Provost for honouring the club in this way and spoke of Club members’ appreciation of the support of the wider curling fraternity and the by Lord Abercromby. They were mounted on a velvet waistcoat and were worn local community in helping keep Bridge of Allan Curling Club as by the club president on special occasions. They were stored away in a bank vault vibrant as it is. until 1979 when they were uplifted but not returned. Despite efforts to locate Mrs. McKeand also recognised the support recently given to the them for the Club’s bicentenary in 1990, they were presumed lost until they club by the local community in its fund raising efforts which ensured appeared at a local auction house in November 2014. The medals were sold to the club was able to buy back its historic club medals which had an unnamed bidder but the Club was able to negotiate a deal to restore them to been missing for nearly forty years. The 25 medals, dating back to their rightful owners. 1851, were mostly silver competition prizes but included a number Now cleaned and polished and mounted on a new plaque they took pride of of special presentation items and one gold medal presented in 1865 place at the Civic Reception. GOLDEN ANNIVERSARY FOR CATHCART CASTLE CURLING CLUB Cathcart Castle Curling Club celebrated its 50th anniversary in season 2014-15. The Club was founded in 1964 by some gents from Cathcart Castle Golf Club in the south side of Glasgow, who were looking for a worthwhile activity during the dreich winter months when they couldn’t play golf. The Club was admitted to the RCCC in 1965 and membership grew rapidly. The problem of declining numbers in the 1990’s led to a successful collaboration with Scottish Power Curling Club, Glasgow, in 1998 when the Club became “open”, enabling both non-members of the golf club and also women to join for the first time. The Report by Wendy Highet. Photo Contributor: John McGowan club is now thriving as a mixed club, playing its internal competitions at Braehead and the majority of its friendly matches at Greenacres. from world and Club events over the last 50 The Club’s first female President, Wendy Highet, was years; and a marvellous special anniversary cake. delighted to preside over the planning and running of Our anniversary season was rounded off in early the Golden Anniversary Season events. The first of these March with a day trip through to the capital and was a special Dinner held at the Golf Club in November Murrayfield ice rink. There we held a fun Club 2014 when 31 current and former members and 20 guests Bonspiel and had an enjoyable lunch at the ice rink enjoyed a convivial evening of reminiscences, including before a few drinks were sunk on the way home! a film show of club photographs down the years and a It was a delight to be able to welcome founder booklet recording the club’s history. member and Honorary President Jack Brown to all An Invitational Bonspiel was held at Greenacres in three anniversary events. February, playing against 6 different clubs with which With playing membership numbers standing at Cathcart Castle has had the longest association. Curlers 33 going in to the new season, and a steady influx enjoyed canapés before curling, followed by a glass of of new members over the last few years, including some more recently from the Braehead mulled cider during a mid-session interval during which Virtual Club, our friendly wee club is well placed to enter the next phase of its history. the brooms were stacked. The evening also featured a delicious meal; a “Guess the Year” quiz featuring trivia Clubs & Rinks OCTOBER 2015 ISSUE | YOUR CURLER | www.royalcaledoniancurlingclub.org 03 CURL ABERDEEN CELEBRATE WITH 10th ANNIVERSARY BONSPIEL Curl Aberdeen celebrated its 10th Anniversary with a bonspiel on 18th September 2015. Entry was on an individual basis and teams were drawn before the start of the competition. Sixty four players representing all the clubs who play at Report and photo courtesy Laura Mutch Curl Aberdeen took part each playing two 3 end games followed by a final. The winners were L-R: George Rogerson (Chairman – Curl Aberdeen), Malcolm Everyone enjoyed the social evening which included a buffet dinner Watson, Gwen Aitken, Sandy Mathers, Brenda Urquhart (Skip) and Mike and birthday cake! Ritchie (Treasurer – Curl Aberdeen). This format resulted in close competition with no more than a few points DUMFRIES LIONS CLUB separating top from bottom teams and the resulted in the number of ends From 18th to 19th September 2015, Dumfries Lions Club held and shots scored becoming important. their 22nd annual curling bonspiel at Dumfries Ice Bowl. It was pleasing to see that not only had the Junior Curlers their own teams, The event was the first open competition at Dumfries for the 2015/2016 but there were a large number of young people interspersed within the curling season. 22 teams competed including young curlers from Stranraer, adult teams. gaining practise before their main national competitions commenced. The High Road was incredibly close with a number of possibilities open Other players and teams travelled from Wales, Lanarkshire and the Scottish to decide the potential winner. In the end it was between two teams, Borders, making the competition even fiercer. Pougher and Sloan Rangers who were tied on the same wins going into the last game and Sloan Rangers slightly ahead on ends. Pougher won their last game with a score of 6-3 win against Team Gracie, while Sloan Ranger won their game against David Hardie Rotary with a final score of 7-5. The tight nature of the competition meant that no one was quite positive who had won and it wasn’t until the organiser, Jim McCormack, announced the results that it was confirmed that Graham Sloan’s Sloan Rangers were the winners of the High Road by just one end, and Pougher of Wales were the runners up. In the Low Road, at the conclusion of the six games the very popular winners were Ryan Carson and his three sons, Struan, Orrin and Logan, with Dumfries CC rink of Jim and Jane Hogg, Irene Doidge and Iain Jamieson coming runners up. All those who had played over the weekend made favourable comment on the competition, the interesting rules, high standard of ice and the level of service provided by staff. It was clear this event had drawn a number of Report and photo: Graham Sloan visitors to the region and generated further income to local businesses. The event raised over £2,300 which will partially be used fund the 2016 Lions International Youth Centre when the local club will host some Games were six ends which were 90 minutes long, with the position 40 young people from all over the world who have chosen to come to of the end at 90 minutes being counted as the score, resulting in teams Scotland. having to watch the clock and not lose a lot of shots in the end. The competition will again be held at the start of the 2016/2017 season and entries can be accepted now. KINROSS CURLING IN SEASON OPENING BONSPIEL Ice Diamond Award Winners 2015, Kinross Curling, saw nearly 60 curlers take part in the Opening Bonspiel on 12th September. The anticipation of stepping on the ice for the first time in the new season was quite evident. The curling ice looked perfect. This year we were very pleased to have prizes and a splendid trophy presented by Graham Hadley, on behalf of his company - Mary Queen of Scots Promotions - Kinross. After a day of keen curling and close matches the results were: Winners: skipped by Phil Barton with local curlers Angela Wilcox, Elaine Paterson, Sarah Bruce-Jones, Second Place: rink skipped by Bob Smith, Third place: rink Report and photo: Phil Barton skipped by Craig Lindsay. Kinross Curling welcomes curlers to enter our second ‘Stick’ bonspiel of the year, on Saturday 28th November. The first event in April was very successful and so we aim build on that platform. Using a curling stick keeps many curlers To enter, email Steven Kerr, Ice Manager on active and involved in our sport.