FALMOUTH – The Winter Olympics in South Korea kick off this week and the Cape Cod Curling Club in Falmouth will host several events to promote the sport.
Curling has grown in popularity in the U.S. recently and during the Olympics the club will have several activities to allow interested individuals to try the sport, including a family event and television viewing of Olympic curling.
Club member Russ Lemke said Couch Curling will be held every evening starting at 7 p.m. during the Winter Games.
“Friends can come in and watch it on television,” Lemke said.
“They can also watch our own people play. We’ll have people there explaining what’s going on.”
Lemke said the sport of curling is intriguing and for everybody.
“For those who just want to start curling it’s fairly easy to learn,” Lemke said. “As you get into it you realize the extent of the strategy and I think what is catching people is how the game is played and how unique it is.”
Lemke said it is a specific culture.
“I think people who try it or even watch it on TV get so intrigued with the idea and the precision with which the shots are made,” he said.
Lemke said the sport is a combination of chess and billiards on ice.
“It’s chess on ice because you have to think ahead two or three shots into the future,” he said. “It’s like pool to the extent that you have an angle of incidence and an angle of reflection. So it depends exactly where you hit that rock where the shooter is going to go.”
The Cape Cod Curling Club started in 1969 and has been growing concurrent with recent Winter Olympics.
“We are not quite full but we are close to full,” Lemke said.
The club offers curling for youth, adults, and individuals in wheelchairs.
Two wheelchair curlers from the club will be traveling South Korea for the Paralympic Games in March. Five of the club’s youth curlers are traveling to the U.S. Nationals in Minnesota at the end of the month.
“We’re very proud, not only of the extent to which the sport is growing but also the extent to which we have high performance people,” Lemke said.
Events kick off Friday at the club with Get Curling! The event is a one-hour turbo-tour of the sport that introduces the basics of the game and the skills involved. Attendees will watch a video to learn the rules and then a session on the ice to throw and sweep stones.
Get Curling! is Friday with sessions starting at 8, 8:30 and 9 p.m. and are for adults 18 or older. The cost is $20 and registration is required.
A similar event, Curling and Cocktails, will be held Friday, February 16 for individuals 21 and older and is $25 per person.
The family-friendly introductory program is Saturday, February 17 with several afternoon sessions. The cost is $20 for 18 and older and $10 for individuals 8 to 17.
For a complete schedule of events and to register, visit capecodcurling.org.
By BRIAN MERCHANT, CapeCod.com NewsCenter
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