Yep, I’m heading to the Olympics. It’s finally happened people, I’ve found my sport. Shuffleboard on ice. It’s called Curling and we’re the dummies with the jackets.
Curling is harder than it looks. At least that’s what I keep telling myself. In case you don’t know how to play; four people to a team, the lead, first, second and the skip. The skip is the captain and tells the team where to throw and when to sweep. So you know where to put your bossy friend, Susan. One person throws the rock, while two other people sweep. When you throw a rock down the rink, it will curl or bend. The sweeping makes the rock travel farther and curl less. After 16 rocks are thrown, you score up the game. A team scores a point for every rock it has closer to “the house” or bullseye than the other team. See, it’s neat!
When throwing you wear a slider on one foot which allows you to glide (or slip depending on who you are) on the ice. We had a couple close calls. And you unfortunately don’t fall on your butt. Nope, you fall forward onto your head. It’s a dangerous game. Ok, maybe not, but the potential to look like an idiot is definitely there. I’m much more of a sweeper. Less dangerous. And when you’re sweeping you can sing that song from Mary Poppins “Chim Chim Cher-ee”. Great movie.
So in honor of the Olympics, go find yourself a curling club. Even if you’re terrible, you can have a cold one during the post game broomstacking. It’s totally acceptable to have a couple at the bonspiel.
(Honor bar upstairs. Bring cash)
