Curl the Zoo » curling is fun

Mystery Weekend: Kalamazoo

Jason — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 20:53:40 +0000

One brother lives in Washington DC and the other in Philadelphia. Each year, one of them plans a one day surprise trip to an off the wall place. Last year it was Cleveland. One brother plans it, researches all the neat things that make that place interesting, and then puts together an itinerary, but doesn’t show the other brother until the last moment possible. Then they board the planes, fly off to their destination, and are only in town for a day.

As a side note: When they came to open curling, we were actually full and they were told that we didn’t think we would be able to get them on. They said they came to Kalamazoo just to curl. We thought that was weird, but we found out they were serious. We also had a group of about 8 from Notre Dame that we didn’t have room for either. Thank goodness some of the “new” curlers we had on the ice wanted to jump over to another sheet with some friends. That opened it up and we got them all on. Being that it was their only time in Kalamazoo, they also scouted out the best place in town for donuts, so they had a dozen Sweetwater’s donuts for everyone to share. They all had a great time.

Thanks to Brad and James Peniston for sharing their weekend with us.

Detroit Red Wings go Curling

Jason — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 03:41:27 +0000

Not long ago, the Detroit Red Wings took a break from their hockey schedule to spend a day on the pebbled ice. Here’s how that went:

Calling All WMU Students!

Jason — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 15:31:57 +0000

Calling all WMU Students! We have had some good response and participation from WMU students over the past couple of years. Some students are looking to try and get a Club team for WMU. Currently we have 3 MSU teams that come down and play and they have much of their league fees paid for by the student government council. We’d love to get WMU involved. Beyond that, USA curling participates in the World University Games and sends a Team every year from one of the University Club teams. This year, the team is going to Turkey. Why not WMU? If you are interested in getting involved with WMU Club Curling please respond to this or email Marcus Gleaton at marcusgleaton@hotmail.com. We are hoping to have the club up and funded before our winter leagues starts in January, but we need you to get involved.

P.S. Kalamazoo College is welcome, too!! C’mon Hornets!!

Gearing Up!

Jason — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 23:38:21 +0000

Well, the Kalamazoo Curling Club IS going to be functioning this winter… The change in the weather has finally gotten us in gear to announce dates and times for our Fall and Winter leagues. Take a look at our event calendar for league dates, and also for a SMALL amount of bonspiels that are happening nearby.

For a full list of bonspiels all over the U.S., visit the USCA web site. We will have more information here as it becomes available… perhaps a change or two…

The folks at Wings Stadium have had a busy summer. They have taken over operations of the other ice rinks in Kalamazoo (now called Wings West), AND they have totally gutted the Annex and put in a new floor over there… which we hope will lead to an AWESOME curling experience for the club.

Stay tuned for more information… curling season starts VERY soon! Good curling!

USA Curling National Championship Day

Jason — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 13:27:38 +0000

The day has finally come… it is the end of our tournament here in Kalamazoo… and time to send two teams off to the world championships The women will head off to Swift Current, SK, Canada; The men will head off to Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.

It’s been a fantastic week, and we can’t express enough enthusiasm and appreciation at the VOLUNTEER officials who came from all over the country… the VOLUNTEER ice crew that came from far and near… all the other VOLUNTEERS who made this event possible… and, of course, to all the fantastic, fun, good-spirited athletes that were at the center of this all… We have truly enjoyed hosting you this week, and look forward to seeing you again… on the ice! Thank you! Great curling!

With that, we offer you the final edition of The Early Draw, and a link to the live web stream of the final matches: ladies at 10 AM EST, and men at 3 PM EST.

Winter League Begins February 5

Jason — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 13:29:17 +0000

Join our 2010 Winter League!
Experience the true social and competitive aspect of curling. Sign up for our 2010 Winter League kicking off February 5. Come as an individual or as a team, all skill levels welcome!

How the League Works
Our league runs on Friday evenings from February 5 to April 9, 2010 (for a total of eight matches; we will have a break in the league during March, when the US Nationals come to Kalamazoo). For this league session, we will be curling on the middle two sheets only; as a result, we will have draw times at 6, 8 and 10 pm. Please show up at least 15 minutes before your scheduled match.

We will play a round robin league over the first five weeks. The sixth and seventh weeks will consist of a mini-tournament (also known as a “Bonspiel”) to determine the club champion for that league session. Check out the results of our 2009 Fall League and 2009 Fall Bonspiel.

You can sign up as a single person, a full team of four, or anything in-between. We like to provide every team with at least one experienced curler, but that is completely up to you.

If you want to be placed with anyone in particular, let us know in the submission form, and we’ll do what we can to honor that request.

League Fees
Club Members – $140
Non-Members – $200*

* You can become a Club Member for only $100 (it’s the smart way to go).

We request that you pay for the league by February 1. You can submit payment at any open ice event at Wings Stadium in the Annex, or you can send a check to:

Kalamazoo Curling Club
127 W. Kalamazoo Ave.
Kalamazoo, MI 49007

Please make checks out to Kalamazoo Curling Club.

Kalamazoo Curling Club in the Western Herald

Jason — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 12:30:02 +0000

Here’s a short piece that ran in the Western Herald, the student newspaper of Western Michigan University. It comes along with a little video from a recent open curling session. Any students from Kalamazoo College or Western Michigan University that might be interested in forming a curling team, should definitely get in touch with us.

How curling stones are made

Jason — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 19:52:21 +0000

Would you like to know what it is you’re delivering out on the ice? Here’s how curling stones are made:

Learn to Curl – Quick Look

Jason — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 19:54:08 +0000

Here’s a little video from our friends at YouTube that may give some beginners an idea of what curling is all about:

And here’s another YouTube video… something that you can do on your Wii:

Watch Curling!

Eric — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 20:01:05 +0000

You can learn a lot about the game by watching the pros, but it’s hard to watch curling in the United States. You can catch it live on the CBC’s website. Click the one that says in progress in green under it, in the blue “Watch now” box, under live video.