Written by Lark Balmer Special to the Eagle Have your kids tried out some team sports but haven’t found one that’s quite right? Have you thought about getting involved in curling? The Cochrane Curling Club is proud to share the following about our Junior Curling Program. We encourage you to check it out! We host Junior Curling at the Spray Lake Sawmills Family Sports Curling Centre. The facility has three short sheets of ice for beginners and we utilize them as well as the full sheets during our ice time. Practice runs Sunday afternoons from 3 to 4:30 p.m. We welcome any interested youth between the ages of 7 and 17. This year we already have 50 curlers participating. Our head coach, Larry Cinnamon, is a certified curling coach and he is joined by Kendall Waiting, and a group of dedicated club volunteers. Their primary goal is to get young people excited about the sport of curling while ensuring that the fundamentals of the game are taught. Proper technique, tips and tricks, and curling etiquette are all covered. The club provides a fun, safe environment where kids can learn the basics. We have equipment available to borrow. So if you want to encourage your kids to give it a try, you don’t have to break the bank to get started. Just make sure they wear a safety helmet (hockey or bike) and come on down! If kids have some curling skills already, and can deliver a rock, we run a Wednesday league after school from 4 to 6 p.m. Kathy Isinghood supervises youth between 11 and 18 years of age, with a concentration on playing games. Kathy is a lifelong curler, who realizes the value of performance but stresses the recreational aspects of the game. Her motto is “if kids want to play we will never turn them away.” Once again, curling equipment is available and the league just covers the cost of the ice rental. We have two competitive Junior U18 teams associated with our club. Team Cinnamon, and Team Wipf participate in the girls’ and boys’ Alberta Jr. Curling Tour. Get familiar with these young athletes who represent our community. Have a look online at our Facebook page and our website www.cochranecurlingclub.com. Check out the Canadian and Alberta Curling websites and see what kind of initiatives are underway to promote youth curling in our nation through www.curling.ca/foundation/youth-programs or www.albertajuniorcurlingtour.com. If you would like to learn more, contact Larry Cinnamon at [email protected] or stop by on a Wednesday or Sunday afternoon. The club is hosting a Junior Bonspiel November 30- December 2nd. Come down and watch some games. Think about getting involved with curling and keep Canadian Curlers on the podium, now and in the future.
