What do curling clubs do when someone phones their facility and says, " I was watching curling on television the other day and thought that it might be fun to try ... do you give lessons? ". Some clubs may not have the resources to offer an option, but at the Royal Kingston Curling club, we have Learn to Curl - more info here!
Throughout my years with RKCC (since February of 1990) I have been more than happy to tackle the above question! Because, even before Learn to Curl, it was obvious that non-curlers needed/wanted instruction at different times through the year - not being members, many had no idea that we were such a busy facility, with so many curlers. So, I have worked hard to make sure that RKCC always answered with a "let's put your party on ice!" It wasn't always easy, finding holes in our busy schedule was sometimes a bit of a challenge, but, more often than not, there was time. I can remember personally teaching a group lesson on Boxing Day at the old club because that worked for the family involved. It was impossible to know when the opportunity to introduce non-curlers to our great sport would present itself, you just needed to say yes when it did! However, after a while, it became too difficult to improvise all the time ... there needed to be a regularly scheduled opportunity to more conveniently educate and instruct people, whenever the urge struck. That was when Learn to Curl was born.
Originally scheduled for Thursday nights, Learn to Curl found a more permanent time slot two years ago, when it moved to Sundays at 7pm. Designed to educate first time curlers, our provincially trained instructors are always happy to assist any level of curler fine tune their game. For RKCC members, the session is free. For guests, the 2 hour lesson costs $12.
With such a well designed, regularly scheduled program now in place, I have made it unofficial policy to ask all groups who are interested in renting ice at our club, to attend at least one Learn to Curl session prior to their rental. Even if only a few individuals from the group manage to take the lesson, it should help to insure that guests curl safely, while showing respect for our ice and equipment. In the second half of this season, the policy has proven to be quite successful, with larger groups booking Sunday visits. In the last two weeks alone, our instructors have taught almost 110 people!! These are much higher than normal numbers, increased interest generated from the Olympics has inflated attendance, but our volunteers made due. And now, thanks to their efforts, we have another 110 potential new members, who are also sufficiently trained to rent ice time at RKCC!
Very special thanks to Kevan Welch (coordinator, coach and OCA Junior Rep) ... Judy Russell and John MacMillan (long time, volunteer instructors, who have given countless hours of their time to this program) ... Kaitlyn Welch and Dennis Faubert (volunteer instructors) ... Dwight Farrell and Steve Lloyd (on call, volunteer instructors). Without these individuals, the Learn to Curl would not be possible ...
Thank you for donating your valuable time, to the club!
Now, the bad news is ... there is only 1 session left! April 11, is the last date for Learn to Curl this season. After this, your next opportunity for instruction will be in September, just prior to the start of our 2010/11 season (check back to our website later in the summer for more info).
So, if you watched the Olympics and thought "I think I'd like to try that sport", now is the time - grab your friends and family, get over to the Royal Kingston Curling Club ... and let's put your party on the ice!
Good Curling!
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