ST. LOUIS, Mo. (Matrix Midwest) - The Zamboni hums as it glides across the ice on this Saturday evening. But the roar of hockey isn’t coming tonight. Instead, something else is about to take the ice—a sport that literally rocks.
Welcome to the world of curling.
Chess on Ice
“It’s been referred to as chess on ice,” one player explains, and for good reason. The sport of curling has deep roots stretching back hundreds of years, yet for many people, it only comes to mind once every four years when the Winter Olympics roll around.
“It’s great when the Olympics are around because there are a lot of people who get interested in the sport,” says one enthusiast. “In fact, that’s how I got interested in the sport.”
The Art of Ice Preparation
Before any stone can slide down the rink, the ice itself requires careful preparation—a different kind of care than what most people expect.
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“There’s a lot of care that goes into making ice,” one club member notes.
The process begins like any other ice rink. “We have the Zamboni come out and do what he normally does,” explains a staff member. But that’s just the start.
Next comes a “dry cut,” where the Zamboni shaves the ice without adding any water. Then comes the secret ingredient: pebbling.
“What that’s doing is creating little drops of water on the ice so the stone will slide across it a little easier,” explains the process. Workers spray the ice with precision, creating a textured surface that’s essential for the game ahead.
The Basics: 40 Pounds and 150 Feet
Once the ice is ready, the sport itself is deceptively straightforward to understand, though endlessly complex to master.
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“You’re sliding a 40-pound rock down about a 150-foot sheet of ice,” one player describes. The goal sounds simple enough: get more of your rocks closer to the center of the button—the house—than the other team to score points.
But there’s more to it than raw power. “And then what you do, and why it’s called curling, is you curl the rock in so it sits behind the guard so it’s hard for the other team to set up.” The spin and strategy turn it into something approaching art.
Leadership on the Ice
Just like a ship at sea, every curling team has a captain: the skip.
“He’s the one coming up with the strategy,” explains one player. The skip directs the action, calling the shots and reading the ice in real time.
“Letting other people know what’s happening on the ice, and trying to figure out how to take advantage of that, is really key,” the skip says. It’s a role that requires not just understanding the game, but understanding your teammates—anticipating movements, adjusting tactics, staying one stone ahead of the competition.
The St. Louis Curling Club: 15 Years Strong
The St. Louis Curling Club has been part of the community for fifteen years now, and they’re always welcoming newcomers who want to learn the sport. But what keeps people coming back goes far beyond the ice itself.
“Curling is an incredibly social sport,” one member emphasizes. Another agrees: “My favorite part about the sport is the competition but also the camaraderie.”
And that camaraderie has a name: broom stacking.
“We do something called broom stacking. So after we play, we all go out and have a drink with each other, usually against the team you just played against, so there’s no hard feelings,” explains the tradition. Win or lose, teammates and opponents alike gather to celebrate the game and each other.
A Sport for Life
One of curling’s greatest appeals is its accessibility across age and ability. Some players at the St. Louis club are in their seventies, still sliding stones with the same passion as newcomers half their age.
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“As long as you can get up here on the ice, anybody can do it,” one veteran player says.
“Oh, absolutely,” another confirms when asked if curling truly is a sport for life. The answer is clear in the way seasoned players move across the ice, the joy in their voices, the focus in their eyes.
“It’s just really a great group of people,” they say—and that might be the truest measure of what keeps the St. Louis Curling Club thriving, year after year, stone after stone.
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