Posted: 11/14/07
Cambridge Curling Club starts 38th season
 Curlers work the ice at the Cambridge Curling Club. |
By Steve Morris
It's the winter sports season and many people are preparing for their favorite team or sport to commence. While some think of basketball, wrestling and hockey, others get their brooms out, not to winter clean but to curl.
At the end of this month, the Cambridge Curling Club will start its 38th season. To help jump-start the season, it is holding an open house Nov. 18 from 3-6 p.m. at their facility in Cambridge.
Club director and treasurer, Neil Anderson, said the open house will be a "very casual atmosphere" where people of all ages are welcome to come and see what curling is all about. To supplement the open house, the club is offering a beginners curling clinic and advanced clinic on Dec. 1
Originally known as the Gateway Curling Club of Cambridge, it has grown in recent years. With the success of the curling club from Bemidji in the 2006 Winter Olympics, the club has seen a resurgence in participation. (The men's team from Bemidji won the sport's first Olympic medal for the U.S. after defeating Great Britain for the bronze medal in February of 2006.)
The Cambridge Curling Club had 40 new members join the club last year and Anderson attributes the increase, in part, to the last Winter Olympics.
Club membership was at 120 last year and Anderson wants to add to that.
"Last year was the biggest spike in membership," Anderson said.
The Cambridge Curling Club is the closest club around and accepts anyone who wants to play. The next closest club is in St. Paul. Anderson said Blaine is currently building a curling facility to meet the growing demand.
"It's a game where any team can beat anyone on any given night," Anderson said.
The Cambridge Curling Club offers a mens and women's league along with a co-ed league. The season begins in December and ends around the middle of March, with each team playing a 14-game schedule.
It costs $175 per person to join the league. After joining, people are given a slider and a broom.
"They are the most important things you need to curl," Anderson said.
"The hardest thing to learn is your technique and strategy," he added
Anderson, who has been curling off and on for 25 years, says its a great way to fill the winter.
For more information on the club, visit their Web site at www.cambridgecurlingclub.org.
©ECM Post Review
6448 Main Street
North Branch, MN 55056
Telephone: 651-674-7025
Fax: 651-674-7026
E-mail: editor.postreview@ecm-inc.com