Curling, Etcetera_ A Whole Bunch of Stuff About the Roaring Game - Bob Weeks [4]
8. If, in sweeping or otherwise, a running stone is marred by any of the party to which it belongs, it must be put off the rink; if by any of the adverse party, it must be placed agreeably to the direction which was given to the player; and if it be marred by any other means, the player may take his shot again. Should a stone at rest be accidentally displaced, it must be put as near as possible in its former situation.
9. Every player must be ready when his turn comes and must take only a reasonable time to play his shot. Should he, by mistake, play a wrong stone, it must be replaced wherever it stops, by the one which he ought to have played.
10. A doubtful shot must be measured by a neutral person, whose determination shall be final.
11. The skip alone shall direct the game. The players of the respective skips may offer them their advice, but cannot control their directions; nor is any person except the skip to address him who is about to play. Each skip may appoint one of his party to take the charge for him, when he is about to play. Every player to follow the direction given to him.
12. Should any question arise, the determination of which may not be provided for by the words and spirit of the preceding Rules, each party to choose one of their number in order to determine it. If the two so chosen differ in their opinion, they are to name an umpire whose decision shall be final.
Curling Quote
“We can’t bring him in, he spilled red wine all over his uniform.”
—Richard Hart to skip Mike Harris during the 1997 Canadian curling trials. The team’s second, Colin Mitchell, was hurt, and Harris wanted to bring in the team’s fifth player/coach and noted bon vivant, Paul Savage, to fill in. The clip was heard across the TSN broadcast of the event.
SAY WHAT?
Many of the terms used in the early days of curling have disappeared from the game’s lexicon. Here are a few that used to be quite common in the late 1700s and early 1800s.
Term Meaning
Break an egg on To strike one stone very gently with another
Brough The House
Chuckle to To rub off the inside of two or more guards en route to another stone.
Director The Skip
Hindhand The player who throws the last rock on his team, usually the skip
Lie in the bosom of To freeze to another rock
Redd the ice to clear guards from the front of the rings
BURNS ON CURLING
The great poet Robert Burns may not have been a champion curler, but he did mention the grand old game in his poem “Tam Samson’s Elegy.” The fourth verse of the piece reads as follows:
When Winter muffles up his cloak,
And binds the mire like a rock;
When to the loughs the curlers flock,
Wi’ gleesome speed,
Wha will they station at the cock? -
‘Tam Samson’s dead!’
The standard English translation of that work was provided by the Robert Burns World Foundation:
When Winter muffles up his cloak,
And binds the mire like a rock;
When to the ponds the curlers flock,
With gleeful speed,
Who will they station at the cock (mark)? -
‘Tam Samson is dead!’
TWO TIMES EIGHT
Scoring an eight-ender—a perfect end—is an achievement ranked as one of the most difficult in sport. Many players compete their entire career without even witnessing one. But in 1993 the team of Kim Gellard, Corie Beveridge, Lisa Savage, and Sandy Graham accomplished something that had never been done before or since. Playing in a school league, the team recorded consecutive eight-enders—two perfect ends. “It’s amazing,” commented Gellard, the skip. No curler alive would disagree.
Curling Quote
“Blood is thicker than Screech.”
—Russ Howard on why he was cheering for his brother, Glenn, over his former Newfoundland teammates, led by Brad Gushue in the 2007 Brier final
PAUL SAVAGE
Paul Savage has been around the game of curling since he was a teenager, growing up in Don Mills, Ontario, and following in the footsteps of another Ontario icon, Alf Phillips Junior. He won titles all over Canada and competed around the world, and is known as a talented and fun-loving