Episodes

We debate eight ends vs. 10 ends and how eight-end curling would have changed some of the best games from the last decade. Also, the curling season is upon us. We find out how Jonathan’s new team came together with skip Rob Retchless, talk early season results in the Pacific Asia region and Ryan gets ready to head to Raleigh for Curling Night in America.

Saskatchewan has long been one of curling’s hotbeds. But is the sport in trouble at the grassroots level there? Brady Lang from 650 CKOM in Saskatoon joins us to talk about the state of curling in Saskatchewan, what’s contributed to the decline in number of curlers there, what’s being done to reverse those trends and the optimism that’s been inspired by Robyn Silvernagle. Editor’s note: 30 minutes after the recording of this podcast, Ryan realized that Brady and Jonathan were saying “Ski-Doo.”

We are joined by Felix Price from Team Sugden (the junior team Jonathan coaches) to talk about curling etiquette. Three generations of curlers discuss when and how to teach it to new curlers with in-depth discussions on pace of play and the burned rock rule. All this plus the latest curling news, including the end of the Curling World Cup.

We review the most interesting stories and most interesting teams from the 2018-19 curling season. Topics include the impact of the five-rock rule, the Curling World Cup, people getting mad on social media, Korean women’s curling, new teams that worked & didn’t, this year’s break out stars and the best toys for watching curling at 2 a.m. with a newborn. If you enjoyed this podcast, please leave a review and let your friends know to give us a listen.

We give a lot of love to the USA Curling Arena Nationals and recount all of our previous failures at it. We then preview every team at this year’s event and interview Travis Geiser of the Chester County CVB and Dave Rosler & Dave Kolibaba of Ocean State Curling Club. If you enjoy this podcast, please leave a review and tell your friends to check out the show. Good curling to everyone in West Chester!

Topics: We preview the World Mixed Doubles Curling Championship with England’s Anna Fowler. Anna and her brother, Ben, are the first English team to be accepted to the British Curling program. She talks about how she got into curling, what she likes about mixed doubles and what it took to become part of Team GB. Also: Big names at this year’s championship, how mixed doubles grows the sport and how the discipline is evolving now that it’s part of the Olympic program.

Topics: A Swedish win makes this the Edin Decade; Kevin Koe: Good at curling; Japan’s ‘hello, world’ tournament; a frustrating finish for the USA; a near breakthrough for Italy; effects of the five-rock free guard zone; the USA-Canada cheering kerfuffle; the political philosophies of Stanley Cavell.

Topics: A team-by-team breakdown of the 2019 World Men's Curling Championship; what John Shuster & Kevin Koe have left to prove; the youth movement in Europe; Joël Retornaz's renaissance; why China & Japan will be the surprise teams. Music: Tournament of Hearts by the Weakerthans: https://open.spotify.com/track/1pkH2oFavgoVpxmXO9ylze

Topics: A wild extra end gives Switzerland gold; a recap of each team's performance and what it means going forward; the bright future for Korea, Japan & China; tough luck for the USA; a new reality for Canada; the tweak we would make to the format. Music: Tournament of Hearts by the Weakerthans: https://open.spotify.com/track/1pkH2oFavgoVpxmXO9ylze

Topics: Everything you want to know about all 13 teams at the 2019 Women's World Curling Championships, from Latvia to Canada. Does the event being in Denmark benefit anyone? What teams will outperform expectations? Music: Tournament of Hearts by the Weakerthans: http://open.spotify.com/track/1pkH2oFavgoVpxmXO9ylze

Topics: Quick hitters on the most interesting teams from the 2019 Scotties & Brier; the new "actually, the format is good" narrative; the expectations that get set for Team Homan; Kevin Koe and global warming are the two things that can stop Brendan Bottcher. Music: Tournament of Hearts by the Weakerthans: http://open.spotify.com/track/1pkH2oFavgoVpxmXO9ylze

Topics: We talk to USCA College Curling Committee Chair Gordon Maclean about the growth of college curling in the United States, the difference between the sport in the US & the rest of the world, how clubs can start college programs and the future of US college curling. Plus how curling statistics took him all the way to the Olympics. USA College Curling Links http://collegecurlingusa.org/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/170170503016950/ https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Curling/webstream2 Music: Tou...

Topics: Quick recaps of the championships in the US, Scotland, Switzerland & Japan; the controversy surrounding Scotland's Worlds rep; the delicate balance between selecting your country's best team for Worlds and encouraging grassroots growth; the residency rules debate at the Scotties & Brier; pratfalls at the English men's curling championship. Music: Tournament of Hearts by the Weakerthans: https://open.spotify.com/track/1pkH2oFavgoVpxmXO9ylze

Topics: We preview the 2019 curling championships in the USA, Scotland, Switzerland and Japan. Get info on how to watch and who to watch for as teams vie for World Championship berths. Music: Tournament of Hearts by the Weakerthans: https://open.spotify.com/track/1pkH2oFavgoVpxmXO9ylze

Topics: Jonathan's mixed doubles abilities will result in Ryan eating haggis; Break-downs of the World Qualification Event & Continental Cup; Our Curling World Cup preview leads to a discussion of what European curling needs to promote growth; Jonathan on how curling beginners can advance their knowledge by watching the pros on TV. Links: Jonathan's TV Viewing Guide for Curling Beginners: https://www.jonathanhavercroft.com/curling/2019/1/28/watching-curling-on-tv Music: Tournament of Hearts by t...

Topics: Recaps of the World Junior B tournament where Jonathan's England team made playoffs, the USA Challenger Round and the Canadian Open. Previews of the Continental Cup and the World Qualifier in New Zealand. Plus Ryan tries to get Jonathan to talk trash about all the teams he played against in juniors who are at the Quebec Tankard. Music Tournament of Hearts by the Weakerthans: https://open.spotify.com/track/1pkH2oFavgoVpxmXO9ylze

Topics: The best curling Christmas gifts, what to watch for in curling in 2019, an in-depth discussion of the upcoming World Junior B tournament and our Professor of Peel lets us know what a bench coach actually does. Links Jonathan's blog on Bench Coaching: https://www.jonathanhavercroft.com/curling/how-to-bench-coach-curling Music Merry Christmas from the Family by Robert Earl Keen: https://open.spotify.com/track/4yqu3N8SqtWuR3MTfKrqXd A Fairytale of New York by The Pogues: https://open.spotif...

Topics: Jared Allen's Olympic aspirations & the new U.S. Under 5 National Championship; Curling World Cup recap, TV coverage, attendance issues & format fixes; Canada Cup recap & Team Koe's clock management mishap; Does thinking time per end do more harm than good? Music Tournament of Hearts by the Weakerthans: https://open.spotify.com/track/1pkH2oFavgoVpxmXO9ylze

Topics: The Ryan Fry situation, the European Championships and England's rise to the A pool, funding for teams going to the World Qualification Event and previews of the Curling World Cup and Canada Cup. Plus we discuss interesting things Jonathan has gotten for winning bonspiels and bad beers. Music Tournament of Hearts by the Weakerthans: https://open.spotify.com/track/1pkH2oFavgoVpxmXO9ylze

Topics: We dissect the 2018 European Curling Championships and make predictions that are sure to be wrong. This includes a captivating 10-minute discussion of the B pool at Euros. Listen and impress your friends with your new-found knowledge of Hungarian curling. Music Tournament of Hearts by the Weakerthans: https://open.spotify.com/track/1pkH2oFavgoVpxmXO9ylze

Topics: Stephanie Senneker, skip of Team Senneker, discusses her curling beginnings on arena ice in Kalamazoo, how her current team came together, the challenges self-funded teams face in the U.S. and much more. Team Senneker on TESN: https://www.tesn.us/team-senneker.html Team Senneker on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/teamsenneker/ Team Senneker on Twitter: https://twitter.com/teamsenneker Music Tournament of Hearts by the Weakerthans: https://open.spotify.com/track/1pkH2oFavgoVpxmXO9ylze

Topics: We talk to former Team Great Britain Curling Head of Coaching Tony Zummack about his time with the Team GB program, his experiences at the Paralympics and Olympics and the future of high-level curling coaching. Jonathan and Ryan discuss the impact coaching can have at the grassroots level and the upcoming Pacific-Asia Curling Championships. Music Tournament of Hearts by the Weakerthans: open.spotify.com/track/1pkH2oFavgoVpxmXO9ylze

Topics: We look at curling TV coverage in the USA and Canada, its impact on the sport and the future of curling on TV and streaming services. Myles McNutt has written about the subject for The Curling News & A.V. Club and has a PhD in Media and Cultural Studies. Myles at Cultural Learnings: https://cultural-learnings.com/ Myles on Twitter: https://twitter.com/memles Music Tournament of Hearts by the Weakerthans: http://open.spotify.com/track/1pkH2oFavgoVpxmXO9ylze

Topics: We discuss the results and format from the first leg of the Curling World Cup and what we like and don't like about the changes and lineup for the Continental Cup. Our Professor of Peel is worried high-performance curling will wind up killing grassroots curling in what he calls the Curl-pocalypse. We also debate the future of the Brier/Scotties. Links Jonathan's Curl-pocalypse Blog Post: https://www.jonathanhavercroft.com/curling/2018/9/25/are-we-heading-for-a-curl-pocalypse Music Tourna...