World Champ Edin
photo by Darren Stone Victoria Times Colonist

The final event of the season was the Players’ Championship, which featured a field of the top 30 teams in the world, all playing down at the Mattamy Athletic Centre (aka the former Maple Leaf Gardens).

Eve Muirhead at the Players
Photo by Anil Mungal

On the men’s side of the draw, Glenn Howard from Coldwater, Ontario, defeated Mike McEwen, and emerged with his second slam title of the season.

So, it’s a wrap! It’s time to hang up the brooms for the summer. We’ll be back in the fall to again provide updates from the major events on the curling calendar. To all of our Goldline ambassadors: thanks for a great season!

Question: Dr. Goldline, I absolutely love curling. I just can’t believe the season is over! How am I going to make it through the summer?

It is possible you have recorded some of the games over the course of the last few months, and what better time than this summer to replay some of your favourite shots, with a nice cool beverage in hand? And should your library be incomplete, you can check out some of the games on TSN.ca. When I last checked, games from both the men’s and women’s worlds, as well as the Brier and Scotties, were available on the TSN site.

If you really feel the urge to get out onto the ice, you should look into signing up for a summer spiel. There are a number of spiels out in British Columbia. In Ontario, both Gravenhurst and North Bay offer up an event this July. And there are several in the U.S..

Another option for ice time is to consider registering for a summer curling camp. There are a number of camps across the country listed on the CCA’s website.

Brochure for "Fantasy Camp" with Mirjam Ott and Mike Harris

If you want to venture a little bit further out, why not head to beautiful Switzerland this summer? There are a series of clinics being held this summer, with none other than former world champion Mirjam Ott and Olympic silver medalist Mike Harris serving as instructors. You can find more information here.

If getting out on the ice is not possible, there is one thing you should do to support your curling habit over the summer: get fit! Curling is a physically demanding game and you will serve yourself well if you get (or stay) in shape. Back in 2009, John Morris and Dean Gemmell co-wrote an excellent book, Fit to Curl, which highlights the most important elements of physical fitness in curling (note: the first edition of this book has sold out but you may be able to find copies of it at some retail locations. John and Dean do plan to publish a second edition of the book). In the book, the authors highlight the need for good cardiovascular capability; muscular strength, power and endurance; balance; and flexibility. The book also includes a section on nutrition, and provides a comprehensive program that you can follow to ensure you are ready for next season.

Enjoy the golf and I look forward to seeing you again next season!

Muirhead at Worlds Andrew Vaughan, Ottawa Citizen

Rachel Homan at worlds photo by Roman Koksarov AP

As you read this, play has just gotten underway at the men’s world curling championships in Victoria, B.C. Of course, we wish Canada’s representative, the team skipped by Brad Jacobs, the best of luck. But Goldine will also be cheering on Goldline ambassadors and Norwegian champions, team Ulsrud. TSN /TSN2 will be covering all of Canada’s games as well as the page playdowns, semi-finals and championship final.

Even though they may not have made it to the world championships, most of the elite teams have continued to play regularly in the weeks since their national playdowns concluded, all looking to continue to collect those ever important CTRS points. From March 14-17, Grande Prairie played host to the Pomeroy Inn and Suites Prairie Showdown. On the women’s side of the draw, we’d like to recognize the accomplishments of Goldline ambassadors Shannon Kleibrink and her team, who made it into the quarter-final round, and Chelsea Carey and her team, who made it into the semi-final round before they lost to ultimate champion Mirjiam Ott of Switzerland. On the men’s side of the draw, honourable mentions go to the teams skipped by Steven Laycock and Brad Gushue who made it into the quarter-final round of play. Goldline congratulates all these teams on their good showing.

The men’s teams packed their bags and headed straight from Grande Prairie to Victoria, B.C., for the Victoria Curling Classic which ran from March 20-24. Our Goldline ambassadors played well, with team Kevin Martin making it to the quarter-final round where they lost to eventual winner Niklas Edin, of Sweden, and Brad Gushue and the boys from The Rock making it through to the semi-final round of play. Well done gentlemen!

The process for teams wanting the opportunity to represent Canada at the Olympics is a long one. In fact, it takes three years of strong performances before a team even has a shot to make it to the Canadian Olympic trials. If you are interested in learning more about the road to the trials, read on.

There are two ways in which a team can gain a berth into the trials:

1. Win a qualifying event; or
2. Accumulate enough CTRS (Canadian Tour Ranking System) points.

Win a Qualifying Event: The Canada Cup is currently the only event which provides a direct entry into the trials. It is an elite event which is open to 7 men’s and 7 women’s teams. The defending Canada Cup champion, as well as the winner of the national Brier/Scotties, receive the first two entries into the Canada Cup, with the remaining entries going to the next five teams with the highest number of points on the CTRS standings.

Accumulate enough CTRS points: CTRS points are available to teams who participate in certain events which meet strict criteria established by the CCA (Canadian Curling Association). The top 8 teams in a qualifying event earn points, with the total points available determined by assessing the strength of the field based on the World Curling Tour’s Order of Merit ranking.

So how are things shaping up? Currently six teams have already won a direct entry into the Olympic trials, which are being held in Winnipeg on December 1-8, 2013.

The next 3 berths directly into the Olympics Trials will go to:

1. The leader of the CTRS standings for 2013;
2. The leader of the CTRS standings for the two year period 2011-2013;
3. To the runner up of the CTRS standings for the two year period 2011-2013

Of course, we won’t know those names until the final CTRS points have been awarded, including the points from the final CTRS event in 2013, which is the Players’ Championship.

Those teams who don’t gain one of the direct berths into the trials will need to do a bit more curling in order to gain a chance to play for Olympic gold. Twelve men’s and women’s teams, based on specified CTRS rankings (both in 2011/12, 2012/13 and 2011-2013), will receive an invite to the “Road to the Roar” pre-trials event, which is being played at the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium Complex in Kitchener from November 5-10, 2013. (Note: even though they could accumulate sufficient points to get a guaranteed spot in the trials, at this point, Mike McEwen and Kevin Koe have already assured themselves of a spot in the pre-trials as have the teams skipped by Sherry Middaugh, Amber Holland, Shannon Kleibrink, and Cathy Overton-Clapham).

To keep track of how teams are doing so far, visit the CCA website.

The final declaration of teams eligible for the pre-trials will be made May 1, 2013.

Goldline wishes all of its ambassadors the best of luck and we hope to see several of them in Winnipeg later this year!

Ice Cube Curling Centre Sochi Russia

The stakes are higher than ever before, with a prize purse of $200,000. And there’s even more money on the line for Rachel Homan, winner of The Masters. Should she win the Players’ Championship, she would win a bonus of $100,000 for being a two-time winner on the women’s 2013 Slam series. (And I think she’d welcome the chance to play Eve Muirhead one more time this season, after suffering a heart breaking loss to Scotland in the semi-finals of the women’s world championships).

We have had Grand Slam curling in the greater Toronto area over the last five years, with Mississauga hosting the Masters in 2009, and Oshawa hosting the Canadian Open in 2011. But if you live in Toronto, the action is that much closer this time round: it is just a quick hop onto the subway, where you’ll head to College Station and from there it is a short walk to see the best curlers from Canada and around the world. There are four draws daily.

Tickets are now available for purchase for the full event as well as for each single draw. So, get on to Ticketmaster and get your tickets now! If you’re a member of a club that is part of the Toronto Curling Association, order your full event pass using the promo code for your club, and $25 of the purchase price will go back directly to your club. And just this week, Sportsnet announced that once full event ticket package sales hit $25,000, a $5000 bonus will be paid to the club who had the greatest percentage of its membership purchase a package. Wow!

End the season on a high note, enjoy world class curling in the heart of the city!

At Goldline, we are preparing to end the season on a high note by offering our customers a final chance to purchase curling merchandise at significant savings. Our end of season sale begins Saturday, March 16 and runs to Saturday, March 23. Shop online or at one of our four retail stores for equipment and apparel. Most merchandise will be sold at discounts of 25%, with a few exceptions, including:

• Allure pants continue to be sold at 50% normal retail
• Jewellery is also discounted by 50%

Please note that no discounts will be available during the sale on Rockwatchers or Norway pads.

For some merchandise, we have very limited quantities and sizes available. No rain checks will be provided so shop early to avoid disappointment!

Our sale also marks the date on which we start slowly winding down operations for the season. If you frequent our London or Scarborough stores, make sure you drop in on or before Saturday March 23, as these stores will close up for the summer after end of business on that day.

Our Ottawa store remains open until Saturday March 30 (note: the store will be closed Friday March 29 in observance of Good Friday).

Our Mississauga store remains open year round, though starting Monday March 25 store hours will be 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. from Monday to Friday. The Mississauga location will also be closed on Saturdays and Sundays until the fall.

Thanks to all our retail customers for your patronage this past season and we look forward to seeing you next September. In the event you have a curling emergency this summer, fear not! You can either visit us in Mississauga or you can always shop for your favourite curling supplies online at goldlinecurling.com!

Brad Gushue photo by
Bruce Edwards, Edmonton Journal

It's also worth noting that while he may have preferred a shot at the Brier title, Marc Kennedy (second on the team skipped by Kevin Martin) walked away as the winner of the Hot Shot competition, making Goldline ambassadors 2 for 2 at the Hot Shots! He was also named to the second all–star team based on his fine play all week. Congratulations Marc! Brad Gushue was also recognized as the second team all star skip; well done Brad!

The Brier is now history but many of the teams who played in Edmonton had just a few days to rest before starting play on Thursday in the Pomeroy Inn and Suites Prairie Showdown in Grande Prairie, Alberta. Goldline will be well represented at this event, with teams skipped by Jim Cotter (B.C.), Steve Laycock (Saskatchewan), and Brad Gushue (Newfoundland) all hoping for a chance at the title. With the Olympics less than a year away, teams are hungry to gain as many points as possible out on the tour, so as to have the best chance possible to gain a berth into the Olympic trials.

There is also a field of 18 women’s teams in Grand Prairie, including Goldline ambassadors from team Shannon Kleibrink (Alberta), team Chelsey Carey (Manitoba), and team Crystal Webster (Alberta). Best of luck, ladies!

Team Homan In Latvia

In addition to Rachel, Goldline will also be keeping an eye on the Scottish team, skipped by Eve Muirhead, as well as on Debbie McCormick (a Goldline distributor in the U.S.) Good luck, ladies!

Question: Dr. Goldline, I’ve had my current curling shoes for five years. Is it time for me to replace them?

Goldline's G-Force Curling Shoes

Shoes are an investment and it is really important to take care of that investment. The sport is such that the shoes are subject to some wear and tear, and the longevity of your shoe will depend on how frequently you play and the level at which you play. Here are my top three tips for taking caring for curling shoes:

1. When you’re not in the ice shed, ensure you have a gripper (or anti-slider) covering the shoe of your slider foot. Inevitably, dirt and debris get tracked into the lounge and change rooms of your local curling club and wearing a gripper will limit the number of nicks and scratches on the sliding surface of the shoe.
2. I often see people kicking and clearing rocks out of the house using their feet. Stop that! Use your broom to navigate rocks through the house. And don’t try to tell me you’re not using your feet and shoes to move the rocks: those white scuff marks on the sides of your shoes are a dead giveaway!
The scuffs on these shoes are caused by kicking rocks around the ice

3. Resist the urge to leave your curling shoes in the trunk of your car after your games, particularly when the mercury is dropping well below zero in the coldest of the winter months. Fluctuations in temperature and humidity can cause leather to swell and change shape. Similarly, for the summer, ensure you store your shoes in a cool and dry environment.

Frequently people are concerned with the scuff marks that appear on the trailing foot of their curling shoes. The reality is, leather sliding across pebbled ice is going to get marked up a bit. If it really bothers you, you can put a clear piece of sliding (or duct) tape over the toe of the dragging foot. A more permanent solution is doing a toe coat, which is a thin layer of epoxy that covers the toe of the trailing foot. Note: if you’ve never had a toe coat before, you’ll want to make sure you get out and throw some practice rocks after you’ve had the toe coated, as the amount of resistance of the trailing foot will be much less and, as a result, there will be less leg drive required for your shots than was the case previously. Also, some people experience some fish tailing of the trailing leg due to the reduction in resistance.

Curling Shoe with a Toe Coat

Just as the anti-slider covering your slider shoe loses efficacy over time, likewise the gripper foot of your curling shoes may lose a degree of “grippiness” as the years march by (or perhaps it is showing signs of wear and tear around the edges, due to navigating rocks around with ones feet). At Goldline, we can apply new permanent grippers to curling shoes at relatively low cost. Similarly, we may be able to install a thicker Teflon plate on the sliding foot of your shoes if that is what you need.

Ultimately, even if you pamper your shoes and do all the right things, you have to focus on the fit. For optimal performance, you want the shoe to fit snugly around your feet, while still allowing some wiggle room in the toes. If the fit isn’t right, your balance and stability will be compromised. At Goldline, we offer a variety of shoes for curlers of all skill levels. Come in and check out our new G Force shoe, the Podium series and the Glide to find the right shoe for you.

Geoff Walker brings some serious credentials to the curling ice. Born in Alberta, he is a two-time world junior champion playing for skip Charley Thomas. After three appearances at the Alberta provincial playdowns, Geoff decided to move to Newfoundland and, as lead, has now won two provincial titles and is back to the Brier for a second time.

We recently spoke with Geoff; see what he had to say.

Goldline Ambassador Geoff Walker

Where were you born?
Beaverlodge, AB

Current hometown?
St. John’s, NL

What is your full time job?
Summer - Greens Keeper
Winter – Rocks & Rings Instructor

When did you start curling?
Age 11

Who is your favourite athlete?
Matt Walker

Where is your favourite place to curl?
Switzerland

What is your favourite food?
Pasta

What is your favourite vacation spot?
Anywhere in the Caribbean

What is your favourite TV show?
Duck Dynasty

What are you listening to on your iPod?
A lot of Country

Who is your favourite curler, other than yourself?
My sister Stephanie Enright

Who is your role model?
Wayne Gretzky

Have you ever been in a bar fight?
No, not that I remember anyway

Who is your celebrity crush?
I have a lot, Carrie Underwood, Julianne Hough, Reese, Witherspoon, Mila Kunis, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Rachel Bilson

What is your favourite book?
Don’t really do much reading, rather just watch the movie!

What is your favourite movie?
I think it will always be Happy Gilmore

If someone wrote a book about your life, what would they title it?
“Following a Dream”

If you could be anyone dead or alive who would you be?
Mike Fisher

What would you do if you had a million dollars?
Not much different than I do now, just would have more money!

Best curler to follow on twitter?
Nolan Thiessen

What is your favourite sports team?
Edmonton Oilers

What is your preferred shot to win a game?
Open hit right down the center

What is one of your favourite quotes?
“Hard work beats talent when talent fails to work hard”

What is your favourite body part?
Depends on who were talking about!

What is your favourite form of exercise?
Playing Squash

If you could choose to stay a certain age forever, what age would it be?
25

What’s the hardest thing you’ve ever done?
Move to Newfoundland

But what if you are looking for something truly unique?

Official Team Canada Broom
by Goldline Curling

We’ve continued to see interest in customization since the Olympics. But ever since we hooked up with Steve Lobel, a senior graphic designer (and part time curler) at Lobel Designs based out of Whitby, Ontario, the level of sophistication in our designs has hit a new peak and we are receiving more calls every week, as customers see Steve’s fantastic creations out on the ice.

This year, we’ve done custom brooms for all the Scots who took part in the Strathcona Cup Tour. At the 2013 national Scotties, Ontario’s Homan team (the Scotties champion) as well as the teams from Alberta, Saskatchewan and British Columbia all used brooms featuring unique images that were specifically designed for them. If you are watching the Brier, you will likewise see all of our Goldline ambassadors (namely the Martin team from Alberta, the Gushue team from Newfoundland, and the Virtue team from Saskatchewan) using customized brooms.

Our most recent accomplishment: designing a broom for Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who had a chance to meet the Homan team in Ottawa on Tuesday March 5 and wish them well as they prepare to leave for Riga, Latvia, for the women’s world curling championships.

Stephen Harper with custom curling brush from Goldline Curling

“We are thrilled with how our custom brooms turned out! The Amarula Brand is really brought to life by the artwork on the brooms. Making a custom Amarula Broom really helped to tie our brand closer to curling and gave us a fun way to put our spirit brand directly in the hands of curlers. They have become quite coveted! Amarula is really proud to be a partner with Goldline in creating such a unique brush for our curling promotions.”
Priya Shah – Special Events and Sponsorship Manager, Amarula/PMA Canada Ltd.

We also do custom imprinted brush pads, subject to a minimum order of 48 pads.

For next season, we will feature information on custom brooms in our catalogue and website. In the interim, if you are interested in learning more about pricing and designs, please contact Erin Flowers at erin@goldline.ca.