Team Development and Performance

Let's assume that since you formed you own team, you want to curl at a more competitive level.  Youre in the right place.  This section is a comprehensive team development program that can be used by ALL teams.

The CurlTech Team Development and Performance system is the next program in the Integrated Program System.  This program will naturally follow the Olympic Development Program and will put you on the journey to ultimate team success.  Hopefully, you, your team and your coach were part of your local Olympic Development Program and spent some time in Phase I (Delivery and Sweeping mechanics). If so, you not only have good delivery and sweeping mechanics, but you are on your way to consistently making shots and making a difference with your sweeping.  If your team did not participate in an ODP, you will need to solidify the skill foundation by applying the ODP principles regarding the delivery and sweeping.  Strong fundamentals are the backbone of a good developing team.

Let's talk first about how the curling team is different from other sporting teams. Curling is often described as the “ultimate team sport”.  On a four-person curling team, at any level, all team members have a direct responsibility on every shot.  No other sport compares.  For this reason, team development plays a key role in your overall success.  On and off the ice, the four-person format is the most complex, with four players interacting closely at all times.  The two-person, mixed doubles format is not as complex with only two players interacting. Finding four players that can work in unison is difficult and many teams never get past the early "storming" phase.  Keep this difficult team dynamic in mind as you read through this program. Also keep in mind that players that struggle with the four-person team may thrive in mixed doubles. 

CurlTech Performance Motto

"When the pressure is on, people (teams) don't rise to their ambitions. they sink to the highest level of their training".

A Subtle Note on Competitive Models

Team development for high level teams depends on the competitive model for your country.  Some are backed by culture and history, like Canada and Scotland.  Many others are state-sponsored and receive state funding.  Both models allow players to dedicate their time to practice and travel. The number of rocks thrown per week and the number of games played as a team set them apart.  Proper skills are less important due to the number of reps,  The United States does not have this luxury.  There is limited culture and history, ice time is difficult to schedule and travel is expensive and time consuming.  There is no state funding and most competitive playes have regular jobs.  This world disadvantage requires US curlers to focus on proper skills (specifically, momentum, balance and release).  This is the only way to combat other competitive models.  They must throw the rock and sweep better.

For more information see the World Competitive Models page later in this section.

The Team Development Big Three (the Three T's)

Like other topics, there are a few key components to to team development.  Curling teams develop like many other sports

1. Team (cohesiveness)

2. Talent (natural AND developed mechanics)

3. Time (time together as a team)

More on the Three T's later.

The Big Three Team Destructors

Not all teams survive.  Curling is unique as to the level of cohesiveness required for success.  Four players must gel in several different categories.  Below are the top three team destructors.

1. Parents (mostly young teams).

2. Commitment deltas (I'm more committed than you).

3. Player incompatibility.

Parents play a key role in younger teams, especially teams with minors.  The parents must be involved.  We've seen countless teams ruined by parents over stepping their roles.

Of course, level of commitment from each player is critical to team development but more importantly the difference (delta) in commitment or the "perceived differences can be fatal.  Lower commitments are not necessarily bad but require more time.

There's no quick fix for players that are simply incompatible.  This can be avoided by spending more time in the player selection phase.

Levels of Team Development

Keeping the Big Three in mind, there are some natural benchmarks that a team can achieve.  The following is a "top level" view.  Your choices here will define the path of training and commitment.

• Recreational - Looking for success at the club/league level.

• Best in Region - Looking for success at the national level.

• Best in Sport - Success at the world level.

To Oversimplify

Let’s oversimplify the team development process.  To achieve the highest level of performance in curling at the World/Olympic level, all of your team will posses the following characteristics:

• An understanding of the two career milestones – U21 then Olympics (with worlds every year in between).

• Commitment to working with a coach.

• Commitment to the CurlTech development pyramid.

• A defined and agreed upon System of Play.

• A commitment to practice.

• Time to develop position skills.

• Absolute trust confidence with the team.

Essentially, you need to know how to curl, then know how to play on a team and then how to perform at the highest level.  The following will help.

• All players probably started curling as juniors (cumulative experience theory).

• Each player must be generally AND specifically fit (USOPC model).

• The team must practice and train locally on a regular basis.

• Over-structuring the team systems will help newer teams.

There is a lot of information in this section.  Read all of it.  However, if you do nothing else, do the following:

• Have a balanced delivery with weight shift and foot delay (tempo).

• Release the rock with soft, forward energy.

• Have fun.

• Define your system of play and execute it.

The remainder of this section will discuss the most important components of performance.

Team Principles

The Big Three in More Detail

A bigger look at the development process focuses on the three overriding principles that must be in place before a team can truly perform.

Also known as the Three T's, The Big Three are listed in order of importance.

1. Team

2. Talent

3. Time

1. Team – The choices you make.

Since curling is the ultimate team sport, the concept of team unity and cohesiveness is at the top of the T’s.  All players must not only be comfortable in their positions, but they must embrace them.  In addition, each player must be comfortable with all other positions and embrace them.  The following represent the key components to the Team Concept.

• Individual position comfort.

• Team positions comfort.

• Commitment to your goals.

• Systems definition and execution (including fitness).

• Team cohesiveness on and off the ice.

Position issues are, in many cases, the biggest team disrupters.  A player not embracing their position is harmful in two ways.  It’s harmful to the player who may be looking for non-performance in another player.  This takes focus away from the real goal to perform at the highest level, individually and team-wise.  It’s also harmful to any players perceived to be out of position.  Players being “challenged’ presents lots of negative energy, again taking focus away from the team.  This often takes the form of front-end players (lead wants to be the second) and back-end players (vice wants to skip).  In some cases, it can span front to back when front end players want to play back end.

At some point in your team development, to achieve the ultimate success, your decisions matter. The actions you take, particular during competition, must be team based.  This means that all the actions you take will be in behalf of the team and not yourself.

2. Talent – Skill proficiency that requires practice.

All players must be proficient in the CurlTech delivery and sweeping principles to consistently throw the rock on the line of delivery and in the weight window.  Balance, tempo and release for the delivery and open, Power-Stroke sweeping mechanics to increase the line AND weight windows.

• Natural curling talent and athleticism.

• Delivery - Balance, Tempo, Release.

• Proper power ratio.  Body mass and momentum.

• Sweeping – Open, 45-degree, Efficient, 4x4 Power Stroke.

• Proper directional melting.

3. Time – More choices.

The team must commit to the time necessary to achieve the agreed upon goals.  This includes meaningful practice with a coach, fitness and nutrition plans, regular team meetings and meaningful games.  Below are the key components.

• Time together as a team.

• Amount of individual practice (balance, laser line drills).

• Amount of team practice (system execution).

• Meaningful games (league, bonspiels, etc.).

• Quality off-ice time with lifestyle alignment.

Teams can achieve some success with two of the three T’s.  A truly successful team has all three.

The Team Concept

 A team is defined as a group of people working together toward a common goal or objective.  Although there are individuals on a team, each person, or player in this case has a specific task to complete in order for the team to succeed.  Once the team’s system of play is defined, each person’s individual role is known and understood.  The individual contribution must support the teams system.

Team Rule #1

• All players are happy with their positions and roles on the team.

• On the ice, emit only neutral or positive energy.

• Master the skills.

• Master the systems.

Team Handoffs

The curling team requires more teamwork than almost any other sport.  Think about your on-ice system of play as a series of handoffs, similar to a relay race.  Each player must perform within their specific role and hand off shot responsibility to the other players.  Each shot in curling requires a series of handoffs.  Let’s take a look.

On any given shot:

1. The skip determines the shot type, weight and broom and hands the shot to the thrower and the sweepers for info.  The skip may handoff to the team for input on difficult calls.

2. The thrower, in the hack, will most likely hand-off to the sweepers who have shot-related information like ice speed and track data. The thrower, with shot-related information hits the broom with the proper weight.  At release the thrower hands-off to the sweepers for weight and back to the skip for line.

3. Repeat.

Cowboy Curling

Cowboy curling is the opposite of team curling and represent an opposing force to your team concept idea. This refers to a player that does not act in the team’s best interest.  This individual perspective may prevent a true team from performing.

More on this later in the section...

The High-Performance Team

 Sport Performance Theory

Let’s take a look at performance theory.  How does a person become an elite athlete; an athlete that can compete at the world level?  Since there is a lot of information on this already, we can distill the key components.  It comes down the four basic ideas in order of importance:

1. Natural Athletic Ability – Genetics

2. Skill Training - Physical and Mental

3. Commitment and Desire

4. Physical Fitness

These ideas become part of a formula for success.  For example, the more natural ability you have the less skill training you may need.

Genetics

Published material on this subject is consistent.  A key component of an elite athlete is handed down from your parents.  Genetics could make up fifty percent of your athletic profile and natural ability.

Skill Training

Proper physical mechanics that are specific to curling need skill training.  Mental skills, which are common to all sports, also need training.

Commitment

Commitment is the last component and can vary dramatically.  Even the best natural athletes need some type of commitment (unless you’re Bo Jackson).

Physical Fitness

No discussion about elite athletes would be complete without talking about fitness.  General and specific fitness is necessary for curling.

Trust and Confidence

The best teams in the world (at any sport) have a high degree of team trust and are confident in each other’s ability.  This can come naturally but most likely is developed with the help of a coach.  On a trusting team, all players are comfortable with the position they are playing.  This means a comfort level with mechanics of the position, but most importantly the positional hierarchy (playing lead or second) is in no way a reflection of their skill level or their value on the team.

In addition to the above components, each team should have the following:

• All players have similar releases and release points.

• All players throw the rock straight.  Little or no variation from the line of delivery. 

• All players recognize the value of team communication, sweeping and positioning systems.

• Someone must act as a coach with the team as their first priority.  Some teams can function with a player/coach but most need separate and dedicated coaches.

• Master the big things first before your work on the small things.  For example, work on throwing the rock straight before you start manipulating your release.

Most of these elements can be overcome by playing and practicing together.  Trust and confidence are probably the most important and are responsible for many teams not staying together for more than a couple of years.  “Skip syndrome” means that more than one player on the team thinks they should skip.  This is generally a recipe for disaster if the issue can’t be overcome.

Team Capacity

CurlTech focuses the team development process on reaching the team’s performance capacity.  All teams have performance ceiling that is based on the following concepts:

• The team’s system of play.

• The players natural athletic ability and spatial skills.

• The team’s commitment level.

• Internal team cohesiveness.

Of course, as the team develops and refines these concepts, the capacity increases which means team are always chasing the capacity.  The ultimate performance ceiling (capacity) is curling 100% and dominating at the world level.

CurlTech Team Development Model

All curlers develop skills and knowledge about the sport as they play.  CurlTech has a formal development model that applies to individuals and teams.  As you will see with eth development pyramid later in this section, individual commitment is the basis for team performance.  The rest of the model has three main stages and is quite simple:

1. Become proficient with the mechanics of the delivery and sweeping.

2. Learn to make shots and sweep with your skills (performance).

3. Learn to execute your system as a team.

Before any player can truly perform, they MUST be proficient at the delivery mechanics.  This can be simplified even further.  Throw the rock consistently on the line of delivery (balance) with the proper weight (momentum from weight shift and foot delay)

Referencing the performance pyramid, commitment from the players is the first step.  From there, the following stages must occur.  These are also part of the CurlTech Olympic Development Program.

Skill Development Stage I - Proficiency

Stage one of mechanics development is the most important phase of all because it must happen first.  In phase I, the players on the team learn to throw the rock consistently on the LOD with the proper weight.  This is done by repetition with the proper delivery techniques.

Later, we talk about Mind and Body and how they both fit into the development process.  During Stage 1, its important to have the physical strength and athleticism to properly lean the skills.  Physical restrictions should be identified here.  The physical ability (body) will carry through into phase 2 as well.

Skill Development Stage II - Performance

Stage II requires the players to make shots with their proper deliveries and learn to execute shots consistently by throwing the proper weight on the line of delivery.  Coaches measure draws with several timing tools and measure line by visually assessing the shot.

Skill Development Stage III - Team Performance

Now is the time to add Mind and Body to the development process.  In stage III, the team learns to win games through proper execution of the shots coupled with game strategy.

The trap most curlers fall into is winning games without the skills.  How can that happen?  Even poor mechanics can win games if your schedule of opponents is weak.  Teams find out quickly that they can’t compete without skills once they enter higher level cash spiels and national playdowns.

More on Mind and Body

The Mind and Body component of team success is often neglected.  Let's break this concept down into smaller pieces.  Look at Mind and Body in two different categories.

Body Level 1 - Needed tpo start the process.

• Identify any obvious issues that may prevent you from performing.

• Are there injuries or former injuries that limit strength or flexibility.

• Do you have the minimum strength necessary to properly deliver and sweep.

Body Level 2 - Needed for high level performance.

• Are you in the best shape of your life?

• Are you specifically strong (legs, core, arms, shoulders) for curling

• Are you generally fit enough to perform for ten days straight.

Mind Level 1

• Are you open to learning the proper skills.

• Are there mental barriers to performance.

• Does your commitment match your goal.

• Are there any medications needed for mental toughness.

Mind Level 2

• Identify possible mental barriers to performance (internal and external).

• Create team systems that allow you to emit only neutral or positive energy.

• Team conflicts.

• Understand how you emit energy and how it effects your teammates.

Five-Year & Under Teams

It's worth noting that the development of a five-year team is significantly different than a long term world level team.  The concept is great and provides competition for newer curlers without having to play the more experienced ones. There's a drawback.  learning to make shots before you are proficient at the skills MAY put you behind when it's time to compete with everyone else.  It requires several years to be proficient in the delivery and sweeping skills.  The five year team does not have the luxury of time.  

Steps to success at the five year events.

1. Form an eligible team

2. Learn the proper delivery and sweeping principles right at the beginning.

3. Define your team systems.

4. Practice as much as possible.

Form the Team

Most five year events are club based.  Find other members at the club that are eligible and willing to commit to a modest plan.

Proper Skills

It's important to learn the proper skills early.  This will help ensure better success early and late in your curling career.

Define the Systems

ALL teams need defined systems.  A dedicated session with a coach can take care if this early.  Sweeping and communication systems are the most important.

Practice

Try to play together in a club league.  One extra day of practice will make a huge difference.

CurlTech Team Performance Pyramid

The pyramid concept is used in many sports.  None of them are specific to curling.  Below is the performance pyramid specific to curling teams seeking the highest level (Olympic and World).  The pyramid represents how the team develops conceptually.  There are many, many components to each level.

Beware!!

In many cases, curling team development models are inverted, particularly with the Proficiency and the Performance sections.  Performance is often considered the first step or the first building block.  The CurlTech model uses individual proficiency and individual commitment as the foundation of a developing team.  It also serves as the foundation for developing a life-long interest in the sport of curling.

Pyramid Base Level (Level 1) - Commitment

Let's assume that the team has already formed.  At this point, it all starts with individual commitment.  Commitment means the desire, time and energy to train and develop properly.  It takes many hours and many repetitions to become proficient in the delivery and sweeping mechanics.  Without a solid commitment to training, the skills never become instinct.  See “Why we Practice”, later in this section.

In addition to your individual commitment, your team will need to be committed as well.   Below is one example of different championship team levels based on the desire to perform.

Pyramid Level 2 - Individual Proficiency

Proficiency in curling refers to ability to PROPERLY deliver the rock and sweep.  The proper mechanics are described in detail in the Delivery and Sweeping Sections.  To summarize.

Proficiency Standards

Delivery

• Balanced and flat-footed.

• Proper tempo and timing.

• Proper, soft and straight release.

Sweeping.

• Open, 45-degree stance.

• Over/under grip.

• Level 3 (Elite Athletic) pressure. Minimum 75% of body weight.

• 4-5 strokes per second.

• Power Stroke per zone.

• Hybrid melt/scratch.

Proficiency in the skills can be measured in many ways and requires a competent coach for ongoing review and adjustment.  Learning improper skills (focusing on performance) at the base level may result in some short term success, but the long term goal will be lost.

Barriers to Proficiency

This may sound odd, but events that are designed for younger and less experienced players (five year and under events, U14, U18, etc.) can be barriers to proper development.  We call these events “side jobs” because they distract the young players from their true goals.  These events focus on the prize and not the process.  A young player seeking a U18 championship, for example, has little time to work through the proper skills needed to compete at the U21 or above.  The same is true for U21.  This is why young curlers have a very difficult time transitioning to adult championship play.

If the goal of young competitors is to achieve a high level of success in curling (world play, Olympics, etc.) proper skills need to be developed early.

Note.  The CurlTech Olympic Development Program focuses on proficiency before performance.  Dedicated sessions are used to hone the proper skills before team formation and performance expectations.

Pyramid Level 3 - Performance

As the skills develop, performance training can start.  Performance is defined as:

Delivery

• Consistently throwing on the Line of Delivery.

• Consistently throwing in the Weight Window.

• Proper Power Ratio.

Sweeping

• Maximum head pressure and short Power Strokes.

• Lengthening the Weight Window.

• Straightening the curl profile.

• Weight judgement within one foot.

• Finishing the curl.

Specific Performance Standards

Team Defined Specific Performance Standards - Examples

• Draws to a 5-foot weight window on 14.7 ice.

• Hits to the range (normal, 9.3 – 9.7).

• Add 4-5 feet to a draw with sweeping.

• Straighten a takeout by 1 inch.

• Throwing to the “back” half of the weight window (25-50% sweeping).

During the performance phase, the coach AND player are responsible for identifying key mechanics issues and opportunities.  It starts with a coach focused program.  It finishes with a player focused program.  At this point, the player must be self-aware of the performance issues and commit to a program to improve.

Pyramid Level 4 - Team Proficiency – The System of Play

Now that the individuals are proficient or nearly proficient, the focus shifts to the team.  The team may have already been formed and are enjoying bonspiels and other events.  They may even enjoy certain levels of success since the skills they practice are proper.

At this point, the CurlTech System of Play is the main focus of the development.  Defining, agreeing upon and executing the system is what the team will train against.  This mostly happens during practice but should easily spill over into games.

At this stage, teams must compete at a high level to hone their skills and execution.

Pyramid Level 5 - Team Trust and Confidence

Before the team can truly perform, the last development level must be achieved.  This is a difficult task because it takes years to complete.  Using proper skills and the CurlTech System of Play, the mostly developed team must play and exist together for a certain period of time.  This time frame can be compressed by curling in many events and practicing.  Depending on the team relationship issues, this may take several years.  Avoid “shuffling the deck” each year with different players.  Every time a new player is introduced, the process starts over.

Team Development Progression

As mentioned in the opening paragraph, competitive curling has two career milestones, U21 and Olympics. As coaches, we have the responsibility to prepare the young athletes for U21 worlds, then for adult play at the worlds, including the Olympic Games. Plyers/teams develop from different starting points.  From the earliest point, young juniors (maybe 10-13 years old) any team can experience the following timeline.

1. Young curlers learn the proper mechanics.

2. Teams can form as early as age 12/13.

3. Coaches work through the pyramid, building to the first milestone, U21.

4. Build your skills, systems and team to the U21 milestone.  All efforts will benefit the side jobs.

5. Enjoy the side jobs: Bonspiels, Youth Olympic Games, U18, etc.

6. Post U21, your skills are ready to transition to adult play and prepare for the next milestone - Olympics.

The Three Phases to Team development. 

All phases have coach involvement.

Early Phase - 1-2 years

Team formation.

Defining systems and roles.

Begin team time accumulation.

Middle Phase - 2-3 years

Training to execute the skills and systems.

Self awareness regarding opportunities.

Creating a feedback loop. Open and honest feedback.

Late Phase - 4th year

Performance.

Ongoing mastering of skills. 

Any players additions or subtractions at any time resets the phases and team time.

The Feedback Loop

After the team has defined the systems and is starting to execute them, a feedback loop must be in place to identify opportunities,  This is not just the coaches job.  Teams in this phase must be self aware.  In addition to the coaches observations and feedback, each player must be aware of their individual opportunities.  For a team to have world-level goals, simple measurement tools can help.  Shot making percentage is a great first tool.  Each players must be in the ranges below.  If not each players must understand why and how to fix it.

Lead 80-90%

Second 75-85%

Vice 75-80%

Skip 75-80%

With coaches input, understand your percentages and suggest a way to improve.  For example, Any time a shot receives a "zero", the players can assess the reason why.  It is important to separate the player-controlled issues with the player uncontrollable.

Shot Turn Score Reason Controllable Y/N

Hit and stay Inturn 0 Wide/set Y

Draw Outturn 0 Pick N

Peel Inturn 0 Wrong Broom N

Draw Inturn 0 Light Y

These are just examples of how a player can assess themselves.  The uncontrollable reasons are team-based and should be addressed, but the controllable reasons must be addressed by the player.

The Curlers Team Pledge

I will:

• Act in the team’s best interest and put my individual interests aside.

• Know and understand my position and strive for “best in class”.

• Execute the team system of play in the best way I can.

• Trust and have confidence in my teammates.

• Emit only neutral or positive energy.

• Play within the rules and spirit of curling.

Building a Team

1. Choose Players – Informal position profile and commitment discussions.

2. Agree on positions.

3. Agree on goals and level of commitment – commitment must match goals.

4. Agree on the timeline.

5. Define the System of Play.

6. Work up the development pyramid.

Personality Types

There’s a lot of information and studies on personality types.  Research this at your own pace.  We will not cover this specifically here but the following general categories exist.

• The Introvert.

• The Extrovert.

There are many sub-categories of each.  We know from experience that each position in curling can be associated with these personality traits.  There are also many personality tests that steer you in the right direction.  Without over-thinking this, map out the personalities on your team.  With this information you can better understand how your team thinks.

Don’t be alarmed if the team members don’t fit the personality type of their position on the team.  Understanding the types will help you mold the players into their positions.

Choosing the Players

Remember team rule number one.  All players must be comfortable in their positions.  They must also be right for the job.  Each position on the curling team has a certain profile.  When searching for team members or analyzing an existing team, keep the following profiles in mind.  On the most cohesive team, the positions are always open for discussion.  Periodic performance reviews by the coach may find a certain player is better suited for another position.  This concept needs to be agreed upon early in the development process.  The coach should never dictate positions.  The teams should take all information and have open and honest discussions on a regular basis.

A quick note on fifth players:

Fifth players are required at World Curling events. Some teams will wait until they achieve world level play to add the fifth player.  Others work with a fifth player on a regular basis. In all cases the fifth player role must be clearly defined in a controlled, open environment.  The coach should never use the fifth player as a performance management tool.

Positive Fifth Player Options:

• Full team rotation.

• Front-end only rotation.

• Extra player for the bonspiel circuit.

Negative:

• Pressure from the fifth to play.

• Time commitment of a fifth players without guaranteed playing time.

Before you read the following position profiling information keep in mind that the roles and responsibilities of the each player have “tightened” over the years due to the five rock and no tick rules.  The skill sets for all positions are getting more similar due the precision shot making required for each player.

On-ice roles and responsibilities should be clearly defined by the team.  Playing on a four-person tem is hard.  Different skills and personalities all have to mesh befoe the team can truly perform.    It's not uncommon for teams to only stay together for a year or two, citing personality differences.  Defining the roles and responsibilities, and staying in your defined lane, is the key to long term team success.  The on-ice system must be executed in a timely manner.  All games are clocked so staying in your lane is critical to clock management. Drawn-out committee type decisons cannot happen in the designated time frame.

Dealing with Different Personalities

It is very difficult to find four players with perfectly matching personailities.  The key to managing the personality types is to focus on the roles and responsibilities.  For example, I fiery lead is workable if that person can execute the system when on the ice.  It does not reqiuire a personality change.  

Profiles, Roles and Responsibilities by Position

The lead:

Responsibilities:     The lead is responsible for supporting the team and the other position players.  The lead sets up the end based on the team’s choice of outcome.  In most cases, the strategy (outcome) in any given end is predetermined during the between-end meeting.  The positive results of the lead rocks will allow you to continue your plan or, if shots are missed, may force you to abort the plan.  In many cases, the outcome of the end is a direct result of the lead’s shots.  In an aggressive “game on” situation the lead is often asked to set up guards (centers or corners) and/or be asked to be “first in” to the four-foot by drawing behind a guard.  Once the lead has thrown both rocks, the lead's responsibility is to be a supportive teammate for the others and to become one of the core sweepers.

Profile:     Because of the total support nature of the position, the lead is often an introvert. The lead is the type of person that fully understands and accepts the role of the first player.  The lead clearly recognizes the significant role that is expected of them. Leads generally throw draw shots with a few take-outs now and then.  Pick a lead that has a fluid, all-body delivery, which results in very consistent draw weight.  Also find a vigorous sweeper with good weight judgment.

Specific lead responsibilities:

• Clock management - in the hack and ready to not waste clock time.

• Track management - know and understand hoe each track on the ice behaves.

• Conditions - know and understand HTH time for each track, each shot, each end.

• Rock management - shared with the second.

• Intervene in a nuclear situation. 

• Respond quickly (to the vice skip) to the skip's inquiries

• Judge weigh, sweep and communicate.

• Know and understand the other players roles and responsibilities and stay in your lane.

The Second

Responsibilities:     The second is responsible for supporting the team and the other position players. The second's primary responsibility is to maintain the tactical initiatives agreed upon by the team and set up by the lead.  There are a wider variety of shots at the second position.  With the five-rock and no-tick rules, the second’s shots are more diverse, adding the “first in” shot.  The second often is asked to throw offensive shots to the top four or behind a corner.  On the other hand, the second may also play a defensive role by clearing rocks.  The “no-tick” rule will keep more rocks in the Free Guard Zone and make clearing a bit more difficult.  If the lead missed one or two shots or your team is protecting a lead, the second may be called upon to clear the area with heavy hits, double-clears or runbacks.  The second should have the ability to throw draws AND heavy weight take-outs while still being able to hit the broom.  The weight on clearing shots needs to be enough to clear two or more rocks.  The second is also a supportive teammate for the others and is one of the core sweepers.

Profile:       The second can either be introverted or extroverted.  The second, like the lead, is the type of person that fully understands the role of a front-end team player.  Since the shot-making requirements are broader than the lead, the second must possess a well-rounded set of shot-making skills.  Think of the perfect second as a “draw” person that can throw big weight, sweep hard, judge weight and support the team.  The second is probably the position that is the least recognized in the overall scope of the game.  This person must realize that this position is by no means a glamorous one.  If a cheerleader were present on the team, it would be a perfect fit for the second position.  Pick a second with strong power generating (longer foot delay) potential.  The delivery must still be fluid in the other categories for consistent draws.  Once again, find a vigorous sweeper with good weight judgment.  The second must be able to throw all shots but has slightly less pressure to execute.  The extroverted second may be a good cheerleading but can often be disruptive if they need to be included in parts of the game that are not their responsibility.

Specific second responsibilities:

• Individual clock management - in the hack and ready to not waste clock time.

• Team clock management, an eye on the clock.

• Rock management- verify rock quality shared with the lead.

• Track management - know and understand hoe each track on the ice behaves.

• Conditions - know and understand HTH time for each track, each shot, each end.

• Judge weight, sweep and communicate.

• Respond quickly (to the vice skip) to the skip's inquiries

• Intervene in a nuclear situation. 

• Know and understand the other players roles and responsibilities and stay in your lane.

The Vice Skip:

Responsibilities:     The vice is responsible for supporting the team and the other position players. The vice is called upon to make every type of shot, from guards to peels and runbacks, from freezes to doubles.  The vice skip must have the skills to throw any type of shot at any time.  The vice is often asked to make the "kill" shot.  This is the shot that seals the end.  In addition to shot-making skills, the vice must have excellent knowledge of strategy, house management and possess good spatial skills for line calls.  This is the most difficult job on the team because the vice is expected to make flawless sweep calls on the skip’s rocks.  Remember, the vice only calls sweeping on two shots per end.  In many cases, the vice is the most well-rounded player on the team and few top-level teams have average vice skips.

Profile:                   Most often an introvert, the vice skip must also be a true team player.  Because their shot-making skill level may exceed the skip’s, they must support and have confidence in the skip as the team leader.  They must fully understand that, even though they may be the best shooter on the team, their role as vice is critical.  Pick a third with great balance and tempo.  Even slight problems will result in limited success.  Try to find a vice that can sweep open on both sides and judge weight.  This person throws all types of shots with a high level of pressure.

Specific vice responsibilities:

• Follow and understand every shot call. 

• Take over the house when the skip is throwing.

• Is the front-end, back-end liaison.

• Quickly respond to the skip's inquiries.

• Know and understand the other players roles and responsibilities and stay in your lane.

The Skip:

Responsibilities:     The skip  is responsible for supporting the team and the other position players. The skip’s controls the game and provides overall leadership and strategic direction to the team.  The biggest shot-making responsibility of the skip is to "close" the end.  This could be the final execution of the tactics developed for the end.  On great teams, the skip is called upon to throw maintenance shots like guards, open takeouts, open draws etc.  However, in many cases the skip is called upon to make key offensive shots like come-arounds, freezes, hit and rolls, run-backs and four-foot draws under pressure.  The skip must have good strategy and tactical knowledge to execute the team’s desired outcome for the end.

Profile:                   Whether the skip is introverted or extroverted, they must possess the leadership skills to manage the team.  An introverted leader is best.  The skip must have a stabilizing influence over the rest of the team.  Even if the skip is not the best shooter on the team, he/she must be able to calmly execute the final shots.  The pressure of any given shot may be extremely high.  The team must have confidence that the skip will close the end (and sometimes the game) successfully.  The skip must also demonstrate strong leadership skills by supporting the team and seeking input on strategy and tactics when necessary.

Specific skip responsibilities:

• Sequence shots in accordance with the outcome goal.

• Call shots decisively.

• Call line and communicate.

• Switch outcome goal as necessary.

• Take HTH times and communicate.

• Know and understand the other players roles and responsibilities and stay in your lane.

Note that there are specific responsibilities by position.  These should be defined and agreed upon by the team.  Changing lanes (doing something that is the responsibility of someone else) threatens team cohesiveness.  These "on-ice hobbies" are the one of the reasons why teams fail. 

Team Commitment

Earlier in the section we talked about individual commitment.  This is where it all starts and is the base of the performance pyramid.  Now that you have made it to Level 4 of the pyramid, Team Performance, it is necessary to discuss the commitment level of the entire team as a unit.  This can be a barrier to success if the players are not in agreement regarding the level of commitment.

Team Commitment Level I

This team:

• has living, breathing human-beings to qualify

• is comprised of four individuals

• can have differing goals and mechanics

• may practice and bonspiel occasionally

• is considered a recreationally competitive team

• experiences limited success at the lower levels

Team Commitment Level II

This team:

• is individual based

• may practice occasionally

• may bonspiel occasionally

• may have a coach

• may prepare physically for championships

• may play in club leagues

• depending on skill level, enjoys moderate success at the regional level

Team Commitment Level III

This team:

• accepts all team positions and has confidence and trust in each other

• strives for similar skills

• practices, spiels and may play in leagues

• strives for advanced sweeping skills*

• strives for perfect delivery mechanics

• strives for perfect execution of the System of Play.

• strives for mental toughness in championship situations

• prepares physically for championships

• depending on skill level, enjoys moderate success at the regional or national level

Team Commitment Level IV

This team has arrived and:

• has achieved the criteria in Level III.

• depending on skill level, enjoys moderate to high levels of success at the world level

Team Chemistry

If you’re skilled enough to find four players that meet the team requirements, you’ll need to discuss some behavior standards off and on the ice.  Teams that like each other play better.  Here are some simple behavior rules that should be discussed.

Now is the time to explore the phases of team development.  Again, much research has already been done in this area so research the idea.  Teams develop in phases.  Whether its your work group, school project group or your curling team, the four phase probably exist.  They are:

1. Forming

2. Storming

3. Norming

4. Performing

Search the internet for the Four Phases of Team Development for lots of information.

Team Behavior

Off-Ice

Whether you are aware of it or not, your behavior off-ice is a reflection of your team.  Be aware, be nice.

On-Ice

On-ice behavior is not only a reflection of your team, but also a requirement for good play.  Follow these simple rules:

• Be nice.

• Shake hands with your opponent first with eye contact.

• Emit only positive or neutral energy.

• Show emotion, but in a subtle way.

• NEVER, EVER react to a teammate’s missed shot.

• NEVER, EVER slam, throw your broom or kick rocks.

• Always acknowledge your opponent’s called-and-made great shots.

• Call burned and displaced rocks immediately.

Obviously, team dynamics are an important part of a team's success.  There is no guarantee that four great shot-makers will make a great team until they have become a cohesive unit with similar goals and expectations.

Any player that doubts the others in the positions will immediately become the catalyst for failure.

Team Energy

In the Delivery section, we discussed the concept of energy.  The energy in the delivery is the physical energy propelling the rock toward the skip’s broom.  Individual and team energy is different.  We are all feeling and emitting beings and there’s always an opportunity to share energy, both positive and negative.  In many cases, energy is shared/transferred unconsciously.

There is a learning curve when it comes to team energy.  By understanding energy, identifying the causes of negative AND positive energy, teams can harness the positive and avoid the negative.  New teams will need an experienced coach and some open-mindedness to take advantage of this concept.  In many cases, it takes years for a high-performance team to understand team energy and take advantage of it.

On-Ice Team Goal – Emit neutral or positive energy at all times.

Energy is emitted consciously and unconsciously.  Here are specific examples of how energy is emitted and transferred/absorbed, negative and positive.

Verbally

• Team discussions.

• Shot calling.

• Shot confirmation.

• Sweep calling.

• Sweeper communication with skip.

• Shot and delivery feedback.

• All outbursts.

Non-Verbally

• All facial expressions.

• Posture anywhere on the sheet.

• Reactions to negative situations (missed shots, calls, etc.).

• Broom slamming.

• Rock kicking.

• Hanging your head.

• Shaking your head.

How do we harness the positive and avoid the negative?

Examples of emitting (and absorbing) positive energy:

• Good/engaged posture at all times.

• A positive or neutral tone of voice.

• Actively erasing your RBF (RDF).

• Simple acknowledgment of a made shot.

• Verbal recognition of a great shot.

• Remaining neutral after a missed shot (follow your missed shot protocol).

The term system of play refers to all of the interrelated processes required for a curling team to function.  All teams have a system of play.  Most recreational teams have a system that may not be clearly defined and/or agreed upon.  High level teams must define each component of a system and execute against it.  This provides the necessary structure to increase team capacity and help pull the team together to perform at the highest level.  There are lots of components to a comprehensive system of play.  The mechanics of the delivery and sweeping are “success” components that MUST be in place.  All other components can be detailed by the teams themselves.

The CurlTech team systems model is unique to curling.  It is based on a series of systems that the team and coach agree on.  The sum of all team systems is the “CurlTech System of Play”.  The details of the SOP may be different for different teams, but the outline of the components is the same.  For example, every team has a shot signaling system.  There are many ways to signal for a hack weight takeout, but each team needs that particular system.  The model is based on training of the systems and then the execution of the systems during the game or competition.  A common phrase heard by CurlTech coaches is “execute the system”.

Cowboy Curling

As mentioned earlier, cowboy curling is an opposing force to team curling.  Structure is a necessary part of the high performing team.  It is seen in all sports at all levels.  New teams require more structure rather than less until they can trust and be confident in the other players.

The term “cowboy curling” describes an individual on a team that “does their own thing”.  Everyone has seen them and may have played with them.  Once a team defines the system of play, anything outside those lines would be considered cowboy curling.  For example, if a team uses the CurlTech System of Play, the following represent play outside the lines:

• Calling shots from the hack.

• Calling sweeping on your own shots.

• Emitting negative energy.

• Not using balance, tempo and a soft, straight release.

• Sweeping closed and/or on a slider.

• Not "cleaning" a shot.

• Scratching and not melting.

• Calling weight as the primary sweeper.

• Position violations.

• Etc.

These and others are examples of playing outside the lines.

 Macro vs. Micro Systems

All systems can be broken down into macro and micro.

Macro Systems

• The team’s level of commitment and training.

• The team’s approach to aggressive vs. conservative strategy.

• The degree of science applied to the game.

Adding science to the game is relatively new team concept.  Timing rocks has only been in place for forty years (relatively new considering the sport has been around for hundreds of years).  Directional sweeping is even newer since the idea of scratching the ice was introduced in 2015.  Adding science to the game particularly timing and directional sweeping must be discussed and agreed upon by the team since this changes the expectations of each player and their individual roles.

It’s common to see each player timing rocks.  The two most common times that teams and players rely on are short times and hog-to-hog times.  The original timing concept of hog-to-tee is rarely used and has been replaced with the Hog to Hog. How much will your team use and/or rely on these times?  Some top world level teams are using these times less and are playing based more on “feel”.  Others require multiple timed data points for every shot.

Micro Systems

• Delivery Mechanics (proficiency standards)

• Balance – Necessary for a straight, consistent line of delivery.

• Tempo – Necessary rhythm, 1-2-3 for consistent draw weight.

• Momentum (weight shift and foot delay) – Necessary to calibrate repeatable draw weigh.

• Straight/Soft/Positive Release – Necessary for rotation, feel, and to keep all energy forward on the Line of Delivery.

• Four-plus rotations on draw, three to contact on hits.

• Similar release points with similar split times.

Delivery Principles – Momentum, Balance, Release

Review the "Delivery" page for delivery detail.  There are only two main things a thrower needs to do to hand off the rock to the other team members:

1.  Throw down the line of delivery

2.  Throw the proper weight for the shot.

Balance - Line of Delivery

To consistently throw down the line, the delivery must be balanced and stable.  Balance and stability are two different things.  Balance refers to your center body mass over your sliding foot.  Stability means the delivery is not wavering or wobbling.  It is preferred you have both.  An out of balance delivery will have lateral energy to the throwing-arm side.  This must be eliminated to stay perfectly on the line.

Momentum - Weight Calibration

Like most athletic moves, curlers need the momentum of the body mass to help calibrate weight and throw repeatable shots.  Momentum comes from shifting body weight and allowing gravity to help momentum.

Tempo

Tempo refers to the rhythm of the delivery.  This is necessary for the body to “feel” movement.

Delivery Power Ratio

As mentioned above, delivery mechanics are the foundation of any system of play.  In addition to the six bullet points on delivery, the concept of the Delivery Power Ratio will further the effectiveness of the delivery as a component of the System o Play.  The Power Ratio is defines as the amount of power generated by each delivery component as it relates to the overall delivery power.

To begin the discussion, the power (energy) generated in the delivery can come from several sources:

• Body mass momentum (moving from #2 to #3).

• Body mass gravity (from foot delay).

• Leg drive.

• Extension and release.

The four areas above all represent power generators.  The amount of drag in the delivery is a power reducer (negative energy).  Drag can come from two sources.

1. Natural friction from the required contact points (slider, trailing foot, and maybe broom).

2. Friction from the trailing knee and/or foot.

Of course, as soon as you leave the hack, the delivery begins to decelerate.  This is natural and is to be expected and unavoidable.  Reducing friction will reduce drag therefore reducing deceleration. The easiest way to reduce drag is to keep the knee off the ice and have a smooth surface on the trailer foot (tape, toe dip, etc.).

The Perfect Delivery

The perfect delivery with tempo will have power evenly distributed throughout the delivery.  This will allow the body mass to assist with draw calibration.  Power begins when the body starts to move forward. From that point all power should be even and fluid with no noticeable additions or subtractions along the way.

The Perfect Delivery - Double Delay to Balance

• Draw rock back with foot delay.

• Shift weight into the Step position with weight on slider.

• Body starts to move forward (momentum) leaving sliding foot in place.

• Body drops into position (gravity, body mass) and sliding foot moves to the proper position under the center of mass.

• Straight line from Step to Slide.

• Leg drive only supports the delivery and adds a small amount of power.

• A slight arm extension and rotation finish the delivery.

Let’s look at the Power Ratio with this delivery:

• Body mass momentum and gravity (drop) 70%.

• Leg drive 20%.

• Extension 10%.

To judge the steady movement of the perfect delivery, consider a split time on 14.5 second ice.  The fluidity will deliver a split of 3.95 - 4.00.

Now let’s look at a delivery with a different power ratio.  This delivery has less momentum and drop and more leg drive (push) with a quicker extension (jab).

• Momentum and gravity 0-20%

• Leg drive 50 - 70%

• Extension 30%

To judge the movement on this “stepped” delivery, consider the same split time on the same 14.5 second ice.  The split, approximately 4.20, is noticeably longer due to the different power ratio.  Less momentum and body drop (energy) will result in a slower delivery requiring more extension energy.

Sweeping Mechanics (proficiency standards)

• Open Stance – Necessary for head pressure, communications and weight judgement.

• Maximum head pressure – Necessary for melting and differential melting.  Striving for Level 3, 80-100% of body weight.

• 4X4 - Four SPS (strokes per second) and a 4 inch Power Stroke length. – Necessary for melting.

• Precise Power-Stroke differential melting.

Game Roles and Responsibilities

Assign each of the following to a team member:

• Brooms and equipment.

• Rocks, patterns, other issues.

• Changing conditions, tracks, speed, curl.

• Game clock.

Shot Communication (Silent System – See Sweeping page)

• Skip indicates call while the players are paying attention.

• Shooter confirms skip’s call with sweepers (top four, 6, hit and roll under, etc.).

• If requested, sweepers provide general but relevant information on conditions.

• At release, shooter provides first input (if necessary).

• At release, skip provides immediate information (nothing, Yep!!, Whoa).

• Sweepers communicate weight if different.

• At the hog line, sweepers commit to an exact spot.

• Over-communicate if necessary.

Team Input and Feedback

Input

The skip has total control of the game.  They must involve the vice skip on a regular basis as the vice is the communication conduit to the front-end.  The vice skip has two major roles, providing input and suggestions on the skip’s shots and helping the skip decide on calls if the skip desires.  If the skip needs help, they should signal two options to the vice and the vice immediately picks one.  In this brief period, the vice can include lead and second.

On occasion, the skip can ask the entire for input.  On quick decisions, between two easy options, the skips can ask the the whole team.  On more complicated calls, the skip may ask the team to meet at the hog line for discussion.

Feedback

Feedback from the front-end on strategy or tactics should never be discussed during the game unless the front-end thinks the game is on the line. In the hack area on the skip's calls, discussion must be kept to a minimum.  Limit all hack chat to the following:

1. Confirmation of the skip's call.

2. Relevant conditions. Changing conditions, ice tracks, HTH times, etc. 

All other questions are inappropriate and should be handled at the house area with the skip.  The following is a list of "off limits" items in the hack.

• Asking why the skip is calling any particular shot.

• Adjusting the skip's broom.

• Suggesting another call.

• Challenging the skip in any way.

Note:  If any shot or situation requires front-end intervention, such as a game losing call, the team should meet at the hog line to discuss.  Due to time constraints, teams may have only two or three of these discussions.

Of course these are legitimate issues that need to be dealt with but not in the hack.  Use your post-game debrief to discuss these issues.

Clock Management

Timed championship games need a certain flow and tempo to manage the clock.  The clock management system should be about how to gain as much time as possible for the more complicated calls. All team members are responsible for managing the clock.  One team member will have the official game clock responsibility, monitoring the clock throughout the game and making sure the team knows if there is a clock issue.  Pace of play is important for the whole team. The lead will have the fastest pace.  The second/vice having a slightly slower pace, and the skip taking the most time. Below is a breakdown of individual clock management responsibilities:

Skip - The skip is responsible for calling shots in a timely manner.  It helps to think at least two shots ahead so each shot call doesn't take an unnecessary amount of time.

Lead - The lead should have the quickest pace.  In most cases, the shots are predetermined in the between-end team meeting so there should not be any delay from the skip and no shot clarification from the lead.

Second - In many cases, the second also knows the call.  Some shot clarification may be necessary

Vice skip - Similar to the second, the skip may need more time calling shots.

All Team Members

The pace of play is determined by the skip and is controlled by the broom placement of any given shot. All players should be in the hack and ready to throw when the skip puts the broom down.   Make this the standard. Any time the skip has to wait for a player, time is being wasted. The lead and second have the ability to "save" time for the vice and skip. To gain maximum time for lengthier discussions, the lead, second and vice should be ready immediately after the call.  Avoid standing-up after the rock is cleaned unless the skip is not ready or more confirmation discussion is needed.  These extra few second will add-up and reduce the discussion opportunities later in the game.  The best case scenario is:

1. Player steps into the hack and cleans the rock.

2. Skip makes the call and places the broom.

3. Without standing, the player thinks and throws. 

Pace goals for proper clock management.  The following are target times for each player.  They represent the time between broom down (skip) and the start of the delivery movement.

Lead Less than 5 seconds

Second Less than 7 seconds

Vice Less than 10 seconds

Skip After confirmation, conditions and rock clean, less than 10 seconds.

Standing up after cleaning the rocks wastes valuable clock time.  Learn to clean the rock, set up, visualize and go.

Team Systems Checklist

Team systems can be categorized in the following way, based in the calendar.  What used to be a winter sport, competitive curling is now a 12 month adventure.

Off -Season Systems, May-August

• Planning and Commitment.

• Team Profiling and Positions.

• Uniforms - game and practice.

• Nutrition.

• Sponsor recruitment.

• Fitness, Strength and Flexibility Training.

• Review of rules and procedures.

• Event scheduling.

• Strategy discussions.

• Equipment supply, repair.

• Coach confirmation.

Pre-Season Systems, August, September

• Fitness maintenance programs.

• Review roles and responsibilities.

• Event confirmation.

• Playdown registration.

• Compliance requirements.

• Fifth player expectations, if applicable..

In-Season Systems, September-April

• Events.

• Playdowns.

• Individual practices.

• Team practices.

Pre-Event

• Format discussion.

• Team meeting with coach.

Pregame Systems

• Time, sheet, opponent confirmation.

• Stretching.

• Mental prep.

• Pre-game meeting (with coach).

• Equipment management.

Game Systems - See CurlTech System of Play

Post-Game Systems

• Broomstacking.

• Post-game review.

• Post-game nutrition and rehydration.

• Immediate schedule.

Post-Event Systems

• Post event review meeting.

Off and Pre-Season Systems

Planning and Commitment

The coach and skip will schedule a pre-season meeting.  This must be done by May 1.  At this meeting, you will assess the following season to plan for next year.  You will agree on your league, bonspiel and practice schedule.  In addition to your game schedule, practicing as a team twice per week is the minimum amount of practice a team needs to solidify delivery and sweeping mechanics as well as game systems.  We understand that this may not be practical if team members are from different parts of the country.

Team Profiling and Positions

Each year after the coach and players assess the season, and the four or five players decide to curl together, review each player’s strengths and weaknesses.  Decide what position each player will play.  This should remain constant throughout the season unless something dramatic happens.

ALL OF THE FOLLOWING SYSTEMS MUST BE AGREED UPON AT THE PRE-SEASON MEETING!!

Strength Training, Conditioning and Nutrition

At your post-season meeting (or initial meeting with a new team) agree on any fitness and/or nutrition goals through the summer and continuing through the season.  The team must have some type of strength and fitness system as well as a strong nutrition system throughout the year.

Summer Ice Time

Your team may have an option to play all season if you’re near a year-round curling facility.  Agree on the schedule and build in some “off time” to relax and enjoy life.

Off-Ice Strategy Sessions

As often as possible, strategy sessions will keep the mind prepared for the first games of the season.  Review the score/end based end outcomes.  In each scenario, review the initial sequences.

Managing Medications

Each athlete is responsible for managing any type of medication and knowing the implications of banned substances.  Understand the the process for getting a medication exemption if possible.  This is an off-season task since it may be too late during the season.  No team wants to be disqualified for a positive drug test.

It should be obvious that known banned substances that are not considered medications are strictly prohibited.  Off-season drug testing is always a possibility.

In-Season Systems

Practice and Game System Training

Agree on your practice schedule.  During practices your coach will monitor delivery and sweeping mechanics, make adjustments if necessary and run repetition drills.  Training on team systems will allow your team to focus on performance during actual games.

Define/Confirm Roles and Responsibilities

Assign a player to each of the following:

• Schedule.

• Summer meetings.

• Equipment

• Logistics (airfare, AB&, etc.)

• Sponsors

Pre-Game Systems

Stretching

Determine when and how each player will stretch before a game.

Mental Prep

Everyone has their own way to mentally prepare.  Discuss with your coach and commit to a process that can be done before each game.

Pre-Game Strategy Planning

Determine how you will conduct your pre-game meeting.  Arrival times, meeting locations, assessment tools must be agreed upon.

Use the CurlTech Strategy Sheet. Assess the opponent, ice conditions and anything else relevant to the game.

Equipment Management

Someone has to carry the broom bag.  One of your team systems will be the management of the brooms and any other equipment necessary for a game.

A good broom manager will do the following:

• Keep the brooms in the bag.

• Know where the brooms are at all times.

• Stock new heads.

• Be aware of any head or handle maintenance requirements.

• Manage broom protocols with Chief Umpire.

• Wipe down the handles with sanitizer after each game.

• Set up the brooms on the ice.

• Inspect and package brooms at the end of the game.

During the Game

Shot Communication

Use the “Silent System” as described earlier to communicate during each shot.  Placement system consists of Hog, 1-10 and through.

Option: Use the sheet positions such as high, mid, close, top twelve etc.

Hit Weights

Peel 8.0, 2.70, Normal 9.5, 3.00, Control 10.5, 3.15, Board, 11.5, 3.30, Hack 12.5, 3.50.

Ongoing field of play assessment

Assign a player to monitor ice speed and conditions.  This should include long times, tracks and fudging.

Sweeping

Competition broom heads with some degree of directional sweeping via melting.

Post-Game Systems

The post-game meeting is the best time to debrief the game while things are fresh in your minds.  Start by discussing the merits of the game.  Identify the things that the team did well.  Finish by discussing any breakdowns or areas of opportunity.  The post-game meeting should be brief, no more than ten minutes.

There are times when you delay the post-game meeting to allow things to cool off.  For example, after a devastating loss, for whatever reason does not need to be discussed immediately, particular if emotions are high.

Between Games

Practice

Each team practice will be structured.  Start with Practice Session #1 (brooms up), switch to line drills followed by Full Shot Execution of key shot types.  End the practice with Four in the Four.  The entire practice should take 1 to 1.5 hours.

Coaching Systems

The coach’s role is to prepare the team to perform.  Preparation includes scheduling and administrative duties but most importantly insisting that the team execute against the team systems.  The coach will also analyze performance with the use of various tools. All games will be documented by software (to be done by someone other than the coach) and the stats used to analyze performance.

The Anatomy of a Curling Shot – Executing the System

Before we discuss the individual positions on the team, it’s helpful to understand how a shot is made from beginning to end and how team members interact.  Individuals do not make shots, teams do.  Curling is one of the few sports (I can only think of one other, crew) where the whole team directly participates in every shot.

Below is a sequence of events that take place on every shot.  All four players are involved.  It may seem like a lot of things are happening at once, but it all flows together.  When a team is functioning properly, all of these things should happen on every shot.

Note:   It takes many months of practice as a team for all of these things to happen perfectly.  Don't expect your league team to be able to execute in this fashion.

The Draw

• On opposing shots, the thrower takes a position behind the hack and to the side.  The sweepers, positioned at the courtesy line, immediately take their sweeping positions after the opponent’s rock crosses the hog line.  When throwing first lead immediately breaks from the between-end meeting gets rock and moves into the hack are for the pre-shot routine. 

• The skip calls a shot that is consistent with the end plan. 

• The thrower confirms the shot called and any weight information with the sweepers.  The thrower may either ask the sweepers or confirm with them the weight measurement.  For example, “still running 14.8 here”.  Even better to compare to a baseline like LSD or previous ends.  The three discuss any changes in the ice or tracks that will affect the weight or line.  Sweepers may confirm the split they are looking for.  Avoid trying to dial-in a shot with a specific time reference. 

• The shooter focuses on the shot and uses the fluid delivery to throw the rock on-line, into the weight window, with the proper number of rotations (no lateral energy).  A good follow-through is necessary. 

• Happening simultaneously, the shooter communicates any pertinent information to sweepers at release (slight add, pull back, put out, set, roll, etc.) AND the skip assesses the shot relative to the broom.  If it is narrow, the skip immediately calls sweeping with a loud short, call (Yep!!!).  The skip says nothing if the line is good.  The skip says “no” or “whoa” if the line is wide.  The three calls give the sweepers valuable information regarding the line. 

• The thrower watches the entire shot from mid-sheet.  DO NOT FOLLOW.

• The inside, primary sweeper “cleans” and uses the team-defined “ready position”.  The other sweeper splits the shot, and the two sweepers talk.  BOTH sweepers sweep as needed to make the shot.  They only communicate to the skip if the desired position can’t be made.   If it can’t be made, they call out the new position.  Example: The shot called is to the button (7).  If the sweepers can’t get it to the button they sweep and call out the deepest spot.  If heavy, they do not sweep and call out the shortest spot. 

• The skip continues to communicate the line and may call sweeping if the line is tight, or if the shot needs a deeper position. 

• At the hog line, the sweepers MAY confirm location while the skip is providing any other information. 

• The rock comes to rest.  The skip and sweepers were in communication the entire time (even if they say nothing). 

• Thrower and sweepers move immediately to the throwing-end courtesy lines.  DO NOT CROSS THE SHEET.

• When the opponent crosses the hog line on the next shot, move into position and start the process over.

Notice that during this sequence of events, the shooter only has three responsibilities, prep for the shot, throw down the line, and throw the proper weight.

The Takeout

• The skip decides on the shot to be called. 

• He/she communicates the shot to the other team members. 

• He/she surveys the ice conditions and sets the broom. 

• The takeout weight is assumed to be your “default” hit weight such as “normal” measured by a HTH time such as 9.5.  The skip communicates the weight only if it’s other than the default. 

• At the other end, with the sweepers in place and ready, the shooter confirms the shot called and the weight required with the sweepers.

• The shooter focuses on the shot success and throws the rock down the line with the desired weight and rotations.

• Like the draw shot, the skip gives the sweepers an initial indication of relative line (relative to the broom).

• The sweepers assess weight and communicate weight other than weight called.

• The skip calls sweeping if necessary.

• The rock comes to rest.  The skip and sweepers were in communication the entire time.

Again, notice that the shooter has four responsibilities, prep for the shot, hit the broom, and throw the weight with the proper rotations.

The Sweeping System

Head pressure and frequency and weight judgement create good sweeping.  The amount of pressure created will dictate the effectiveness of your sweeping.  In particular, your team’s sweeping effectiveness can increase or decrease your “weight window”.  The more effective your sweeping, the larger the window.  Use the following chart to measure your teams weight window.

Pressure Weight Window

50 lbs.                      1 foot.

75 lbs.                      2-3 feet

100 lbs.                    3-5 feet

120 lbs.                    5-7 feet

135 and over           8-12 feet.

Obviously, if your draw weight has a 12-foot margin of error, the sweepers can place a rock that is thrown inside that window.  As the window shrinks, the sweepers have less opportunity to place rocks and the weight must be within a smaller window.

Advanced Sweeping and Weight Control

In every sweeping study, it clearly shows the pressure and speed degradation throughout a shot.  An Elite Athletic (Level 3) sweeper may peak-out at a 150 pounds of pressure at the beginning of the shot and is likely to end the shot at 110.  This is made worse by sweeping several shots in a row from “coast to coast”.  Overall fitness will affect this.  Think about throwing shots to the “back half” of the weight window allowing your sweepers to channel their energy over a smaller distance.  This can result in better shot placement and sweeper efficiency.

Goal:  Sweep draws shots only from the second half of the shot.  This is the sweeping efficiency statistic.

Studies show that directional sweeping from scratching is not effective.  Directional sweeping from differential melting is effective.

Directional Sweeping via Scratching

See the Directional Sweeping page for more details.

Anatomy of a Properly Swept Shot.

1. Skip calls exact location.

2. Thrower and sweepers confirm.

3. General questions about conditions.

4. Rock is thrown.  Thrower communicates relevant information to sweepers.

5. Primary sweeper splits (does not look at split time), cleans and judges weight looking up and down.

6. Secondary sweeper splits (does not share with Primary), talks to the Primary and communicates.

7. Primary sweeper looks up and judges convergence from their good, open stance.  Sweeps as needed.

8. Both sweepers look up and down for judgement.

9. Secondary sweeper communicates placement by exception (silent system).

10. Primary cleans until instructed not to.

Team Trust and Confidence

This is the hardest step in team development because individual personalities and external forces can affect the progress.  There is no better confidence builder than skill proficiency.

The three bottom building blocks of the Performance Pyramid are in place.  The team should be executing the System of Play and the players are poised for the next step.  The final step in the development process is the team’s focus on trust and confidence.  Trusting yourself individually AND trust between players.  Individual confidence AND confidence in the other players.

This step may take some time.  Teams that practice together locally have an advantage because they are familiar with the other players at a different level beyond the ice.  The barrier to achieving the last step is usually the proximity of the players and the high turnover in team personnel.  It may take years to gain the trust and confidence needed.  If the team changes players every year, it may never happen.

Ready to Perform

Once all of the blocks are in place, the team can truly perform.  Few teams achieve this level of development.  Many miss the mark at the early stages when skills fail the team at critical moments.  Even with good mechanics, teams can fail to achieve the highest level due to poor systems and the lack of trust and confidence.

It is likely for a team that develops using the this pyramid to dominate at certain levels of play.  The goal of course for a competitive team is to dominate at the Olympic/World level.

Zero Avoidance Protocol - ZAP

Consider this concept.  The Zero Avoidance Protocol is an initiative to eliminate zero-rated shots.  The mechanism is to always throw to the tolerance.  By doing this it eliminates the miss on the amateur side, resulting in value from all shots (zero avoidance).

1. The shot is called

2. The tolerance is identified.

3. The shot is thrown favoring the tolerance.

Team Conditioning and Strength Training

Obviously, a high performing team in any sport will be fit enough to perform. This section talks about curling fitness.

The big question - As an individual contributor to your team, are you fit enough to achieve your curling goals.

A quick note:  Nobody cares what you look like, how much you weigh or how much you can bench press. 

But you need to ask yourself the following:

Are you fit enough to achieve goal-based, peak performance in the areas of delivery and sweeping?

if yes, are you fit enough to stay at peak performance for an entire goal-based event?

If no, put a plan in place OR change your goals.

The Fitness Equation

Top level fitness and strength are not required for recreational curling.  You've probably already noticed that curlers come in all shapes and sizes.  Overall fitness will, however, help your curling game and at the advanced level, it is required.  We had the opportunity to discuss curling with the US. Olympic training specialists at the Olympic Training Facility in Colorado Springs, CO.  They mentioned some basic guidelines for Olympic athletes, including curlers.  Even if you don't plan on becoming an Olympian, these guidelines should help.  The specialists mentioned two main fitness components:

• General fitness

• Specific fitness

General fitness plus specific fitness = Peak Physical Performance in any given sport.

General Fitness

Being generally fit refers to having a healthy heart, not carrying too much weight and having muscle tone and endurance.

There is a lot of information regarding general fitness.  Research this carefully.  Talk to your coach. Talk to people at the gym. There are a few things that everyone agrees on.  A solid program of cardio and strength training can achieve your general fitness goals.  Plyometrics (jump training) can increase overall fitness and help reaction times and quickness.

Specific Fitness

Specific fitness refers to the areas of fitness that are specific to curling.  Even the Olympic fitness specialists admit to only knowing a limited amount about specific curling fitness.  They mention the two key components to curling fitness:

1. Delivery Fitness

2. Sweeping Fitness

Delivery Fitness

Leg strength is the key to delivery fitness.  The quads hold your body, balanced over the sliding  foot so  a sustainable and repeatable balanced delivery requires strength.

Muscle strength becomes critical if a player is playing multiple games per day or playing many games over an extended period of time.  In addition to your workouts, a focus on legs is important.

Sweeping Fitness

Curling (sweeping in particular) is an anaerobic sport.  Most players (except the skip) must sweep vigorously, then calm down enough to gently delivery the rock.  This requires the heart to calm down quickly, which is associated with general fitness and conditioning.  A good cardio program will help but is not specific enough for curling.

Achieving the high-performance sweeping standard mentioned in the sweeping section requires a high level of strength and fitness.  Achieving the standard requires bursts of high intensity sweeping (20-25 seconds at most).  Setting the standard is important.  With your coach, establish the throwing heart rate that is desired for each shot.  Some curlers can smoothly throw a draw with a heart rate over 120.  Most curlers need a heart rate near 100 to calibrate a finesse draw properly.  First, agree on the sweeping stroke and mechanics (speed and pressure) for your team.  See the Sweeping Section for detailed standards and follow the exercise later in this section.

To achieve Elite Athletic sweeping status, the upper body needs to drive the body weight up.  This requires arm (triceps), shoulder and core strength.  Push/pull exercises can accomplish this.

Chart your progress over the season.  With a good program in place, your sweeper won’t let you down in the semis and finals.

Interval Training

In addition to general cardio training, curlers will enjoy the benefits of interval training as well.  In the gym, elevate your heart rate to the maximum sweeping rate as determined by your coach and team.  Stop the exercise and wait until your heart is at throwing rate (also set by the coach and team).  This can also be done on the ice, live.

The CurlTech Curling Workout

Your workout plan should be tailored to your specific needs.  The following principles will help you get stronger and more fit.

The progressive resistance machines at most health clubs are excellent for general fitness and strength training.  They provide "in-tension" weight training combines with stretching.  There is a machine for all of the curling specific exercises listed below.

Constant Resistance Tension

All weight training should use this principle.  The idea is to maintain resistance during the entire lift.  SLOWLY lift the weight using perfect form and keep the resistance steady throughout the lift.    Drop your weight if necessary in order to use perfect mechanics and try for 12-15 reps.

Interval Training

All cardio is good exercise. Interval training will target your fitness to sweeping.

The following workout can be done by itself or added to an existing workout.  The following curling specific exercises must be included:

Lift Purpose

Bench Press                         Push for sweeping.

Push-Ups Push for sweeping.

Pull ups                               Pull for sweeping.

Triceps Curls                       Push

Bicep Curls                     Pull

Shoulder                              Push and Pull         

Balanced Dips*                   Delivery

Sit-ups/Core                         Brush head pressure.          

*Balanced Dip (every day exercise) One set of 50 reps.

1. Stand facing a pole or other object that your can hold.

2. Balance on your sliding foot.

3. While leaning back, slowly dip to create quad resistance.

4. Maintaining resistance, dip 50 times.

5. Never dip the knee outside the foot.

6. Repeat for non-sliding foot.

Upright Push-Ups (every day) One set of 50 reps.

1. Position yourself in front of a counter or table.

2. Take a step back (feel to calf stretch) and do 20 reps of a standard push-up.

3. 20 reps of a close-grip pushup.

4. 10 reps of a wide push-up.

Specific Cardio/Interval

This exercise can be done anywhere there is an opportunity to get your heart rate up.  Target your sweeping heart rate from the sweep drill mentioned above.  The treadmill is a good, controlled machine for this exercise.

1. Warmup for five minutes at a low jog or heavy walk.

2. Run for 25 seconds at a speed that gets your heart rate to target (150 bpm for example).

3. Step off and rest for 35 seconds.  Measure the heart rate and watch it drop.

4. Repeat five to ten times.

This exercise simulates sweeping.

It’s proven that a positive brain effects performance in a positive way.  Countless professional athletes use and have used mental toughness skills and imagery to enhance their performance.  We won’t get into the details of mental toughness since there is so much professional information out there.  Please read as much as you can about this.  We can help apply the basics of mental toughness to curling, however.

Fundamentals First

Mental toughness will not overcome poor mechanics.  The brain can, however, take a mechanically sound athlete and give him/her an edge.  There are a few things that all athletes need before they can utilize the brain for performance.

Being technically competent, which means you have a high level of mastery of the mechanics is the most important physical factor.  Learn proper mechanics and practice them a lot.  A good coach will always recognize when practice should be over.  Fatigue will cause your mechanics to suffer, and practice will be useless.  See the fitness and strength training section to build practice endurance.

Competency resulting from good mechanics and practice leads to confidence, which is the first step in the mental process.  Even the most positive thinking and the best visualization cannot overcome poor mechanics. 

Emotional Regulation

Managing emotions during a game will always be necessary not only to keep the mind and body in check but to play the game the right way.  As mentioned in other sections, emitting only neutral or positive energy during the game is the goal.  Outbursts of any kind will prevent success and in some cases be penalized.  Aggravated broom-slamming is the most common outburst and should NEVER happen.  

Each player will respond differently to a negative situation.  Work with your coach on controlling your emotions.

The Mentally Tough Curler

There are three main components of mental toughness as it relates to curling.

1. Filling your brain with positive thoughts (by eliminating the negative).

2. Visualizing positive results and success.

3. Confidence in your team systems and mechanics.

The Positive Brain

Curling is like all other sports when it comes to positive vs negative thoughts.  Positive thoughts are translated into positive actions.  This is proven.  And unfortunately, negative thoughts produce negative results.  There are two main opportunities to think positively, before each game and before each shot.

Before each game, find a quiet place, close your eyes and take ten minutes to rid your brain of negative thoughts and replace them with positive ones.  Perhaps think about a great moment in your curling history.  Briefly relive that moment and feel again what it was like.  Once you’ve started the process, think about positive results in your upcoming game, even visualize shaking hands after the victory.  This short process will help get your brain ready for performance.  Now stretch and resume your other pregame activities.

Before each shot, take the opportunity to think about the positive results of your next shot.  Never think of negative thoughts about the shot.  Instead of thinking “don’t be wide” think about hitting the broom with the proper weight.  Visualize success.

Visualization

It is also proven that the body responds physically to things that the brain can visualize.  Rehearsing a physical (athletic) action in your mind will help guide you through the process.  Mental imagery is like practicing with the brain.  You are more likely to be better at a certain action the second time around, even if the first time was in your mind.

In curling proper visualization requires a specific image and a non-specific image.  In the case of a curling shot, you can visualize perfect line and weight (specific) then visualize success (non-specific). 

Confidence

It is not possible to be mentally tough without confidence in what you are doing.  Team systems must work.  Mechanics must be proper.  Practice is the only way to gain confidence in these areas.  A good balance of team practices and bonspiels/tournaments will achieve the desired results.

Example:  Public speaking is often difficult, and sometimes terrifying, for most people.  The first rule in good public speaking is your rock-solid knowledge of the subject matter.  This concept for sport, (curling) is no different.  The stronger you are with mechanics and systems, the more confident you become.

No team can win at the highest level without a solid mental toughness philosophy.  Build your system and use it immediately.

The “Red Zone”

You may have heard the term red zone in other sports.  The red zone  refers to the last twenty percent.  It could be the last 20% of the game, an event or the season.  It can be expressed in quantitative terms like inside the 20 yard-line in football, inside the hog line in curling, or in more conceptual terms like the final 20% of your world championship journey.   There are red zone applications for the following:

The last 20% of:

• Your off-season fitness program.

• Each shot.

• Each game (8th, 9th and 10th ends).

• The championship round robin.

• The competitive season.

• The Page playoffs and semi-finals.

• The championship game.

It’s easy to win locally, maybe even nationally.  The true test of a complete team is the performance at the world championships.  The last 20%.

As the pressure mounts and fatigue sets in, your system of play must be solid.  As a reminder, a proper, fluid delivery with tempo is essential as well as the trust and confidence of your teammates.

Team Focus

The ability for a team to focus on the task at hand and to execute against a system is critical to team performance and success.  During a championship game, teams must focus on execution while managing a wide range of distractions.  Distractions are bad.  External inputs are good.  Here is a list of potential distractions that have to be dealt with.

Distractions

• Other games on adjacent sheets.

• Acquaintances in the crowd or behind the glass.

• Friends on other playing teams.

• Crowd noise and cheering.

• Hog line violations.

• Official’s interventions

• Any outburst.

External Inputs

·         Heaters cycling on and off.

·         Compressor cycling.

·         Chatter from the adjacent sheet about ice conditions.

CurlTech Zone of Focus

Insert Zone of Focus

A player’s ability to focus on the game is critical to success.   Everyone has a different sense of focus.  Some can stay focused throughout the game without any issues.  Others are susceptible to distractions.  Some are hyper-focused.  The chart below visualizes the focus necessary to compete at the highest level.

Proper Preparation Wins Games

The successful team of the future is the one that is the best prepared.  Coaches must focus the development process on properly preparing each player to perform individually and then as a team. Coaches look at a much bigger picture with their team, forcing a team to focus on long term goals instead of short term.

Championship curling teams develop and perform in different ways.  All teams though, must move through different stages of team development before they can expect to perform at a high level.  Like all great teams, performance is based on skill, mental toughness, coaching and circumstances*.  Learning proper mechanics and practicing them will get any team to a high level of skill.  It’s the mental toughness and circumstances that is more unpredictable when it comes to measuring and anticipating performance.

*The term “circumstances” is a catch-all word referring to luck, bad ice, bad rocks and any other external factor we can’t control.

Analyzing your team’s performance is necessary for long term success.  The term analyze refers to studying both the positive and negative components of performance.  CurlTech leads the way in curling performance analysis.

There are three key areas of performance analysis:

1. Measuring team metrics with scoring (quantifiable but somewhat subjective).

2. Identifying strengths.

3. Unrecoverable Breakdowns (mechanics, strategy, sweeping, etc.)

Once performance has been measured and the strengths and weaknesses identified, a plan must be put in place.  The plan will include methods to maintain the strengths and build upon the weakness that lead to breakdowns.

Measuring Performance

Some performance metrics are easy to measure.  Shooting percentage, degree of difficulty, shot breakdown (shot call, ice, delivery, sweeping) are very quantifiable and lend themselves to fairly easy measurement.  Other measurements like delivery and sweeping mechanics can be measured with a great deal of success.  Quantitative performance can be measured easily by a support person, not necessarily a top curler or curling coach.  Delivery and sweeping mechanics must be measured by a trained person.  CurlTech sets the standard that is easy to measure if the coach is familiar with and accepts the standard.

Shooting Percentages

Assigning a value to any given shot (0-4) will give you a general sense of shot making ability.  Absolute ratings are the scores based on the shot called, regardless of how difficult the shot is.  This represents the purist form of shot making ability and gives the shooter a good sense if what is needed to achieve the goal.  Adding a degree of difficulty to the shot adds extra value to a shot based on the difficulty.  This is good for comparison and brings the percentages of the lead (more straight forward) and skip (more complex) closer together. 

Breakdown Analysis

This is a CurlTech exclusive.  After measuring performance, separate the performance problems from the successes.  The list below represents every negative situation that occurs.  Each situation has a missed shot and breakdown component.

• Losing hammer via the LSD.

• Giving up three or more at any time without hammer.

• Giving up a steal of one or more with the hammer.

• Not converting.

Every negative situation, perhaps leading to loss has a shot making breakdown component (or several).  Track breakdowns per player and team.  In many cases, the loss of a game can be traced to one or two breakdowns.  CurlTech tracks the breakdowns to look for patterns and to put a plan in place to fix the problem.  The following is a list of common breakdowns that lead to failure.

• Delivery mechanics - Momentum, Balance, Release)

• Sweeping mechanics

• Sweeping judgement

• Game strategy

• Shot calling

• Line calling

• Communication systems

• Recovery systems, on and off the ice

There are others but these are the most common.  When viewed this way, it becomes easier for a coach to put new mechanics and systems in place to elevate the game.  Breakdowns don’t always lead to game losses.  A lead missing an open takeout followed by an opponent’s miss may be a breakdown but should not be identified as a “game critical” breakdown.  As you work with your coach or coaches, they will help identify all breakdowns, particularly the ones that result in a loss.

Game breakdowns are best discussed immediately after the game while the shots and other events are fresh in everyone’s mind.  Once identified, the coach can help develop a plan to correct whatever led to the breakdown.  In some cases, it’s an easy fix and in others may require some time on the practice sheet.  Your coach will focus on the corrective action and not on the event itself.  No one tries to miss shots and good teams understand that all players don’t shoot 100%.  Another role of the coach is to help identify breakdown patterns.

Identifying the Breakdown

CurlTech has a fun and unique way to identify the breakdowns in any game.

1. Pick a game, any game.  This could be your last game or an archived game of any kind.

2. Look at the final score by viewing the scoreboard.  The traditional scoreboard is easier than the championship (baseball type).

3. Determine when “game control” was lost and never regained.

4. Review that end, shot by shot to determine how control was lost.  In most cases, this was a missed shot or a series of missed shots.  It could also be a brilliant shot by your opponent to gain control.

5. Analyze each shot to determine the cause of the problem.  With your own team, if you start to see a pattern, you can focus training efforts against it.

Game Control Reminder

You are in control of the game when you are:

• With hammer – Down one (arguably), tied or ahead by two at any time in the game.

• Without hammer – Up two or more at any time.

Keep in mind that not all breakdowns are thrower related.  In many cases it is.  For example, a skip needs the four-foot to count one on the last shot and throws it through the house.  This is clearly a weight-related breakdown on the skip’s shot.  However, if the sweepers said they were looking for a 3.65 (but was really a 3.95) and the skip hit the 3.65 exactly, the breakdown is in field of play measurement systems.

Case Study #1 – Semi-final of a national championship

In an extra end, Team A needs the open button (with no backing) to win with the hammer.  The sweepers tell the skip that the weight has not changed -14.7 (has been for several ends).  The skip throws and out-turn that splits at 4.05.  The sweepers are sweeping it at the hog line when the skip shouts “take a look”.  This causes the sweepers to stop sweeping for about eight feet.  The sweepers did sweep again but the shot came up short by two inches, losing the game.

Where was the breakdown?  In any “do or die” situation, it’s clear that the game breakdown occurred in that end.  In this case it was a team judgement and communication breakdown.  The sweepers may have judged the weight properly.  The skip intervened when it was not necessary.

Case Study #2 – Final game of a national championship

Team A is down one with the hammer playing the tenth end.  Team A skips first shot is a draw to the button around some rocks in the house.  The draw comes to rest (with no sweeping at all) bighting the button just behind the tee line and behind cover.  Team A can taste victory.  Team B skip follows the shot with his last rock, and it comes to rest frozen on the button.  Team A skip was unable to remove it, resulting in a steal and loss of the game.

Where was the breakdown?  In this case you can argue that Team A skip’s first rock was too heavy because the sweepers never swept it.  By slipping behind the tee, Team B had the opportunity to be on the button frozen.  Why was it too heavy?  This is what the team needs to figure out.

There’s a case study for EVERY game.

How teams win at the highest level is a very interesting topic.  Competitive models differ across the globe and regions build good teams differently.  All countries have national governing bodies (NGB) that attempt to define and execute against these competitive models.  Olympic medal status for curling is driving the further development of these models.  Let’s look at some of the models around the world.

Canada                          Numbers + Culture = Strength

Canada is accepted as being the strongest curling nation in the world.  The approximately one million curlers in Canada enjoy a strong curling culture that has evolved over centuries.  Most Canadians know of curling due to widespread television broadcasts and other media coverage.  The huge curling base and culture produce many competitive teams that compete against each other often.  This model created strong teams across Canada and there are several teams that could win the world championships.  Canadian delivery mechanics and sweeping are not particularly good overall but the need to perform (lots of good teams), drives them to make shots.  Tournament play (cashspiels) is the main form of practice.

Curling Culture High

Athlete Pool High

Skill Focus Medium

Europe                       Select Few with Rich History

The European model, mainly Scotland, Sweden, Norway and Switzerland are quite different.  These countries don’t come close to Canada’s numbers, yet they win at the highest levels.  In any given European country, a few teams focus on competing and may be funded by their NGBs or by the country itself (state funded).  European delivery and sweeping skills are good which allows them to compete with Canada.  The curling culture is strong due to the rich history in the region.  Three of the four countries listed above think they invented curling.  Sweden has a “Curling Academy”, a school dedicated to curling.

State funded programs and teams are common in Europe.

Curling Culture High

Athlete Pool Low

Skill Focus High/Medium

United States             Hope for Performance

The United States has a unique competitive model. US National Team (formerly the High-Performance Program) – Through private funding from the USOPC, the National Team staff forms several teams by choosing individuals and creating teams from the chosen players.  Coaches are chosen by the NGB.  Most of the team development is achieved through the international tournaments such as World Curling Tour and Slam events.

Other Teams (non national-team athletes) – Other competitive curlers in the US not chosen for the National Team, choose their own team members and coach from anywhere in the country.  There is essentially no curling “culture” in the US outside some curling pockets like Minnesota and Wisconsin.  Twenty-five thousand curlers are not enough to create a strong competitive environment so with a few exceptions, the US teams struggle at the highest levels.  There is no standard or expectation regarding delivery and sweeping skills, so mechanics vary.

The CurlTech Integrated Programs will eventually produce grass roots players in all US regions reducing the need to form teams outside your local area and allowing faster team development locally.

The US may be the only country with laws (Ted Stevens Amateur Sports Act) preventing the NGB from selecting teams directly.  All teams must have access to the selection system.

Curling Culture Low

Athlete Pool Low

Skill Focus Low

Asia and Eastern Europe        Build and Train

Asian and Eastern European countries are the relative “newcomers” to global competitive curling.  With no curling culture and very few curlers, Asian and Eastern European countries (China, Japan, Korea, Russia, etc.) are driven to a “build and train” model.  Teams are built by the NGBs and funded heavily for training.  Delivery and sweeping skills tend to be more  “proper” since they are being taught by more experienced, possibly Canadian curlers.  State funded teams are common.

Curling Culture Low

Athlete Pool Low

Skill Focus High

Like many sports, practicing the curling delivery and skills is an important part of developing the needed consistency required to make shots on a regular basis.  The curling delivery is very complex, and it is not something most of us do very often.

Practice looks different for each skill level.  For example, novice curlers practice balance, stability and basic weight control.  Intermediate curlers practice balance, Body Drop, release and weight control.  Advanced curlers practice balance, release, tempo and precise weight control.  There is no  limit to the types and styles of practices. Later in the section, there are some practice examples.  You are encouraged to create you won

Why We Practice

Practice makes us better at a given skill.  The repetition of doing something over and over engrains the behavior or mechanics into muscle memory.  Proper practice can make any skill instinctual.  Most skills can be performed properly when you have the opportunity to think it through thoroughly.  It’s when you’re “in the moment” that most skills are lost or diminished.  When you can’t thoroughly think through the skill process, you revert back to whatever your body is comfortable with.  Practice can change this.  So, if you want to make the big shot to win the game under pressure, you’ll need to make the proper delivery instinctual.

Simply throwing proper practice rocks at the club will train your body to recognize a proper delivery and develop muscle memory.  Throwing practice rocks can also be a trap where bad habits can be reinforced.  This chapter describes some specific practice techniques that will help you develop your skills.

There are two types of practice sessions.

1.     Practice to make your team better.

                                 and

2.     Practice to make your individual contribution to a team better.

If you play on a regular team, the best practices are the ones with the entire team present.

If most of your curling is in leagues (on several different teams), then you may want to concentrate on the following practice drills.  First, find someone to practice with.  Try and find someone who can reasonably assess your skills and provide feedback to you.  Practicing alone is only good for developing your balance and gives a good sense of the overall delivery.  The mistake many people make is trying to practice hitting the broom alone.  It is virtually impossible for you to determine precise accuracy and line of delivery from the throwing position.  The only way to accurately practice line of delivery is to throw at a broom held by a person who can provide you feedback.

Individual Practice Drills

Remember, curling is a team sport.  Practicing alone can hone only a few of the skills needed to be successful on a team.  The following practice drills can be done alone and greatly improve your shot-making.  If possible, practice on a freshly scraped sheet or a sheet that is close to game condition.

Drills 1 and 2 are the best drills and they can done alone.

Drill #1   Test for Balance                           All Levels

Since the fundamental component to a good delivery is balance, this drill is invaluable.  Begin with your normal stretching routine.  Take a few practice slides followed by throwing a few rocks.  This will loosen up the body for the balance drill.  Now, go back to sliding without the rock but this time raise the broom off the ice one inch as you cross the tee line.  Follow through until you stop.  Keep your throwing hand at handle level without touching the ice.  As you repeat the sliding drill, begin raising the broom earlier and earlier until you can slide without the use of the broom from the back line through the hog line.

Finish the drill by throwing a few rocks.  The broom should be off the ice at the Tee Line.

Drill #2   Drop Drill - Foot Delay                Intermediate Level

This drill isolates the foot delay and helps the body drop into the slide position properly.  Allowing your body mass to become a key part of the delivery.  It is not a full-delivery drill.  Setup in the number two position, “hips up and back”.  This is the “loaded” position ready for your energy to move forward.  From this position, WITHOUT moving your sliding foot, roll your body forward while moving the rock forward on the LOD.  Pick a point in front of the hack that the rock must touch before the sliding foot moves.  Start with a spot one foot from the hack.  Remember, don’t move your sliding foot until the rock reaches that point.  Once you feel comfortable, move the point out farther.  This drill delays the foot without worrying about the other steps.  You’ll notice your slide will become longer and more powerful (efficient) with each adjustment.  It is not necessary to stretch farther than about halfway to the back line.

Note:  The slider foot movement between steps 2 and 3 should be in a straight line and in a single, quick movement.

Drill #3   Weight Control Drill                    All Levels

Try to practice weight on a sheet that is in game condition.  This practice should be done by position to create your “default weight”.  Leads should throw all eight rocks six feet short of the house as the sweepers can bring them closer if desired.  Seconds, thirds and skips should practice a default weight in the top twelve or just short.  If conditions are substandard, usually slower, throw all eight rocks to the hog line.  If you’re not sure, and you have a practice partner, split time the draws.  The split time from back line to nearer hog line should be between 3.80 and 4.00 seconds.  Take-out weight can be practiced by setting up a few rocks in the house and removing them.  Again, split timing can help.  The split on take outs should be between 2.90 and 3.10 seconds.  Avoid throwing the complete shot since you have no sweepers.

Drill #4   Establish the Delivery               Intermediate Level

The term “establish” refers here to the point when the final, balanced delivery position has been achieved.  From the normal setup position, with a rock, close your eyes and begin the normal delivery.  When you are completely settled in the balance, sliding position, open your eyes.  This is the point where your delivery is established.  It should be before the tee line.

Remember, to be established, you must be in the delivery position and balanced.

Drill #5   Hitting the Broom (manual)       All Levels

Have a person hold the broom for you.  Agree on what weight you would like to throw.  Your default draw or takeout weight seems to work well.  Throw the rock back and forth with the other person changing the broom with each shot.  Provide feedback on the shot each time.  If you throw hack or takeout weight, you can both use the same rock over and over.  This is a great practice drill because you begin to feel and see what it’s like to “hit the broom”.  Use the CurlTech feedback system.  Indicate broom accuracy AND line.

Drill# 5a Hitting the Broom - Laser Advanced

This drill can be done alone with some effort.  Setup the laser at about half sheet.  The beam should be set at the middle of the rock's striking band and on line to your Drawback Point.  Visually (or use a string) to establish the broom at the far end.  The laser beam becomes the line of delivery.  Throw at the broom and, if alone setup a camera just behind the laser and record each delivery.  This back and forth can be tedious.  If possible have another player or coach view and record each delivery.  Make adjustments as necessary.

Great drill.  The laser doesn't lie.

Team Practice Drills

Depending on your competitive model, team practices may be a key part of your team’s performance plan.  During team practices, a combination of mechanics and team related drills should dominate.  If the entire team is present, they have the opportunity to practice actual shots.  This can be done by either setting up a particular shot and throwing it over and over, or by playing the "perfect team".

The Designated Shot

 Pick a shot that the team throws a lot.  Execute the shot with full sweeping and line calling.  Agree on a standard for each shot.  For example, three come arounds in a row or three peels in a row or two freezes.  This drill allows the players to practice a common shot when the pressure is off.  This goes a long way when the pressure is on.

The "Perfect Team"

 This refers to playing an imaginary team that does not miss any shots.  It begins with the skip gathering a few opponent’s rocks at the house end.  After your team throws a rock, the skip then determines what the perfect shot would be in return and executes it by placing the opponent’s rock in the perfect spot.  The skip must play for both teams.  This drill is very valuable because it can simulate actual game conditions without the need for an opponent.

A word of caution when playing the perfect team.  They’re very good.  Expect to give up multiple points.  In fact, the goal of this drill is to try and limit the perfect team to one (force) or two points in each end.

One-On-One, Two-On-Two, Etc.

 Playing small games breaks up the monotony of any practice.  As part of practice, play a two-end game of two-on-two (or one-on-one if you have another sheet available).  To make the game even more interesting, do not allow any takeouts.  This forces the team to concentrate on finesse shots rather than "blasting".  If a player takes a rock out by mistake, it must be replaced.  Once the rocks build up, it provides a good opportunity to practice raises.

Four in the Four (best team drill ever)

This could be the best overall team drill since it requires ALL of the team’s skills to be successful.  It is also a great communication drill.  The coach should monitor the drill to ensure proper execution of the system of Play.

With this drill, the goal for the team is to draw the four-foot, four times in a row.  Start with the normal team line-up at the beginning of an end.  The lead throws a draw to the four-foot with the skip in position and the second and vice sweeping.  After the lead throws, the second throws and so on.  Continue this until you have drawn the four-foot four consecutive times.  If one person misses, you must start over.  The purpose of this drill is two-fold, to see and understand each delivery for sweeping purposes, and to simply practice drawing to the four-foot (LSD).  It develops a good sense of draw weight, what your sweepers are capable of, and good practice for the sweepers making weight judgment calls.

This drill is harder than it sounds.  Create a rule that does not allow the team to move to the next drill until four are in the four.  Pressure builds up with each four-foot draw.

To add variety, have the team rotate positions so all team members play all positions.  After each shot, move up one position.  This helps the entire team understand the System of Play and other team responsibilities.

Simulated Game

 Have your coach simulate a game from beginning to end.  Start with a real opponent.  Choose a team that you will play in competition.  The coach should discuss the game plan before the game just as if you were about to play them for real.

In the warm room, with your magnet board, have the team sit at a table with the skip facing the incoming shots.  Have the vice, second and third sit opposite the skip.  This allows the players to visualize the game as it sets up from their positions (skips see the game coming at them, the rest see it going away).  The coach will act as the opponent.  The value of this drill is not individual shot calling, it’s how the skip is thinking and making decisions.  The vice should be part of the decision process on skip’s rocks and should be available for consultation if the skip needs it.  Practice your communication system.  The front end should discuss the shots like they were at the other end.

It is not necessary to throw all shots.  The most important part of this drill is:

• The skip’s thinking in the early, middle and late ends

• The skips rock in all ends

• The sixth end strategy (right after the break)

• The closing strategy in ends eight through ten

This drill helps prepare your team for the thinking process in a real game. 

Play “Skip’s Call”

 Skip’s Call is a curling board game of strategy and tactics developed exclusively by CurlTech.  Teams of any number plan and execute a simulated game against each other.  Whether it’s one-on-one, two teams of four or a large group setting, Skip’s Call is an engaging way to learn strategy and tactics (shot calling) while in the comfort of your home or club.  The value of playing Skip’s Call is working through shot-calling scenarios in the comfort of the warm room or at home.  Any number of people can play the game.  The fun part is discussing the options with eth group and pointing out key advantages and disadvantages with certain shots.  The game requires a knowledgeable Game Administrator to truly learn strategy but even without the GA, the discussions are valuable.

1.  Skip’s Call Basics

2.  Split the group into two teams.

3.  Assign a coach to each team.

4.  Choose a shot deck,

5.  Choose a scenario.

6.  Roll for hammer.

7.  Call a shot.

8.  Draw from the deck.

9.  Game Administrator places the rock according to the call and shot score.

10.  The GA decision is FINAL.

Sweeping Anaerobics

Throw a rock with two sweepers.  Sweep hard from hog to tee.  After sweeping, immediately measure the heart rates of the sweepers.  This should drop quickly so the sweeper can throw a rock.  Chart your progress.  See the Sweeping section for more information.

Event and Championship Practice

At championship events, a pre-event practice is scheduled for all participating teams.  Pre-game practice is also scheduled prior to each game.

Pre-Event Practice

Generally, ice time is given to the teams before the event so teams can acclimate themselves to the conditions.  Take this opportunity to throw rocks on each sheet and become familiar with the facility.  The goal of the pre-event practice is three-fold.

1. To acclimate yourself to the environment

2. Get an initial read on the speed and curl.

3. Study the rocks.

Things that may be different that you may notice are:

• Speed and curl of the ice.

• Rink temperature and humidity.

• Ice surface texture.

• Ice color and markings.

• Hack depth and type.

• Space behind the hacks.

• Rock and handle type.

• Sound of the rock as it travels.

• Sound of the rocks as the strike.

• Other rink noises like heaters and dehumidifiers.

• Side boards and bumpers

Your game schedule is posted, and you know what rocks you throw on each sheet.  Try to throw your own rocks and watch for rock mis-match patterns.

Pre-Game Practice

 Pre-game practice is scheduled before every game.  See the event procedures for the specific times.  At the time of this print, the pregame practice is nine minutes followed by the “last shot draw”.  The winner of the last shot draw will have hammer in the first end.  First practice starts 30 minutes before game time and the second practice starts 20 minutes before game time.  The practice times and rock color are assigned equally by the draw-master.

The goal of any pre-game practice is also three-fold.

1. Stretch and warm up the body in preparation for the game.

2. Get a read on the ice speed and curl.

3. Prepare for the LSD.

A by-product of the practice sessions is a sheet of ice that is ready for aggressive play.  Teams may not “spar” in the first or second ends but rather start an aggressive strategy of active scoring.

There are several different ways to accomplish the above stated goals.  CurlTech recommends you use the time to warm up and find draw weight on different parts of the sheet.  By throwing all draws, the team gets a good feel for the draw weight needed for the LSD.  A side (but very important) benefit to throwing draws is rock matching and calibration.  The coach should be on the ice with a stopwatch timing each split.  Throw two draws, get the split time and watch where they end up.  Use the following overall procedure:

• Each player takes one full-sheet practice slide starting with the lead and moving up the order (lead and second bring grippers to the opposite end, everyone slides back).

• Each player throws two rocks down in position order (1,2,3,4 then 1,2,3,4 again).

• Throw the two rocks back.

• Throw one rock down.

• Throw one rock back.

• The skip’s last rock is used as the first LSD practice (sweepers already have grippers).

• The skip takes one more LSD practice and the nine minutes should be up.

The designated LSD thrower throws the actual LSD.

During practice, each player should throw draws on different lines to break the pebble evenly.  The lead should throw rocks to the sides with a broom near the centerline.  The second should throw rocks to the four foot from an outside line (broom on the twelve foot).  The vice should throw rocks to the four foot and the skip to the pot.  This should evenly wear the sheet, so the LSD is not thrown in a “track”.

If someone other than the skip throws the LSD, have them throw last in the sequence. 

The Performance Equation

Players with excellent mechanics don’t always perform at a high level.  Before a mechanically correct player can achieve true team success, other factors must be in place.  Team comfort, team confidence and a positive team attitude must be in place. Of course, comfort, confidence and attitude are very difficult to measure.  This is why the performance formula can be expressed as:

Skill x X = Performance

 X refers to the immeasurable component of training, culture, knowledge, comfort, trust, confidence, attitude and mental toughness.  Let’s look at a Major League Baseball team as an example.   Occasionally a baseball team wins a World Series with what some people would describe as a marginally talented team.  How can this happen?  There are usually one or two individuals on the team that bring out the best in everyone.  It could be the manager, the team captain or some other more obscure person.  A good example is Kevin Millar of the 2004 Boston Red Sox.  Many people saw him as a marginal player.  Despite his skill shortcomings, he was the catalyst for team cohesiveness in the club house during that season.  Either way, they performed beyond the sum of their talent.  It works the other way as well.  One bad egg on the team can disrupt the entire team and limit performance.

How can we translate this to curling?  Usually, a team that underperforms on a continuous basis has a similar problem.  Often, the cause is a person out of position.  This person believes he or she should be playing a different position.  This alone can cause friction on a team and prevent the comfort, confidence and attitude needed for success.  Even if the dissatisfied person is not outwardly showing their displeasure, it can be apparent to the skip and manifest itself in poor performance.

On the other hand, one person can be the reason a less talented team performs.

Performance Phasing

Have you ever wondered why a team with average skills (or even poor skills) can beat a great team?  This happens quite a bit in sport.  Comments like a team is “in the zone” or “up for this one” can describe a team that is performing at a higher level than normal (usually temporary).  On the other hand, comments like “the team is flat” or “they didn’t have it today” can describe a team that is not performing well.  An average team performing well can beat a good team that is flat.

All teams operate in a certain performance range (this can be increased with practice and development).  In curling, we can measure the performance level by charting the shot result against the shot called.  Top teams with good mechanics, communication and mental toughness operate higher than teams without.

The following chart shows the shot-making percentages of teams ranging from the club team to the world contender.

Great teams                         85-95%

Good teams                         75-85%

Average teams                    50-75%

Club teams                          Below 50%

Teams fluctuate within their performance range.  A great team may play at the 85% mark for most games but can perform slightly higher or lower based on circumstances*. On occasion, the great team curls at the 70% mark.  This is considered “out of phase” with their normal performance.  In this example, the great team is out of phase on the negative side.  In many cases the team can overcome this.  However, problems occur when an average team is out of phase on the positive side and the great team is out of phase on the negative side.  The average team normally curling in the 65% range may have a 75% game (out of phase on the positive side).  The great team may play a game in the 70% range (out of phase on the negative side) and be beaten by the average team.

* Circumstances can be anything that affects performance.  The list is endless ranging from physical to external, to emotional.