Lorne Underwood set out to find curlers to form a club in Clifford and found that curling is alive and well in the village.
Players formed an executive with Underwood as president; Luke Hartung vice-president; Cari Chard-Richards secretary; and Jackie Rock treasurer.
Four rinks can accommodate eight teams.
There are 29 avid curlers, beginners, and spares who stepped onto the ice surface with curling shoes, sliders, brooms, and enthusiasm back on that first night on Nov. 15. When three more register, there will be a full eight teams. Spare curlers participate for free, but they need to register to be on the phone list. A new schedule for curling was set mid-January.
The members are finding the ice is quite good. Spectators can hear the cheers of victory and praise as someone somehow lands a rock on the button. They can also hear the cheers when the shot is just a little too heavy.
The club has grown in size and popularity and Tuesday evenings at 8pm are reserved for curling. The sweeping of the brooms, the sound of the rocks gently moving along the ice both have a mesmerizing appeal.
Underwood commended Mike Maynard of Minto for doing an excellent job of creating great ice, pebbling the rinks, setting the hacks, and rolling out the stones.
Two bonspiels are in the works: for the Clifford Rotary Club in February and the Canadian Foodgrains Bank in March. Spectators are welcome.
