The internet (and what passes for the local media in Duluth) have been highly critical of the men’s Olympic performance, and have singled out John Shuster in particular. The “John Shuster sucks” meme is just another sad example of how the anonymity of the internet encourages bullies. The labels applied to Shuster are inaccurate, but fortunately they won’t stick. Anyone remember Star Wars Kid? Keyboard Cat? Sarah Palin?
I thought not. The internet phenomena of today will be forgotten tomorrow. Meanwhile, John Shuster will still be curling competitively, winning some games and losing others. The facts are that he is young, he’s a really good curler, and despite a statement made in frustration to the contrary, he does not “hate this stupid game”.
For a more detailed account of Shuster’s history and future, please read the post on the MonkeySee blog by Linda Holmes, “Being John Shuster“. It is a great story.
According to the New York Times, the gilded dipshits who were so busy driving our economy into a ditch a couple years ago have taken a shine to our favorite sport. Is this good for capitalism, or bad for curling?
I don’t think anyone who has ever, you know, actually curled, would call it a “slow-poke game”. This is journalism, apparently. Well done Eric Dash! But for real examples of curling stories that are both slapdash and mean spirited, its tough to beat the Duluth News Tribune.
Marge and Homer take up curling: “It’s got bowling for me, and sweeping for you!” Now, where can I get a Springfield Curling shirt?
UPDATE: Fox doesn’t like the Simpsons clips on YouTube, so I’m trying to embed from Hulu. To watch the official version of the Simpsons’ “Boy Meets Curl”, follow this link to FoxTV.
Live from the 1pm saturday draw of the Duluth International Bonspiel. On sheet 8, Seppo Sormunnen battles Sheriff Ross Littman to stay in the A bracket.
Its been a while since I got the first inkling that someone was working on a serious curling simulation for the XBox360. The project by Dadoo Games, now called “Curling 2010″, has matured into a great looking curling game. The game is currently in play testing, and will soon be available for download through the Xbox Live service for the unbelievably reasonable price of $5.
For this you get the ability to play against a computer or friends at home or over the internet. If the video above is representative of the graphics and rock physics in the actual game, it will be awesome. I especially like the design choice to trade cheesy cartoon characters and pseudo-stadium settings typical of most console curling games for the more serene outdoor setting. I am eagerly awaiting the release of this game!
Steven Colbert meets John, Jason, Jeff, the other John, and the Cute One at the Plainfield Curling Club in New club for some heart to heart talk and some head to head competition.
John Shuster and Team USA won the Championship at the Curl Mesabi Cashspiel in Eveleth last weekend, beating Andrew Wickman of Winnepeg 5 to 1 in six ends. Nice job.
And speaking of Olympians, Canada will be represented by Kevin Martin and Cheryl Bernard in Vancouver. Tough competition.
John Shuster and company are playing in the Grey Power World Cup of Curling this weekend in Mississauga (a.k.a. south Toronto), Ontario. This event is a prelude to Vancouver: The Olympic representatives from Scotland, Norway, China, Sweden, France, Germany, Denmark and USA’s Shuster will be competing against five Canadian teams, one of which will represent Canada in the Olympics.
Tonight (Thursday, Oct. 21) at 7pm CST, John Shuster takes on Newfoundland’s Brad Gushue in the first draw. You can see end-by-end scoring at this link. Good luck John!
The Chris Plys and Tyler George rinks earned spots in the 2009 U.S. National Championships / 2010 Olympic Team Trials to be held in Denver, CO, Feb. 21 to 28. John Shuster and Aileen Sormunen are still in the hunt to represent the U.S. in Vancouver; they will compete in a challenge round on Jan. 28. Shuster will be playing in Bismarck, N.D. and Sormunen will play in Green Bay, WI. Good luck curlers!
P.S. Thank you Duluth News Tribune, for including results of the Team Trials and the Over 40 ‘Spiel in the Sports section!
The regional qualifying rounds for the 2010 Olympic Team Trials are underway, and there are several teams from the DCC competing. The winners of the qualifying rounds earn a trip to the Olympic Trials in Broomfield, CO in February.
In the first draw last night in Green Bay, WI, a battle between Duluth rinks was very one sided: Amy Wright shut out Aileen Sormunen 8 to 0 in five ends. Meanwhile, Marjorie Smith had a loss to Madison powerhouse Deb McCormick. And the Alexandra Carlson rink (with lead Sophie Brorson of DCC), fresh off their victory in the Minnesota Junior Championships, lost to Cassie Potter 6 to 3. The second draw begins at 1pm today (friday), and you can see end by end scoring at this link.
The Mens’ qualifiers are in full swing too, with two draws completed yesterday. In Green Bay, John Shuster’s rink is undefeated, with lopsided wins over Bill Morehouse and Jeff Wright. Last year’s Junior World Champion Chris Plys had a loss to Jay Packard. Draw three is underway this morning, but there are no Duluth teams playing– Shuster and Plys play next at 2pm this afternoon in draw 4. You can catch the live scoring here.
Tyler George’s rink is playing in the Midwest North Region in Grand Rapids, MN, and is undefeated after two draws with a wins over Chisolm’s Aaron Wald and Greg Persinger (the latter game won with the comfortable score of 9 to 1 after four ends). Draw 3 begins at 1pm this afternoon, and live scoring is at this link.
News from Dec. 18th, 2008, on sheet 8: It only took thirty years of curling, but Kent Brorson got his first eight ender in league play on Dec. 18th. Tom Eng, John Landsteiner, and Sophie Brorson helped him put all their red stones in the house. Way to go!
Belated congratulations to Chris Plys, Aanders Brorson, Matt Perushek, Matt Hamilton and coach Phil Drobnick! Team Plys won the Minnesota State Junior Playdowns at the Bemidji Curling Club last weekend, going undefeated. Next up for Chris and his team are the qualifying rounds for the 2010 U.S. Olympic Trials January 7-11 in Centerville, WI. Good luck guys!
Duluth curler Sophie Brorson also helped Alex Carlson, Tabitha Peterson, and Tara Peterson (of the St. Paul Curling Club) go undefeated to win the playdown. These young ladies have been curling together for four years, and this is their third state championship. The Alex Carlson rink will compete next week in Green Bay in the qualifying round for Olympic Trials. Nice work Sophie, and good luck next week!
There is a lot going on in the Northland this weekend:
Friday night (tonight!) at the Duluth Curling Club, Ken and Joanne Docteur host a one night mini-spiel named “The Fun Night Before Christmas“. The event begins at 6pm and is open to the public. Ken and Joanne began these mini-spiels two years ago, and they are a lot of fun– last year’s event coincided with the Women’s Frozen Four (that’s hockey or something?), and the Harvard Pep Band came out to try curling– and they brought some great exposure for the DCC back to the East Coast. So if you have friends who are curious about curling and the off-ice action after the curling is done, bring them down!
Curl Mesabi is hosting the Super One Shootout, a major cash-spiel with a $20,000+ purse. The Super One Shootout is part of the World Curling Tour, and is attracting some big names to Eveleth– the DCC is well represented. 2008 Coach of the Year Phil Drobnick is organizing the event. The first draw is 2pm Friday, and the final is 3pm Sunday. You can watch live scoring at this link.
One big time curler who would probably be in Eveleth this weekend if he wasn’t otherwise occupied is last year’s national champion Craig Brown. He and his team are currently participating in the Continental Cup, an event modeled on golf’s Ryder Cup, in which teams from North America compete against teams from the rest of the world in a variety of curling formats. The games started yesterday, and North America had a few good games: Craig Brown beat Scotland’s David Murdoch 6 to 3, and Kevin Martin of Canada delivered a bruising to Fengchun Wang of China, winning 10-1 (could that be payback for this game?)
The World is currently way ahead of North America in points, leading 36 to 18, but there are a lot of games left. If you want to stay updated on the scores, CurlTV is probably your best bet.
Friday (and sub-zero air) has arrived in the Twin Ports. Anything going on?
On Saturday the Duluth Curling Club hosts their annual Mixed Doubles Bonspiel. This one-day event features two-person teams battling it out in the increasingly popular mixed doubles format. You can see a video demonstration of mixed doubles at this link.
Did you hear about the big storm headed to Duluth? One foot of snow? Yikes! If you are stuck inside, and your broadband connection isn’t knocked out by the weather, why not spend the weekend watching curling from the Great White North? Access to CurlTV is free with your membership to the Duluth Curling Club, and this weekend they are broadcasting live games from the Canada Cup qualifiers in Ottawa, Ontario.
Oh yeah, if your broadband connection is knocked out by Old Man Winter, remember that the Duluth Curling Club has free WiFi.
And finally, in case you missed it the first time, a little light hearted fun: Here is the video of the Fab Four curling in the Swiss Alps from the movie Help! Have a great weekend!
