A double-raise takeout may simply come down to plain old luck, but what if you could practice that under the tutelage of a Olympic gold medalists?
I'd say your odds, just got better.
Two Grade 10 students from John Paul II had an opportunity to do that at the beginning of August in Edmonton at Kevin Martin's Summer Curling Academy. The camp featured off ice classroom training as well as on ice session with Martin and other prominent curlers contributing their knowledge of the sport.
Troy Harms and Morgan Nyholt were the fortunate curlers who applied and were accepted into the prestigious curling camp.
Morgan was a veteran of the junior individual camp, as this summer was here second time attending the camp. For Troy, it was his first time getting into the hack with Martin watching.
Troy described the camp as fun yet serious. Everyone there wanted to better themselves as curlers.
"It was a whole new experience," said Troy. "It was a learning experience. There are always something's you wanted to fix, but never knew how to do that, and at the camp they were able to help you with that."
The professionalism of the camp, is the biggest draw to the curlers, who have to submit an application stating their accomplishments in the sport.
"This camp is different because it focus more on improving your skills, where as other curling camps focus more on the social part of the game," said Morgan.
Not only is having the gold medalist at the camp a major feature, but he is there working one-on-one with the curlers. The on ice sessions focus on the set up and slide of the delivery, the drive and release part of the delivery, brushing, skills of the front end and back-end of the curling team and simulated ends.
In the off-ice sessions, Renee Sonnenberg, coach of the Denmark women's Olympic team, instructed a team work exercise as well as the front/back end skills along with Jock Tyre, a provincial mixed champion and general manager of Kelowna Curling Club. Rob Krepps, a Edmonton curling star, taught a technical classroom session and assisted Martin with a strategy and tactics class. There was also an off-ice fitness session for the curlers.
For Troy, one of the best parts was the physiological and tactics part of the camp, because they run the options of normal situations in curling.
Obviously, both local curlers agreed the best part of it all was the one-on-one attention they received from Martin and both hope the experience at the camp will help them in the upcoming curling season.
Young curlers from across Canada as well as Washington were at the camp in Edmonton this year.
Morgan intends to hone here skills while playing on the high school team, in regular women's league and with a competitive team coach by Colleen Voinorosky featuring curlers from the surrounding area, which will take in bonspiels throughout the winter.
As for Troy, after last winter was filled with curling, he plans to continue that trend, as he will be playing on the high school team as well as with a men's or junior team taking in competitive tournaments.
