Fife club seeking to broaden curling appeal to minorities
Forret Curling Club’s recent Come and Try event at Kinross Ice Rink enticed a fine turnout of curling rookies including Nigerian man Ben Machikiche, who had never seen ice before his stint practising under the expert guidance of Forret coach Craig Lindsay.
The group of curling novices also received assistance from club secretary Sue Thomson, with all the newbies enjoying the experience and by the end managing to slide and throw the stones.
"I think overall it went really well,” said Thomson. “Ben – who works as a carer for my mum – had never seen ice before as he comes from Nigeria so he was very apprehensive as playing curling was outwith his comfort zone.
"Ben absolutely had a ball! He was very apprehensive about going on the ice at first and he fell a couple of times, but he really enjoyed it.
"Hopefully he’ll join the club next season.
"It’s predominantly a white, old man’s game and we want to try and change that to involve more women, more youngsters and more ethnic minorities.”
Anyone who is unable to bend down to curl can be helped by using a cue aid, for the all important sweeping.
Thomson added: "If you can’t bend down to deliver the stone and have to stand, all you do is use a cue which hooks onto the stone handle and it’s like you’ve extended your arm.
"Think of it as your arm basically growing to twice its length. Then you basically push it out and you don’t have to extend your arm.
"I had major hip issues last year so I used a cue for a while, because it means you can continue in the sport."
For further information about Forret Curling Club please email the club secretary at [email protected]