FAQ: Ironman Outdoor Curling Bonspiel |
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Q: What rules ? Free guards or old skool ?? A: Ironman Curling is played without a Free Guard Zone, so "old skool" as you put it. For those who don't understand what this is, here's a definition of a Free Guard Zone:
"No rock in front of the house can be taken completely out of play until after the 4th stone is thrown (1st of seconds rocks)."
Here are some other general Ironman rules of play as compared to indoor curling:
Indoor Curling:
Rocks must always stay inside the sheets boundaries.
Ironman Curling:
It does not matter if during the motion down the sheet the rock leaves the sheet of play, enters another sheet of play, then returns. All rocks are in play if they come to rest fully past the hog line and fully between the board lines and before fully exiting out the back line. This entering of other sheets may be necessary in order to make a play depending on ice conditions, which is why it is so important to always be aware of what is happening not only on your sheet but on any adjacent sheets as well.
Indoor Curling:
“Snowplowing” is defined as making little or no side ways motion with your broom in front of the rock or on one side of the running surface. This is never OK in indoor curling!
Ironman Curling:
“Snowplowing” is not only acceptable but it may be necessary. However leaving the pile of debris (snow and grit and ???) in front of the rock that built up while snowplowing to cause the rock to stop faster is not OK! It is also not OK to intentionally sweep additional debris towards the rock. Please make a sideways motion to clear the debris you have accumulated while snowplowing and let the rock come to a natural stop. That is to say, the rock can build up it's own pile of debris after snowplowing has cleared the debris it had accumulated, or when there is no sweeping happening, which is perfectly OK.
Indoor Curling:
Curlers must throw from the hack and follow a general path to the broom from that center point, no other outside in nor inside out path is acceptable.
Ironman Curling:
You can use any device to hurl the rock from one end to the other. You can start from any position as long as you begin behind the back line (6 feet from the hack) and stay between the board lines (the sides of your 14 foot sheet) and do not cross the hog line (27 feet from the back line).
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Q: What are the start times for Friday? Concerned about conflicts between work schedule and curling times.? A: Sample draw times can be viewed from previous year's draws: Click HERE for the 2008 Schedule or you could even pick your times from this year's draw: Click HERE for the 2009 Schedule *NOTE: Click on (view bracket) to see the first three draw times for each team. We try very hard to accommodate team schedules, and to date have been able to work around all requests. You will know your first three draw times in advance of the bonspiel. |
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Q: What kind of curling stuff should we be using on the ice? Say, our regular shoes/synthetic broom, or an older pair of shoes and an old hair broom?? A: It depends on the curler and the conditions at the time. Come prepared. Synthetic brooms don't move much debries out of the way, and If it snowing out even a hair broom won't clear the snow very well, but a good corn broom you might have at home for cleaning your kitchen works pretty good. If you don't have one available, don't worry. We sell a really good industrial strength corn broom right at our booth on the river for about a $10 donation (less than you can buy it in the stores). Also, some curlers like to slide like on regular ice and others throw out the book and do more of a shuffle board delivery. Again, it's up to personal preference. |
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Q: How many ends per game do we play?? A: 6 ends per game. There is a 50 minute bell to make sure we complete within the 1:10 to 1:15 time limit per game. |