AGM by Zoom conference call 22nd April 7:00pm
We had 12 people attend the zoom meeting which was good in the circumstances. It was a very straightforward meeting with the emphasis firmly on the future as there had been little to report on last season. The minutes are included below.
agm2021.pdf |
Season 2020-2021 now cancelled
With the roadmap out of lockdown now mentioning dates in April before we would be able to play indoors it is safe to say that there will be no curling for the rest of the season. Preparations are under way for season 2021-2022 however and a full programme is being organised. A start date of 30th August is being proposed.
Lockdown after Christmas
News of a three week lockdown from the 26th December means the chances of curling in February will depend on the situation at the end of January. We will keep everyone informed. It has been a rather barren season, one to forget. However, we continue to be reasdy to play if the opportunity presents itself before the season ends.
no curling till new year
Even at Teir 3 restrictions there can be no curling in the main arena so we will be locked out till the 11th January at the earliest. We have re-entered two teams for the SCG Leagues, one on Monday evenings and one on Wednesday evenings. We will notify everyone if play is to resume whenever we hear.
Nollaig shona! agus Bliadhna Mhath Ùr!
Nollaig shona! agus Bliadhna Mhath Ùr!
stirling in level 4 shutdown till 14th december
Stirling is in Level 4 restrictions, which are the highest, meaning all indoor activity is closed down. The curling rink will not be open till at least the 14th of December. If any curling is allowed after that we will do our best to arrange ad-hoc games for those who want to play. In the meantime, stay safe, stay fit just in case. If we don't meet up till after the festive season, have a good one.
circuit breaker restrictions close nca for club games
For the next few weeks there will be no possibility of playing club games in the NCA till the 2nd November at the earliest. We will follow the guidance as it is issued and keep everyone updated.
second ad-hoc game played
On Tuesday 6th October at 6:30pm we played our second ad-hoc game booked through the ActiveStirling website. Wednesdays appear to be fully booked so we have been restricted to Tuesday nights only so far. This time we were joined by Paul and Luisella Mosley to have 2 full teams of four a side. We tailored how we would play a little bit in response to how we played last week. The flow of people clockwise round the rink was much improved and with two sweepers we played time about to keep everyone warm. It can still get a bit crowded in the house at times so a bit of work still to do to keep a safe distance.
Norman picked the teams and then got the colour of stones mixed up at the start, but his team of Sally-Ann, Alan and Luisella got off to a flying start with a 4. A reply of 2 in the next end for Joe's team of Alastair, Ian and Paul got the game well under way. Norman managed to score a single in the next in a busy house. Joe's team then managed to squeeze ahead with a 2 and then a steal of two in the next end. However, they didn't get the shots or the strategy right in the next end to lose a 5 and give Norman an unassailable lead which was only dented by a single reply in the final end. Another good game with a bit more variety of play. It is strange to watch shots go across the t-line without being furiously swept out.
We now have another game booked for the following Tuesday.
Norman picked the teams and then got the colour of stones mixed up at the start, but his team of Sally-Ann, Alan and Luisella got off to a flying start with a 4. A reply of 2 in the next end for Joe's team of Alastair, Ian and Paul got the game well under way. Norman managed to score a single in the next in a busy house. Joe's team then managed to squeeze ahead with a 2 and then a steal of two in the next end. However, they didn't get the shots or the strategy right in the next end to lose a 5 and give Norman an unassailable lead which was only dented by a single reply in the final end. Another good game with a bit more variety of play. It is strange to watch shots go across the t-line without being furiously swept out.
We now have another game booked for the following Tuesday.
first club to play game under covid19 restrictions
On Tuesday 29th September at 6:30pm we played our first game in the NCA under covid19 restrictions and we were the first club to do so. The players used WhatsApp chat to pick the teams, what colour of stones, decide who starts and where players would stand. On the day we gathered in the car park socially distanced, wearing masks to wait for the side door to be opened to let us go straight into the NCA rink. We then got our shoes on and disinfected our hands and brushes and got ready to play.
There was some rustiness to overcome and the ice felt slippy. The stones have all been recut so they were swinging from one side of the rink to the other unless they were spun more to keep them straighter. Getting used to circulating round the sheet while maintaining social distancing took a bit of getting used to as we all have our playing habits. We agreed to go clockwise, as most people sweep on the left so the non-playing team stood on the right.
As for the game itself it started with a bang for Ian Mackie, Sally-Ann Christmas and Norman Ainslie scoring a 3. Alan Watt, Alistair Christmas and Joe Kincaid slowly chipped away at the total with a single, then a single steal then their own 3 and another single. However, Ian kept his nerve and got it back to all square at 6 v 6 in the end. A fitting conclusion to our first game.
We then had to clean all the stones and change back into our outdoor shoes and we exited through the fire door at the back of the NCA. We agreed that it was great to be back and despite the rule changes and the moves required for social distancing, it was thoroughly enjoyable.
There was some rustiness to overcome and the ice felt slippy. The stones have all been recut so they were swinging from one side of the rink to the other unless they were spun more to keep them straighter. Getting used to circulating round the sheet while maintaining social distancing took a bit of getting used to as we all have our playing habits. We agreed to go clockwise, as most people sweep on the left so the non-playing team stood on the right.
As for the game itself it started with a bang for Ian Mackie, Sally-Ann Christmas and Norman Ainslie scoring a 3. Alan Watt, Alistair Christmas and Joe Kincaid slowly chipped away at the total with a single, then a single steal then their own 3 and another single. However, Ian kept his nerve and got it back to all square at 6 v 6 in the end. A fitting conclusion to our first game.
We then had to clean all the stones and change back into our outdoor shoes and we exited through the fire door at the back of the NCA. We agreed that it was great to be back and despite the rule changes and the moves required for social distancing, it was thoroughly enjoyable.
the club has a covid19 officer - ian mackie
As required by Sport Scotland and Scottish Curling we have appointed an official to ensure we comply with all aspects of Covid19 regulations and guidelines to ensure that everyone is kept safe while playing curling. Please give Ian all your support to make sure we all have a healthy season ahead, covid free. See more information on the role as defined by Scottish Curling.
we have launched whatsapp group
Another step forward for the club was the launch of WhatsApp and a special club group where people can quickly and effectively call for substitutes and post special notices for everyone where it is needed in a hurry. We need everyone on board, so all members should add it to their smart phone and sign up for it by emailing the President, John Brisbane with their mobile number.
we have lottery funding for curling equipment
Project ID: 20131942 Equipment for beginners of all ages to help learning to do curling
We want to be able to introduce people of all ages to the sport of Curling. At the moment there is no equipment available from our local ice rink. To help introduce people to our sport It would make a big difference to our efforts if we had this equipment. The people who would benefit are the new people to our sport that we try to introduce every year. We would expect to run it for 2 years minimum. We would use our website which we are upgrading at the moment plus promotion by our members. Hopefully we will learn from this as we have never had our own equipment before. It is a new project and we hope to be more successful in attracting more new members because we have our own equipment to do this.
We hope our project will bring together people in the community to enjoy a very sociable sport. Hopefully we can help people to reach their potential by giving them our support at an early stage. By having funding we should be able to at least help them achieve success.
We hope to achieve our goals by running come and try sessions funded by our members. We tried these out last year and had 4 people from the one family where 2 of them have taken up the sport and joined our club. This was achieved by borrowing equipment, if we had our own equipment we could have catered for more people but had to limit the numbers due to lack of equipment
We want to be able to introduce people of all ages to the sport of Curling. At the moment there is no equipment available from our local ice rink. To help introduce people to our sport It would make a big difference to our efforts if we had this equipment. The people who would benefit are the new people to our sport that we try to introduce every year. We would expect to run it for 2 years minimum. We would use our website which we are upgrading at the moment plus promotion by our members. Hopefully we will learn from this as we have never had our own equipment before. It is a new project and we hope to be more successful in attracting more new members because we have our own equipment to do this.
We hope our project will bring together people in the community to enjoy a very sociable sport. Hopefully we can help people to reach their potential by giving them our support at an early stage. By having funding we should be able to at least help them achieve success.
We hope to achieve our goals by running come and try sessions funded by our members. We tried these out last year and had 4 people from the one family where 2 of them have taken up the sport and joined our club. This was achieved by borrowing equipment, if we had our own equipment we could have catered for more people but had to limit the numbers due to lack of equipment
indoor grand match and british open postponed to 2021
Inevitably, given the uncertainty around where Scotland will be in October 2020, big events planned for that time have been postponed now until 2021. This included the Indoor Grand Match and the 75th Anniversary British Open, both of which announced postponement recently. As a club we have paid entry fees for both events and the participants have unanimously agreed to leave their payments with the respective organisers.
The Peak and Forthbank Closed. A statement from Active Stirling.
As you may be aware, we closed The PEAK and stopped all Active Stirling activities on 18 March due to COVID-19.
Since then our teams have been working remotely to provide community assistance where possible and an online Keep Active at home, stay well campaign with a timetable of online classes, exercises and activities to follow.
However, due to immediate loss of income from our core business and the need to protect the longer-term financial stability of Active Stirling in the future, we have made the difficult decision to furlough a significant proportion of our employees across the organisation with immediate effect until further notice.
We will now be operating short term with a substantially reduced number of employees, so we can keep identified elements of our business running, but unfortunately, we will no longer be able provide any partnership working.
In the meantime, we would like to send our best wishes to stay active, safe and well at home during these unprecedented times and hope we can be back working together again sometime in the very near future.
Since then our teams have been working remotely to provide community assistance where possible and an online Keep Active at home, stay well campaign with a timetable of online classes, exercises and activities to follow.
However, due to immediate loss of income from our core business and the need to protect the longer-term financial stability of Active Stirling in the future, we have made the difficult decision to furlough a significant proportion of our employees across the organisation with immediate effect until further notice.
We will now be operating short term with a substantially reduced number of employees, so we can keep identified elements of our business running, but unfortunately, we will no longer be able provide any partnership working.
In the meantime, we would like to send our best wishes to stay active, safe and well at home during these unprecedented times and hope we can be back working together again sometime in the very near future.