Life In The Crokicurl National Championship

Life In The Crokicurl National Championship

 

When was the last time you realized you were in over your head? For us, the Crokicurl National Championship in Altoona, Wisconsin, brought that reality really fast. Although many teams had curling experience, we had never touched any stone that slid over sheets of ice until two days before the big tournament. Our only goal was not to finish last. See how we did in this new sport that has taken Canada by storm and is now rumbling in the Midwest.

What Is Crokicurl?

Crokicurl is a combination of the popular Canadian crokinole board game and curling. Last year we attended the championship game and wrote an article explaining more about it. Check it out!
Now Is The Perfect Time To Crokicurl

From No Experience To Practicing With Minnesota Curling Team Members

Last year, our son, Tim, and I decided to enter after watching the National Championship.

This year we decided to join the league and play in the championship. Thursday night’s league game was our first time touching the stones, or any curling stones for that matter. We quickly decided we needed some practice before Saturday’s championship, so we stopped by the Crokicurl rink on Friday night. We went to 44 North, next to the rink, for the keys but had to return to get our license. A couple of minutes lost was a curling team from Brainard, Minnesota’s gain. They beat us to it. We watched from the rinkside for a few minutes before they invited us to join them for some practice games. We played for about 45 mins until they left then we practiced a little while longer. That’s all the practice we had until tournament time.

 

You Never Know What Might Happen

 

When we arrived at the Crokicurl National Championship at 7:30 Saturday morning, I sent a text to Kristi saying that we would probably move to the consolation bracket after the first round. Of course, she said to stay positive because you never know what might happen.

Our game time came, and to our surprise, we won! Next, we checked the bracket to see who we would play next. The music abruptly stopped playing in our inward victory dance party. Our spirits dropped when we saw our next opponent finished in second place last year.

Again, I sent a text to Kristi stating that our next stop would be the consolation bracket. But hey, at least we get to play one more game. Once more, she reminded me to stay positive because you never know what could happen. I told Tim that we have to go down with a fight.

Crokicurl Showdown

The sets were the best of five games. We lost the first one, so I had to focus that much harder. After four games, we were tied 2-2. Will it be our opponent going to the consolation bracket or us? I was doing everything I could to make sure it wasn’t us.

Facing elimination, every shot count. My eyes focused on each short slide of the stone, slowly back then forward again, making sure my stone’s line was straight to the center of the rink before I delicately released it. We were in the middle of a crokicurl showdown. If I missed, it would be game over, then relegation to the consolation bracket.

This game started with each player making their shot in the center hole. No player missed dropping the stone in the center hole, one shot after another. This continued into overtime for twenty-four shots. With each shot, the pressure mounted, and the crowd grew quieter.

Who Would Miss First?

 

At the beginning of the game, the crowd loosely talked and cheered, but as each shot slid into the center hole, they became quieter. Eventually, I heard dead silence as everyone watched intensely to see who would be the first to miss the target, thus ending the game.

This went on for twenty-four shots. Twenty-five shots later, I missed. It was devastating. We were on a roll, and I let our team down. My stone barely skimmed the outside of the hole, then kept sliding until it stopped a whopping forty inches away. Not even close to the hole.

Game over.

There’s no way the other team would miss, given that they are that good. I stared at our opponent, knowing it would go in just like twenty-four times before. I watched his stone slowly glide across the ice. From my angle, It was a sure shot. Dead on. I began inching toward him to shake hands and accept defeat while watching his stone make its way across the ice.

 

Oddly enough, his stone skimmed the hole’s edge too! I still thought we lost because his stone looked closer than mine. Ironically, the ref and Altoona City Administrator, Mike Golat, also measured an astonishing forty inches. Holy cow, we’re still in it! After all of this, we were still tied. Really, what are the chances of this happening?

 

The Winning Shot

 

Straight across from me, I watched Tim get ready for his turn. He remained calm under pressure as he focused on getting the right technique. Just like clockwork, his stone dropped in the middle to give us a slight edge. But again, our opponents don’t miss, so I anticipated another tie when his next stone dropped in. Our turns go in clockwise order, so on my right, I’m watching our opponent take his turn. Again, another shot moving dead on center.

 

None of us wanted to overshoot the target, so this game’s overtime strategy was to let the stone slowly slide across the ice and then gently drop into the hole. Our teams, and the crowd, watched his stone slide across the ice in what seemed like slow motion. As its casual glide moved towards the center hole to tie the game once again, I held my breath while simultaneously starting to mentally prepare for my turn. I watched in disbelief as his stone lost speed just before the hole, then stopped inches away. Tim and I were in shock. We won the game with Tim’s winning shot to move on to the next round.

After this round, we had a lunch break. Chili was served inside the warm River Prairie Center, along with hot chocolate and coffee.

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We Meet The Minnesota Team Once Again

 

Our next opponent was the same curling team we practiced against from Minnesota. They beat us three games to one, but we picked up some new strategies. Now, we dropped into the consolidation bracket only to lose again to another curling team. Even though our luck ran out, we had a great time and learned a lot for next year.

2022 National Crokicurl Champions

Congratulations to the 2022 National Crokicurl Championship winning team of Greg Jochimsen and Chris Staack!

Would you like to play in the Crokicurl National Championship? It’s held at the River Prairie Park in Altoona, Wisconsin. Contact the Altoona Parks and Recreation Department at 715-839-5188.

According to Debra Goldbach, the Crokicurl National Championship director, we finished either 5th or 6th. Should we round up and call it fifth, or should we say we tied for 5th? What do you think?

Final Thoughts

You don’t need to be in good physical shape to play crokicurl, plus it’s great for families. We have also discovered that crokicurl is perfect for small towns. Crokicurl helps people to get active outside in colder winter months. Look into bringing crokicurl to your town too. Playing crokicurl is a blast!Most importantly, this moment makes me a proud father.  

 

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