Q. Where does the club play?
A. All our club nights are held at The Waterfront Leisure Centre, Greenock.
Q. How long does a curling game last?
A. All club games last for 8-ends or 2 hours.
Q. When does the club normally meet?
A. We normally meet most Wednesday evenings at 8:00pm during the curling season, which runs from mid/end of September to the end of March. However, due to ice availability we may occasionally meet on other evenings.
Q. Do I have to play every week during the season?
A. No. We ask you for your availability over a given period, i.e. the next few weeks, and we allocate the rinks and fixtures based on our members availability. You may not be allocated a week you have said you are free, but you may still be invited to play as a substitute on those nights if someone else withdraws.
Q. Does Dumbarton have any restrictions on membership?
A. There are no restrictions on membership. Dumbarton Curling Club is an Equal Opportunities club, and membership is open to male and female curlers of all ages and physical abilities.
The only caveat to our membership policy is if a member is under 16 years of age, where we ask that a parent or guardian is present at the rink if possible.
Q. What curling experience do you need to join Dumbarton Curling Club?
A. No experience is required. If you have never curled before we can provide a quick introduction to curling before you play your first game, but the time will be restricted. We therefore encourage and advise that you book at least one try curling session at any rink running try curling or beginners sessions for a more intense and longer introduction to the sport. These can be booked directly from the www.trycurling.com website.
Q. Is coaching provided by the club?
A. The club does have a fully qualified coach with a valid “Protecting Vulnerable Groups” (PVG) certificate, which is a mandatory requirement to be registered with Scottish Curling.
We currently don’t run any formal coaching sessions on a club night, as those are normally reserved for our internal club competitions, however, we may occasionally run a non-competition night where we may organise some formal coaching.
Q. What curling equipment do I need in order to play?
A. All you need is a pair of clean training shoes and a warm jumper. All other curling equipment is provided.
Q. How much does it cost?
A. The ice-fees are currently set at £16.00 per 2-hour session for a regular club night at The Waterfront. Ice-fees may differ for external competitions depending on where the matches are played.
Q. Are there any annual membership fees?
A. The annual membership fee for Dumbarton Curling Club is £25. This membership fee is waived for new members in the first year with the club.
There is an additional annual fee of £25 due to Scottish Curling. The annual fees are due when you join the club, and thereafter by 31st July each year to allow us to pay Scottish Curling.
Q. Do you run any competitions during the season?
A. Normally we try to run 6 club competitions during the season. Unfortunately, we haven't been able to run any competitions during the 2021/22 season, but we are hoping to start running them from the 2022/23 season.
Q. Can I play in every club competition?
A. Yes. There is no restriction on the number of club competitions you can play in.
Q. Will I be able to play in any position?
A. In your first year with the club you will generally play at lead or second irrespective of your experience. We normally set one competition as a reverse position competition where inexperienced players will get the opportunity to play at Skip or Third for that competition. Although we encourage everyone to play in different positions, you do not have to play at Third or Skip if you don’t feel comfortable playing there.
Q. Does the club compete against other curling clubs?
A. Yes. Dumbarton enters most competitions run by Dunbartonshire 10th Province. We also represent the Province at Inter-Province competitions such as the Waldie Griffiths (a national competition run by Scottish Curling), the Gilmour Trophy (against Renfrewshire Province) and the Clive Thompson Quaich (against Glasgow Province).
We also compete in the District Medal, a competition run by Scottish Curling, and the Waterfront Super League.
The club also organises 2 other competitions. The Lennox Cup, which is a competition between the curling clubs from the Lennox District, namely Helensburgh, Cardross and Dumbarton. We also play an annual challenge match against Cardross for the Brownlie Shield.
Q. Will I be able to play in external competitions?
A. Yes. The standard is higher in external competitions, and as such we generally play or more experienced players in these games. We do provide opportunities for all members to play in external competitions.
Q. Doe the club hold any social events?
A. Prior to Covid-19, we held 3 social events every year.
- Pre-season dinner / Opening Bonspiel
- Christmas / New Year Dinner
- End of season dinner – Annual General Meeting (A.G.M) and Prize giving
Since Covid-19, we've only been able to hold AGM's. We will be looking to bring back the social evenings in the near future.
Q. Is Dumbarton Curling Club affiliated to the sport’s National Governing Body?
A. Yes. Dumbarton Curling Club is fully affiliated to Scottish Curling, also known as the Royal Caledonian Curling Club (RCCC).
Should you require any further information then please feel free to Contact Us.
