West Kildonan home of emerging sport

Wheelchair curling sweeps its way into Winnipeg

West Kildonan may soon be home to Manitoba’s newest and emerging sport - wheelchair curling.

“The first question I always get asked is ‘How do you wheelchair curl?’” says Richard Dudek, a member of Team Manitoba and a driving force behind the creation of the team in Winnipeg.

It’s quite simple, actually.

“Well, of course, it requires a wheelchair,” says Dudek. “We use the full sheet, we don’t sweep, we allow people to brace the thrower (in the chair.)”

To throw the rock, they use an extender stick. The extender stick looks very much like a broom stick, except for a hinged piece of metal on the bottom designed to hold the handle of the curling rock.

The sticks are made locally and cost about $75 each.

Some wheelchair curlers use one arm on the stick to throw the rock, others use two, but the result is the same.

“We have all the same rules as regular curlers.”

Dudek says the idea for the team began about two years ago.

Dudek, a lifetime curler who was recovering from a foot amputation, wanted a way to continue playing his favourite sport.

He got together with a few like-minded people and started a team, negotiating their way into the West Kildonan Curling Club’s Friday night fun league, where they play against able-bodied teams.

Dudek says West Kildonan Curling Club has embraced the team more than he thought they would.

Club president Tim McGinn says the members were receptive.

“Members want to see the sheets used,” says McGinn. “There have been no complaints. Members complain about sheets not being used.”

Dudek says volunteers and even opposing team members have been very helpful when Team Manitoba plays.

“They’ll help brace us, get the rocks ready, sweep the rocks off for us,” he says.

McGinn says he thinks the extender sticks give the wheelchair curlers an advantage over the able-bodied curlers, but the lack of sweeping evens things out.

There are currently two teams in Manitoba with plans to add two more and about a dozen others scattered across Canada, says Dudek.

The growing popularity of the sport means that the club is planning about $100,000 worth of renovations to make it more accessible, including parking, power-assisted doors, a new front entrance and an elevator to the second floor.

The club will also be hosting the Canadian Wheelchair Curling Championships in 2008.

Dudek says anyone who wants to try the sport can contact the Manitoba Curling Association or the West Kildonan Curling Club for more information.

“We’re always looking for more people.”