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In 2016, the Bucks County Curling Club started an active Junior program. We have four goals:
  1. Introducing young people to curling as a recreational winter sport.
  2. Have fun while promoting a healthy active lifestyle.
  3. Providing a venue for organized games between young curlers.
  4. Developing the skills of existing young curlers who want to try for competitive excellence.
“Junior” in curling means anyone not yet 22 years old.  The BCCC Junior Program is geared for children as young as 10 up to 18 years old.
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Curling is a sport in which size, gender, strength, and speed are of no particular advantage. The helpful skills are balance, mental focus, and “touch”. In general, girls compete on an equal footing with boys.  Curling is also a very civilized game with a strong tradition of etiquette, consideration, and courtesy towards your opponents. Curling is a great way to meet people and make friends, while learning a sport you can play for a lifetime.
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Anyone from the age of 10 to 18 is welcome in the Bucks County Curling Club junior program, no experience required.  The Annual Junior Membership fee is $75 per year.  Membership includes Junior Membership to the United States Curling Association (USCA) and the Grand National Curling Club (GNCC) our regional curling association.

Junior Curler Leagues typically meet Saturdays at noon but check registration details for exact dates and times.  Each meeting is 1 1/2 to 2 hours with approximately 45 minutes to 1 hour of instruction, drills, and coaching followed by 30 to 45 minutes of practice or games.  We sometimes end each class with a couple minutes of open practice ice time.
Our typical session is 6 weeks and will follow the following guidelines for lesson topics.  
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Week 1:
  • Beginner- Orientation to the sport of curling: objective, scoring, positions, very basic etiquette.  Basic delivery and balance.
  • Intermediate- Focus on grip and release and sweeping technique.
Week 2: -
  • Beginner- Review balance and delivery and add focus on proper alignment.
  • Intermediate- Alignment review with weight control drills - guards and draws.  Timing and team communication.  

Week 3: 
  • Beginner- Review balance and alignment add focus on grip and release. 
  • Intermediate- Weight control drills - take-outs and peels.  Timing and team communication. 

Week 4: -
  • Beginner- Review prior week topics but add weight control.
  • Intermediate- Weight control drills - promotes and hit and roll.  Timing and team communication. 

Week 5: -
  • Beginner- Review prior week topics but focus on sweeping.
  • Intermediate- Basic strategy and tactics.  Playing with the hammer, without the hammer, and free guard zone tactics.

Week 6: - Focus on strategy, full game.

This schedule is adjusted based on the needs of the participants each session and is only meant to serve as a guideline.
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GNCC Junior Camp at Bucks County Curling Club
Discover.Curling@CurlBucks.org