Wheels now at Stirling

Stirling welcomes wheelchair curlers on to the ice. The elite have been using the facility since it opened. That's Jim Sellar in the photo above, a member of the GB wheelchair curling squad, practising at the rink. And last Thursday, The Peak hosted the launch of Stirling’s wheelchair curling section. The section is being run by Active Stirling and plans are in place for it to become an established club in season 2010-11.

Twelve wheelchair curlers took to the ice, ten of whom only started this year. During the first session, some curlers were shown the basics, while the more experienced players learned from Scottish wheelchair curling champion Jim Taylor (below). Jim was on hand to share some of his tips and secrets with the new curlers. Also coaching was elite wheelchair curling coach Judy Mackenzie who was recently coaching the Scottish Wheelchair Team in Norway.

Active Stirling Curling Development Officer Logan Gray was pleased with the launch day. He said, “This is a great start to wheelchair curling in Stirling. I hope it continues to grow into a successful club where wheelchair users can fully appreciate the social aspects of curling.”

Sessions will run on Thursdays from 2pm-4pm and any wheelchair user is invited to come along and try their hand at the sport. For more information contact Logan Gray at Active Stirling on 01786 432345.

Jim Taylor competing in the British Open at Kinross recently.

Other wheelchair curling news. The Star Refrigeration Wheelchair Curling National Pairs is on at Braehead this weekend. Nineteen pairs playoff in four sections. The draw can be downloaded from here. I note that Jim Taylor is on first at 5.30pm on Friday (October 30) against Paul Webster. The semis are at 1pm and the final is at 2.45pm on Sunday, November 1.

Photos © Skip Cottage

Wheels on a Wednesday

There was a lot of wheelchair curling news awaiting me in my email inbox when I got home this evening. Hugh Stewart's photo (above) shows the GB Paralympic Squad training last summer at Inverness - all six of them. L-R: Jim Sellar, Rosemary Lenton, Michael McCreadie, Aileen Neilson, Tom Killin and Angie Malone. Tom Pendreigh is the squad coach.

The news today, here, is that this squad has now been reduced to five. Rosemary Lenton (left) is the one who misses out. I saw her recently training at The Peak in Stirling (see here) and I'm sure she will be disappointed. So, while my best wishes go to the others as they embark on several hard months before the Paralympics, I have a thought today for Rosemary. I'm sure she has a big future in the sport still ahead of her.

In contrast to the two GB teams named for the Olympics, the Paralympic lineup is not certain. It will be interesting to see who will emerge as the team's skip.

Now, back in August, I mentioned Jim Taylor's efforts to raise funds for the Marie Curie Big Build Hospice Appeal, see here. That involved challenging the World Champions to a game at Stirling. The event was organised by Give Them a Sporting Chance, which is a registered charity giving carers and those with disabilities, of all ages, the opportunity to make their sporting or recreational dreams come true.

All credit to David Murdoch and his team for getting involved. Jim says, “Give Them A Sporting Chance provided seamless organisational skills and what can I say about GB Men’s Olympic coach David Hay and Team Murdoch taking on this challenge in the year leading up to Olympics? Fantastic! The whole event emphasised camaraderie, friendship and good sportsmanship. It was a surreal experience and passed by too fast.”

There's a lot of generous people out there! Jim has raised £1720 so far, and if you feel you can contribute, it's not too late, go here.

Here is the official record of the day. Front: L-R: Ian Donaldson, Jim Taylor, Angie Malone, Jim Elliott, Bill Masterton. Back: David Hird, Euan Byers, Peter Smith, Graeme Connal, David Murdoch, Andrew Bain.

A postscript. Active Stirling’s Curling Development Officer, Logan Gray, said, "Immediately after this event, there was an Active Stirling Come and Try opportunity for wheelchair curlers at The Peak. Four new wheelchair curlers turned up and thoroughly enjoyed learning the basics of curling and have come back for follow up coaching sessions. Wheelchair curling is a growing network with clubs being started all over Scotland and plans are now in place for Stirling to become a new centre for wheelchair curlers to take to the ice."