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04-29-14 12:32PM |
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MiniMark
Hitting Paint
Registered: Jan 2012
Location: DeWitt, MI
Posts: 100 |
2014 USA Curling Arena Championships
June 12-15, 16 Men's and 16 Women's teams from around the country will gather just outside of Lansing, Michigan to take part in this 2nd Annual USCA Championship event. Demand for this event has grown yet again this year. Very psyched to be hosting it, looking forward to some great curling, great ice, and great friends. If you're looking for a chance to work on or keep current with your Official Certification requirements, this is a great opportunity for you. On-ice officials, timing supervisors, and game timers are all needed. C'mon out!
Mark
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06-02-14 01:48PM |
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USAnewbie
Harvey Hacksmasher
Registered: Feb 2011
Location:
Posts: 42 |
Getting this back on the radar since its June 12-15th, here is the list of teams. Any predictions?
Women's field, 16 teams:
Broadmoor (Colo.): Rachel Sethi, Dena Rosenberry, Amilia Knight, Rochelle Sandstrom-Knight
Charlotte (N.C.): Sylvia Jennings, Stacie Pinnavaia, Carol White, Lara McLaren
Cincinnati (Ohio): Deborah Coviello, Janet Clifford Brown, Renee O'Connor, Stephanie Simpson
Circle City (Ind.): Tamera Hoffman, Sandra Jennings, Lisa Wieland, Susan Fleck, Caryn Thompson
Curling Club of Virginia: Mary-Colleen Millage, Kirsten Collins, Katie McCartney, Christine Alessa
Dallas/Fort Worth (Texas): Shana Healer, Lisa Henry, Allison Peterson , Carrie Scarlata
Kalamazoo (Mich.): Stephanie Senneker, Pamela Nelson, Nicole Brinkmann Reeves, Valerie Hart-Young, Barbara Little
La Crosse (Wis.): Toni Paisley, Laura Mitchell, Sydney Schieffer, Erin Hofland
Lansing (Mich.): Lisa Hamm, Corinne McElwee, Callie Hamm, Claire Blaske
Oklahoma: Jessie Hopper, Kristy Witzke, Angela Strange, Darcy Maelzer
Palmetto (S.C.): Ann Wiggins, Nicole Plant, Sherri Odlevak, Lisa Cobb
Pittsburgh (Pa.): Jacki Temple, Daphne Roberts, Beth Lehman, Amanda Marchitelli, Paul Schultz
San Francisco (Calif.): Cindy Beck, Keri Dikos, Melissa Aaron, Gabrielle Coleman
San Francisco (Calif.): Sarah Walsh, Kimberly Chapin, Emily Schermerhorn, Emily Kimmel
San Francisco Bay Area (Calif.): Erin Rhode, Jessica Tudor, Katie Mordarski, Adriana Camarena
San Francisco Bay Area (Calif.): Davinna Kong, Christina Altus, Loreen Makishima-Wolf, Jennifer Lin
Men's field, 16 teams:
Broadmoor (Colo.): Guy Scholz, Kevin Lyons, Gordon Harrison, Nathan Mascarenas
Charlotte (N.C.): Jeremy Hozjan, Brady Gould, Doug McLaren, Patrick McKee
Cincinnati (Ohio): Darrell Brown, David Forcum, Daniel Coviello, Shawn O'Connor
Circle City (Ind.): Doug Pearson, Robert Jennings, Wes Hoffman, Daniel Louks
Curling Club of Virginia: Brent Cooke, Richard Collins, Joshua Leggette, Sam Sparks
Dakota (Minn.): Shawn Slane, Ryan Claussen, Anthony Mayerhofer, Nicholas Hydukovich
Dallas-Fort Worth (Texas): Laith Sando, Stephen Kleppe, John Lambert, William Sadoo, Steve Walton
Kalamazoo (Mich.): Garnet Eckstrand, Kent Elliott, Marcus Gleaton, Chris Gleaton, Thomas Deater
Lansing (Mich.): Mark McElwee, Wyl McCully, Gerrit Smith, Allan Blaske
Long Island (N.Y.): Andrew Ness, Michael Greene, John Paccione, Frank Buquicchio
Oklahoma: Mark Ngo, Jeremy Witzke, Dylan Smith, Chris Strange, Bruce Maelzer
Palmetto (S.C.): Daniel Fort, Ryan Smith, Matthew Jones, Kurt Wagner
Pittsburgh (Pa.): Mark Robinson, Brian Stuart, Steve Buffington, Daniel Bliss
San Francisco Bay Area (Calif.): David Wiesen, Alex Baxter, Daniel Myers, Westin Kurlancheek
Vikingland (Minn.): Troy Dittberner, Jason Rauk, Scott Threinen, Andy Siira, Daniel Rooney
Windy City (Ill.): Matt Galas, Gregory Stewart, Jeff Sampson, David Jamros
__________________
Yea, Curling!
Last edited by USAnewbie on 06-02-14 at 02:29PM
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06-02-14 04:46PM |
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rbi
Hitting Paint
Registered: May 2014
Location:
Posts: 143 |
Gotta pick the Kalamazoo squad to repeat on the men's side. The Dallas team that they beat in the finals last year is changed a bit for this year.
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06-02-14 04:49PM |
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rbi
Hitting Paint
Registered: May 2014
Location:
Posts: 143 |
for the women... gonna go out on a limb and say that San Francisco has a 1-in-4 chance of winning. :-)
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06-03-14 10:03AM |
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USAnewbie
Harvey Hacksmasher
Registered: Feb 2011
Location:
Posts: 42 |
quote: Originally posted by rbi
for the women... gonna go out on a limb and say that San Francisco has a 1-in-4 chance of winning. :-)
I know right...should just rename it the California championships.
Two issues I have with this:
1) Clubs Teams were placed 1st in line for guaranteed spots if both a men's and women's team entered. If the women's team had to drop out, the men's team should have lost their place (as there were 5 other men's teams that were on the wait list, clubs that have yet to be represented in the arena championships).
2) Also, the fact that they were begging for another women's team to make it an even 16 teams on each side instead of taking 14 women's teams and 18 men's team (2 off of the men's wait list)....I'm all about equal opportunity, but again there were men's teams on the wait list...just sayin'
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Yea, Curling!
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06-03-14 11:38AM |
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curlky
Drawmaster
Registered: Oct 2013
Location:
Posts: 559 |
USA Newbie, I understand your logic on both of your points, but tend to disagree, especially with point 2. Having an 18 person draw (remember it is double knockout not round robin) makes it a bit more asymetrical. The 16 team concept is much more balanced with all teams playing equal games and no byes.
Out of curiosity, are you a member of one of the clubs that did not get in to the event?
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06-03-14 12:24PM |
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USAnewbie
Harvey Hacksmasher
Registered: Feb 2011
Location:
Posts: 42 |
quote: Originally posted by curlky
Out of curiosity, are you a member of one of the clubs that did not get in to the event?
No, I am a member of one of the clubs that is sending representatives to the event.
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Yea, Curling!
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06-03-14 03:36PM |
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VAcurler
Hitting Paint
Registered: Jan 2012
Location:
Posts: 136 |
Assuming this is a 5 sheet arena setup, why limit the teams at 16 of each gender?
Run it as a straight 3 event bonspiel with the 8 semi-finalists from the events going into a 6 team playoff with the first event qualifiers getting the bye (1st loss drops to the second event, second loss drops to the third event, 3rd loss and you're out).
If there's space (depending on the number of teams) have a 4th event for fun.
For a lot of these curlers, this will be the first time they've ever played on championship ice so turning away teams seems unnecessary.
Any chance of expanding the field next year?
Jason
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06-03-14 04:16PM |
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curlky
Drawmaster
Registered: Oct 2013
Location:
Posts: 559 |
VA Curler, I may not understand your suggestion on how to run this event, since I feel like it is being run how you suggest already, and fail to see how to make it better. This is the current format.
5 Sheets
16 Men's Teams
16 Women's Teams
Double Knockout in terms of winning the overall championship
3 game guarantee for all teams.
So 16 teams go into the A event. Once you lose a game in the A event you drop down to the B event. The top 2 from the A event and the top 2 from the B event play the overall semifinals.
Lose in the B event, and you drop down to the Consolation event. Losing there eliminates you from future games.
Looking at the ice time to make this format work, there are 5 draws per sheet per day for Thursday, Friday & Saturday, and then 2 draws on Sunday. (In full disclosure, on Saturday there are 3 open draws where the ice on a single sheet is not being used.) So for the most part, the ice is completely being used, so I don't know how you add more teams since that would need more ice time.
One thing that needs to be remembered for this event, is that you cannot have it in such a way that losing a single game will prevent you from winning the championship. Since there is no Order of Merit points, or anything similar it is practically impossible to seed this event. So there is too great of a chance of having the top 2 teams play in the first round of the draw.
And remember, this is not a bonspiel, this is a National Championship for Arena Curling. You may or may not have high feelings for the event, but it still needs to be constructed fairly.
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06-03-14 04:24PM |
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jhcurl
Super Rockchucker
Registered: Sep 2002
Location: US - CT
Posts: 1431 |
It is a 5 sheet setup and being run almost like a TKO. Starts Thursday morning at 8am with finals on Sunday at 12:30. Expanding the field would require extra days or sheets. The initial idea for this year was to do 20 men's and 16 women's but that would have required an extra day or longer days as 4 extra draw times were needed. That was the original double KO with consolation.
Please, if anyone has a better draw than feel free to submit it to the USCA for next year. 8 end games with pre-game practice and draw to the button. Time for ice maintenance between games. Needs to fit into 4 days with a early afternoon end on Sunday. A qualifier type process with playoffs rather than an "event" type spiel. I have helped with the draw for two years. This one also had the benefit of mixing the men and women together for draws.
JH
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06-03-14 11:57PM |
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VAcurler
Hitting Paint
Registered: Jan 2012
Location:
Posts: 136 |
I wasn't accounting for the pre-game practice (30 minutes) and a scrape between every draw when I suggested expanding the size of the field. That limits the number of draws per day to 5 instead of the six (plus one scrape after 3 draws) that we can use during a bonspiel.
Thanks for the clarification.
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06-04-14 07:40AM |
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tuck
Super Rockchucker
Registered: Dec 2005
Location: St. Thomas, North Dakota
Posts: 2613 |
I have to predict a Broadmoor sweep this year. Mostly because I think that the Potomac transplant, Sethi, can pull it off...but also because I got a signed copy of Guy Sholtz's book (not the good one about Sandra, the other book Between the Sheets which is also pretty good).
The Texas team is skipped by a North Dakota golfer. Sando is the son of Cathy Sando who has a couple of US Women's bronze medals from back in the day. Her son, however, never curled very much. Good athlete, but mostly played hockey and golf.
Ben Tucker
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06-04-14 12:52PM |
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jhcurl
Super Rockchucker
Registered: Sep 2002
Location: US - CT
Posts: 1431 |
The Pittsburgh teams should be tough especially the guys. They spend a lot of time traveling to spiels so have lots of exposure to dedicated/better ice.
JH
what, you thought I would be rooting for someone who left the GNCC?
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06-05-14 09:39AM |
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MiniMark
Hitting Paint
Registered: Jan 2012
Location: DeWitt, MI
Posts: 100 |
Whoa!
Don't peek at CZ for 2 days and this thread blows up! Nice!
A lot of lessons were learned last year in Fort Wayne, and a lot more will be, and actually already have been, learned after this year in Lansing. I am hopeful that this event will continue to progress and improve over time with continued support from arena clubs across the nation. It has been a lot of work pulling this together but I think it is really shaping up. Worth it.
If a host steps up with 5+ sheets next year, the demand to increase the field seems to be there, at least on the men's side. The ladies side also had an increase in entries from last year. There were a couple of late withdrawals due to injuries and such, which is why the whole SFBACC is heading east. Kinda like a reverse "Beverly Hillbillies." What they don't know is that they all have to do a shot of "The Judge" before we'll let 'em in.
Brooms Up! will be here with their gianormous trailer, ready to sell! They are a great sponsor of USA Curling.
Follow the event- live scoring on CurlingZone!
Facebook- US Arena National Curling Championship
Twitter- #2014ArenaNats follow@CurlingZone and @terry_usacurl
No webcast- a discussion for a later time.
Now, for entertainment purposes only...I cannot pick a winner because I am playing in it too. But, 5 consecutive regional championships and no love from tuck? He clearly hates front end players.
2 sets of new rocks being delivered tomorrow, ice prep starts Monday morning (Kevin Madsen, Quentin Way, 2 other gents from MN), teams rolling in Wednesday...someone wake me when it is June 16th!
I hope everyone has a great time here in Lansing!
Mark McElwee
Co-Chair and Boss In General
2014 Arena National Championships
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06-05-14 05:42PM |
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tuck
Super Rockchucker
Registered: Dec 2005
Location: St. Thomas, North Dakota
Posts: 2613 |
Mark, write a good book...get it published...autograph a copy and send it to me for free. Until then, I'm picking Guy.
I would be picking Ngo, but I'm not certain how to pronounce it and Witzke hasn't promised any free appetizers.
Ben Tucker
Arena Curling Expert
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06-06-14 03:05PM |
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rbi
Hitting Paint
Registered: May 2014
Location:
Posts: 143 |
+1
would like to learn more about why there won't be a webcast. webcasts have been such a great development for USA curling over the past couple of years. would like to see one at every event. even w/o commentary is better than nothing.
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06-06-14 03:52PM |
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jhcurl
Super Rockchucker
Registered: Sep 2002
Location: US - CT
Posts: 1431 |
Webcast. Contact the USCA, most likely Terry Kolesar.
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06-07-14 07:44AM |
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MiniMark
Hitting Paint
Registered: Jan 2012
Location: DeWitt, MI
Posts: 100 |
Patience, grasshopper
quote: Originally posted by curlky
No webcast, why discuss at a later time. Why not just explain?
All in due time. I need to focus my energy in a positive direction to produce the best quality event for the participants.
Mark
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06-08-14 08:34PM |
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curlky
Drawmaster
Registered: Oct 2013
Location:
Posts: 559 |
From your tone, the reason for no streaming is not yours. And I would assume that it is not something simple, like we don't have cameras.
I cant understand why USA curling would organize an event and not stream it, even without announcing. If someone at USA curling is responsible for no streaming, I think it is fair to go ahead and say what happened. If this is internal to the Lansing club, then an answer of something like we just couldn't get everything organized to make it happen.
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06-09-14 08:01AM |
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AlanMacNeill
Super Rockchucker
Registered: Sep 2011
Location:
Posts: 1064 |
It is probably due to it being a "Nationals", therefore property of the USCA and USOC (seriously, check the agreements), therefore you can't webstream it without going through a ton of legal crap, which no one had the desire to do for what they perceive as a third Tier event.
(please note, I am not saying it's a 3rd Tier event, I'm saying that in the minds of the USCA and USOC, it is...the curlers in this aren't on the HPP and Worlds track, so they get no resources).
I understand that "NBC and the USOC own the rights, we gotta work around them" makes sense for "real" Nationals...but when they write the contracts next time, there really should be a default "If you aren't going to televise it, the rights revert to us automatically" clause...preferably, IMO, draw by draw.
Of course, that'll never happen, because USOC is a multi-tentacted parasite that destroys the grassroots of sports it comes into contact with in the name of "MEDALS!!!!"
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06-09-14 10:50AM |
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VAcurler
Hitting Paint
Registered: Jan 2012
Location:
Posts: 136 |
The USCA owns the rights to all digital and TV productions from all USCA championships (which includes the Internet and web streaming rights), and has licensed these to the U.S. Olympic Committee for an annual payment that helps support the growth and development of curling in many different ways. (direct quote from Rick Patzke before Mixed which also did not have a webstream)
Additionally there are minimum standards required to stream including multiple cameras and a minimum upload speed.
Not saying I like it, just relaying the facts. The kids were looking forward to watching our friends curl.
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06-09-14 10:57AM |
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AlanMacNeill
Super Rockchucker
Registered: Sep 2011
Location:
Posts: 1064 |
and by "many and different ways" they mean allowing them to continue focusing more and more on fewer and fewer curlers.
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06-09-14 12:27PM |
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curlky
Drawmaster
Registered: Oct 2013
Location:
Posts: 559 |
So Mark, are you willing to confirm that the above speculation is correct?
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06-09-14 04:18PM |
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rbi
Hitting Paint
Registered: May 2014
Location:
Posts: 143 |
yikes, i hope that's not it
if that speculation is accurate then we might never see arena nationals streamed in the future either. it's never going to be big enough for USOC to care about it, and yet a lot of USA curlers would enjoy seeing it. even if the quality is not the best.
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