I'm all about the curling now. Why not, it's the stuff NBC puts on its Siberian-exile channels for daytime viewing. Oh sure, Lindsey Jacobellis was competing herself into a DQ on Tuesday afternoon but that HAD to wait for tape delayed coverage in prime time, according to the network gurus.
So instead of grousing about it and after having seen enough of cross country skiing, I tuned into games where the weather doesn't matter and faces aren't covered up with masks. Curling rules have always eluded me and the action, when compared to moguls skiing or short track speed skating, was glacial at best.
But having become an avid golf fan and watching players try and control a golf ball on the lightning fast greens of Augusta National and the sites of the U.S. Open, I understood the precision of it all. The rest of curling reminds me of shuffleboard maneuvers, so if you combine the putting green and a shuffleboard court you've got curling ... except it's on a sheet of ice.
The U.S. teams had a rough day on Tuesday as the men lost to Germany and the women lost to Japan but I got to know enough to be dangerous when talking about it. Throwing the rock, putting it in the house or on the button and successfully executing a double take-out are now part of my vocabulary.
I also enjoy watching men and women competing on the same surface without the dimensions being shortened or made easier for our gender. The U.S. women's team captain, Debbie McCormick began competing at the age of 13 and has amassed five national championships. After being shut out of the Olympics in 2006, McCormick is all business and ready to go.
The U.S. men's team won bronze in Torino and hope to do better this time around. Canada, the current holder of the gold medal in curling is favored to repeat. So onward and upward I say, and off I go to watch Debbie McCormick and her team take on the German women.
Paula publishes daily sports stories on Examiner.com