FARMERS EXCEL 



AT 



RARE WINTER SPORT 



By Jim Thomson 

 Ass't Editor, lAA Record 



CAN you toss a rock? Gin you wield 

 a broom with more than usual zip 

 and zest.^ 



So you think only boys and house- 

 wives do suih tilings? Well, you'll find 

 out differently if you talk to farmers in 

 the neighborhood ot Triumph, a village 

 of 200 in northwestern La Salle county. 



Because for 61 winters three genera- 

 tions of these farmers ha\e belonged to 

 the most exclusive rock-tosiing, broom- 

 wielding fraternity in downstate Illinois. 

 It is the only organization of its kind in 

 Illinois outside of C^hicago. 



When the crops are in and freezing 

 winds sweep across the brown stubble- 

 fields of northern Illinois, members of 

 the Waltham Curling Club pull on their 

 jackets and overshoes, gather up their 

 brooms and curling stones, and head for 

 the three-rink shed at Triumph for a 

 night of their favorite winter sport. 



The club membership of 133 is com- 

 posed chiefly of farmers and practically 

 all of the farmers are members of the La 

 Salle County Farm Bureau. Farm Ad- 



THE COVER 



Cover picture shows a group 

 of La Salle county farmers play- 

 ing a game 

 t h e i r grand- 

 parents started 

 vmre than 60 

 years ago. Left 

 to right: Farm 

 Bmc-.u Direc- 

 tor W'lllis Wil- 

 snu, Don Fin- 

 ley, Art Krieser and Eldon Worsley. 



viser Fred A. Painter pointed out that the 

 Ophir and Waltham township area from 

 which the curlers come has for many years 

 been a stronghold of farm organization 

 in the county. 



Back in the winter of 1884-85, a tall, 

 black-bearded Scot named John Curhe, 

 recently arrived from Ayrshire, saw in 

 the northern Illinois winter season ideal 



This view across two rinks shows two 

 curling games in operation at the same 

 time. La Salle County Farm Bureau Di- 



rector limmy Webber (left) looks over his 

 shoulder to watch well-played "rock" 

 (right) slide near center of target. 



conditions for the -lOO-year-old Scottish 

 game of curling. Far better than his 

 native Scotland, he decided, because win- 

 ters here were longer and much colder. 



And according to club secretary-treas- 

 urer Willis Wilson, a county Farm Bu- 

 reau director, that is what the curlers wel- 

 come — a generous amount of cold 

 weather. It is never too cold to curl, 

 Wilson maintains. 



Curling is a sport that retjuires an ex- 

 traordinary sense of timing, control and 

 teamw'ork. In some ways it is similar 

 to bowling, but curlers tell you it recjuires 

 far more skill and daring. 



The curling rink is 46 yards long, more 

 than twice the length of a bowling al- 

 ley. At each end of the rink is the 

 "house," a circle 12 feet in diameter en- 

 closing three concentric bands generally 

 colored red, white and blue, giving the 

 appearance of a giant target. 



Four men comprise each team, in- 

 cluding a captain or skipper who directs 

 his team's strategy from behind the 

 house. The object of the game is to 

 slide the curling stone as (lose to the 

 center of the target as possible. Defen- 

 sive players on the team try to get their 

 rocks in "guard" position, thereby set- 

 ting up a blockade on the ice to add to 

 the difficulties of the opponent. 



The curling stone or rock, as it is 

 more commonly called, is shaped like a 

 pumpkin that has been stepped on. It 

 is hewn from granite of flint-like hard- 

 ness and has a handle attached to the 

 flattened top. A player uses two rocks 

 matched for weight and size. Each rock 

 weighs approximately 40 pounds and 

 virtually all are imported from Scotland 

 at a cost of about $.38 a pair. 



To the bowler accustomed to throw- 

 ing a 16-pound ball, tossing a 40-pound 

 curling rock is like heaving the kitchen 

 stove across the rink. Actually, how- 

 ever, it does not require as much effort as 

 one might think. 



10 



I. A. A. RECORD 



