Oct 1st 2023 Schedule
Practice Ice @ OCC
The Ottawa Curling Club has graciously offered short practice ice time slots to the Rainbow Rockers Curling League this coming Thursday/Friday/Saturday (September21-23).
Practice ice will be available for Rainbow Rockers and OCC members at the times listed below on a first come, first served basis (no booking). Practice ice during these times will be limited to 15-20 minutes per member, dependent on demand.
- Thursday, September 21: 3 pm to 7 pm
- Friday, September 22: 3 pm to 7 pm
- Saturday, September 23: 2 pm to 6 pm
ALSO … See the post below for an update to our season.
Important Pre-Season Information/Updates
UPDATE ON LEAGUE MEMBERSHIP
We are pleased to report that season registration is now complete and we have 42 confirmed teams this year. With 5th players included, we’ll have a record 181 league members this year, and a healthy spares list of 15-20 people. We’re also excited to welcome more than 20 new members to the league!
Thanks to all those who came out to T’s on September 13 for the registration event – it was great to catch up with folks and nice to see how excited people are to start the season (even if it means saying goodbye to summer!).
BEGINNER’S CLINIC – SEPTEMBER 30
If you’re new or relatively new to curling you are strongly encouraged to register for the pre-season Beginner’s Clinic taking place on Saturday, September 30 from 2:00 – 6:00 p.m. at the Ottawa Curling Club. The clinic will be led by experienced league members and include off-ice and on-ice instruction. There is a registration cost of $10. Some equipment may be available but you’re best to bring your own. To register, please send an email to [email protected]. The deadline to register for the Beginner’s Clinic is Saturday, September 23.
INTERMEDIATE CLINIC – NOVEMBER 4
Save the date! This year the league is excited to offer an intermediate clinic for members looking to hone their skills, on Saturday, November 4 from 2-7pm at the Ottawa Curling Club. We are teaming up with Olympian and World Champion Lisa Weagle, as well as other professional and experienced coaches, to offer a clinic for intermediate level players covering both the technical and strategic aspects of the game. More details to come soon!
NAME TAGS
As in past years, the league will be providing all new members with a metallic name tag that you can choose to wear when you play. If you are a returning member and would like a replacement name tag for a fee of $10, please send an email to [email protected].
EQUIPMENT
League members are responsible for having their own equipment to play (i.e., curling broom, curling shoes or slider, gripper, etc.). If you’re looking to get rid of old equipment that you have accumulated or are a new curler looking to buy used equipment, we invite you to have a look at the RRCL “Buy/Sell” spreadsheet that can also be accessed from the RRCL website. New equipment can also be purchased online or in stores (e.g., Goldline Curling store on Colonnade Road). There is no longer a Goldline store at the Ottawa Curling Club.
SEASON OPENING AND SCHEDULE
League games will start on Sunday, October 1st. After each draw on opening day, we will serve pizza to all league members or spares in the club, so if you have a bye that day come on in and socialize with us. Members of the executive will be on hand after each draw to chat or answer any questions you might have.
The list of divisions and schedule for Round 1 will be available shortly. Keep an eye out for an email in the coming days!
Upcoming Season NEWS !
***IMPORTANT INFO CONTAINED BELOW **** PLEASE READ ALL OF IT *****
Although it’s still summer and we have Ottawa Pride this weekend, your executive team is busy planning for the 2023-2024 Rainbow Rockers curling season.
We are expanding to 42 teams this season – the biggest the Rainbow Rockers Curling League has ever been!
BUT …. THAT’S NOT THE ONLY NEWS …. we have lots of interesting information to share with you below ….
Please read this entire post to be aware of the upcoming events, and so you don’t lose your spot on your team.
The following topics are included below:
- PRIDE curling event this weekend
- Final Registration deadline/details
- Beginner’s Clinic – Saturday Sept 30th
- 1st Round bye requests
- Opening Day curling & pizza
- OTRB 2024 update
PRIDE Curling Event – Sat/Sun August 26/27
The Inflatable Street Curling Rink setup on Bank Street (near Slater) will have you hurrying hard in no time! We are still looking for a few more volunteers to help people give it a try. If you can spare an hour, please contact Andrew ([email protected]).It’s a lot of fun and was a hit last year. Please consider giving an hour back to the league to help us out.
Final League Registration – T’s Pub Wednesday Sept 13th – 5pm-8pm
All players must pay the remaining balance of your 2023-2024 season curling fee by 8pm on September 13th ($160 for most people, $100 for 5th players, assuming you have paid your deposit). Payment can be made in person by card, cash, or cheque at the T’s Registration Event on September 13th, or by e-transfer to [email protected] if you cannot attend the event. If you have any questions about your amount owing, we’ll be there to answer on September 13th or you can send an email to [email protected]. We have a waiting list, so if you don’t pay by the deadline, there are others who would like to take your spot! 😊
You are invited to join us at T’s Pub on September 13th between 5pm and 8pm for discounted drinks and to pay your outstanding registration fee. Come out to reconnect with your team and league members, meet our new members, and strategize for the upcoming season! More details about the event can be found in the post below.
Skips will receive an email from the Membership Coordinator by September 1st seeking their validation of the composition of their teams (members and positions). Skips, please keep an eye out for that e-mail!
Beginner’s Clinic – Saturday Sept 30th
There will be a beginners clinic Saturday afternoon at the Ottawa Curling Club. It is important for ALL new curlers to attend this clinic on Saturday afternoon. It will involve off-ice and on-ice coaching, and will be a great refresher for those who have curled only a year or two – details to follow soon. New curlers … save this date.
1st Round bye requests
Round 1 of the season will begin on Sunday October 1st and will continue on the following dates ==> Oct 15/22/29, Nov 5/12/19/26, PLUS Saturday November11th. If your team needs a bye, skips please email Patrick ([email protected]) to request a bye BEFORE September 17th.
Opening Day curling & pizza – Sunday October 1st
League games will start on Sunday October 1st. After each draw we will serve pizza to all league members or spares in the club, so if you have a bye that day, come on in and socialize with us.
RRCL Executives will be on hand to answer any questions you have related to the league. You will soon be able to access league information, such as meeting minutes/financials/reports on our website, under the “League” tab.
OTRB 2024 update
The OTRB is now in January 2024 this season! See the website for all the details: https://rainbowrockers.org/otrb/
OTRB Registration opens Saturday October 14th @noon.
Hope to see you all at Pride or at T’s registration or both. Good Curling!
Your Rainbow Rockers Executive Team
Steve/Chad/Andrew/Russ/Kevin/Mike/Patrick/Bill/Brian
Over the Rainbow Bonspiel 2024
Attention 2SLGBTQI+ curlers and allies!
The 2024 Over the Rainbow Bonspiel (OTRB) is set to happen on January 25 to 28, 2024 at the Ottawa Curling Club, home of the Rainbow Rockers Curling League (RRCL). Note, this flagship event of the RRCL’s season and premier event among 2SLGBTQI+ curling leagues falls on a new weekend this year.
We are excited to host you at the club and in Ottawa for a fun-filled weekend. Please join us for great curling, fair play, good sportsmanship, courteous rivalry and all the camaraderie that goes with it.
The OTRB will be open to 40 teams with spots allocated to both local and out-of-town teams. More details will follow in the coming weeks. For now, curlers can expect a four-game guarantee that includes three round-robin games and a qualifier game, playoffs will consist of five divisions and prize money for the winning teams and runners-up have been increased significantly.
This always popular bonspiel includes many of the solid elements of past OTRBs as well as several enhancements this year, including added sponsorships, enhanced entertainment, a silent auction, plenty more prizes and giveaways, live streaming, live results, and much more. There will even be a prominent Canadian curler as our guest and keynote speaker.
Registration is expected to open in early October and more registration details will be posted in August.
Come! Curl on our ice and skate on our canal!
It will be Frozen but Fierce.
Bonspiel opportunity!
My name is Scott Cooke and I am a member/organizer for a gay sport league in Hamilton.
I am working closely with Goldline and Grandslam of Curling to get more LGBTQ2+ exposure in curling and we have a couple things coming up this year that I wanted to extend to the Ottawa Rainbow Rockers Curling League..
On Sept 23 us and Goldline will be hosting a UnitedWeCurl bonspiel to kick off the year at the Oakville curling club. We will be looking for both experienced and rookie LGBT teams to play (probably a recreational and competitive division). We will be sourcing teams from Hamilton and Toronto and wanted to reach out to see if there are any teams in your club that would be interested.
We are also working with Grandslam of curling to host pride nights at the October slam in Niagara and April slam in Toronto on a weekend with free tickets, potential ice time and meets with LGBT pro curlers.
I wanted to reach out and see if participating in any of these of initiatives would be of interest to your club?
Cheers!
Scott Cooke
[Interested curlers/teams should reach out to Scott directly at: [email protected]]