Dakota Curling Club
Encyclopedia
The Dakota Curling Club is a not for profit corporation serving the cities of Saint Paul
and Minneapolis, Minnesota
and the surrounding suburbs. It is based in Burnsville
in Dakota County
.
was featured in the 2002 Winter Olympics
, popularity of the sport in the United States grew sharply, and in many cases new curlers were disappointed to find existing curling clubs already full. In response, curling husband-and-wife team Paul and Darcy Ellarby founded a new club to play in Burnsville
. After two complete seasons, membership has grown to more than 150 members, making the Dakota Curling Club the fourth largest club in the state of Minnesota.
The Dakota Curling Club is a registered not for profit corporation in the state of Minnesota and is run by a Board of Directors consisting of 11 club members. The Dakota Curling Club is a member of the Minnesota Curling Association and also of the US Curling Association (USCA)
The Dakota Curling Club currently plays at the Burnsville Ice Center, a skating arena owned by the City of Burnsville, Minnesota. Ice is rented by the hour, and league play is restricted to spring and fall dates due to the lack of available ice time during the prime winter months. (Hockey is King in Minnesota)
Markings for curling are permanently installed in the ice, using a system of vinyl mesh rings.
The lack of winter ice and the expense of hourly ice rental are constraining the ability of the Dakota Curling Club to grow beyond its current size. In response, the club is actively making plans to build its own facility within a 10 mile radius of its current location.
The presence of the Dakota Curling Club at the Burnsville Ice Center has brought attention to curling as an opportunity for new revenue streams in traditional ice arena facilities. The 2007 conference of the Ice Skating Institute
featured an event in which more than 400 ice arena professionals from all over the United States visited the Dakota Curling Club to learn about curling as a new revenue stream and to give the game a try.
Two Olympic-quality competitive teams have emerged from the Dakota Curling Club deaf curling program, making 2007 the first time the United States has been represented at the Deaflympics
in the sport of curling. Both Men's and Women's deaf curling teams achieved Silver medals at the 2007 Deaflympics, second only to Canada.
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city...
and Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
and the surrounding suburbs. It is based in Burnsville
Burnsville, Minnesota
Burnsville is a city south of downtown Minneapolis in Dakota County in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies on the south bank of the Minnesota River, upstream from the confluence with the Mississippi River...
in Dakota County
Dakota County, Minnesota
Dakota County is the third most populous county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The county is bordered by the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers on the north, and the state of Wisconsin on the east. Dakota County comprises the southeast portion of seven-county Minneapolis-St. Paul, the thirteenth...
.
History
The club was founded in February 2006 to help meet the growing demand for curling in the Twin Cities. After curlingCurling
Curling is a sport in which players slide stones across a sheet of ice towards a target area. It is related to bowls, boule and shuffleboard. Two teams, each of four players, take turns sliding heavy, polished granite stones, also called "rocks", across the ice curling sheet towards the house, a...
was featured in the 2002 Winter Olympics
2002 Winter Olympics
The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event that was celebrated in February 2002 in and around Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Approximately 2,400 athletes from 77 nations participated in 78 events in fifteen disciplines, held throughout...
, popularity of the sport in the United States grew sharply, and in many cases new curlers were disappointed to find existing curling clubs already full. In response, curling husband-and-wife team Paul and Darcy Ellarby founded a new club to play in Burnsville
Burnsville, Minnesota
Burnsville is a city south of downtown Minneapolis in Dakota County in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies on the south bank of the Minnesota River, upstream from the confluence with the Mississippi River...
. After two complete seasons, membership has grown to more than 150 members, making the Dakota Curling Club the fourth largest club in the state of Minnesota.
The Dakota Curling Club is a registered not for profit corporation in the state of Minnesota and is run by a Board of Directors consisting of 11 club members. The Dakota Curling Club is a member of the Minnesota Curling Association and also of the US Curling Association (USCA)
Playing facility and season
Markings for curling are permanently installed in the ice, using a system of vinyl mesh rings.
The lack of winter ice and the expense of hourly ice rental are constraining the ability of the Dakota Curling Club to grow beyond its current size. In response, the club is actively making plans to build its own facility within a 10 mile radius of its current location.
Notable events
The Dakota Curling Club was a featured presenter at the 2007 Summer Conference of the US Curling Association, speaking on the topic of building new curling clubs on arena ice. Following the presentation, conference goers attended an on-site visit to the club to meet with club leadership and arena staff. As a result, the Dakota Curling club has become known as a leading example of how to build new curling clubs in arena facilities and has consulted with new and prospective arena clubs all over the United States. DCC founder Paul Ellarby has also authored several articles published in the US Curling News concerning the operation of arena clubs.The presence of the Dakota Curling Club at the Burnsville Ice Center has brought attention to curling as an opportunity for new revenue streams in traditional ice arena facilities. The 2007 conference of the Ice Skating Institute
Ice Skating Institute
The Ice Skating Institute is a trade association for ice rinks, and also an international governing body for recreational figure skating. It was founded in 1959 in order to promote skating as a recreational activity...
featured an event in which more than 400 ice arena professionals from all over the United States visited the Dakota Curling Club to learn about curling as a new revenue stream and to give the game a try.
Deaf curling
The Dakota Curling Club is notable for its extensive support of curling in the deaf community, championed by deaf club member Herman Fuechtmann. In its first two years of operation, DCC has hosted two Learn To Curl events strictly for deaf curlers and as a result has introduced the sport to more than 40 deaf curlers in the region. (Flyer)Two Olympic-quality competitive teams have emerged from the Dakota Curling Club deaf curling program, making 2007 the first time the United States has been represented at the Deaflympics
Deaflympics
The Deaflympics are an International Olympic Committee -sanctioned event at which deaf athletes compete at an elite level...
in the sport of curling. Both Men's and Women's deaf curling teams achieved Silver medals at the 2007 Deaflympics, second only to Canada.