At the Elmira and District Curling Club we utilize the OCA Skill Awards program, a curling skills program developed and maintained by the Ontario Curling Association. Each curler receives a booklet outlining the set of skills they need to learn to earn a maple leaf-shaped badge that signifies their mastery of the curling skills at that level.
The OCA Skill Awards are applicable to both Little Rock and Bantam curlers. The fees the Ontario Curling Association charges for this program are covered by your Elmira and District Curling Club junior curling fees.
The OCA Skill Awards program comprises six levels: Little Rock, Red Challenge, Blue Challenge, Bronze Bar, Silver Medallion, and Gold Star. Primarily we concentrate on the Red and Blue Challenge levels for Little Rock curlers, and this year we’ll introduce Bronze Bar and (possibly) Silver Medallion levels for those curlers who have reached that level.
At each level, the curler must demonstrate a set of curling skills, ranging from open draws at the Red Challenge level, take-out shots at the Blue Challenge level, to much more advanced technical skills at the Bronze and Silver level. With each level, the curler must also correctly answer written or multiple-choice questions about curling technique, strategy, or the rules of the game. The skills outlined in these OCA Skill Awards brochures are identical to those skills that we practice on-and-off the ice in both practice sessions on Sundays and in bonspiels and exhibition games.
The OCA Skill Awards are a symbol of achievement. Both the crests and their accompanying personalized certificates are keenly sought-after at the end of the curling season in March.