A Pane in the Glass
Bill Tschirhart's A Pane in the Glass
Bill Tschirhart has been involved in coaching the sport of curling for many years. I was first introduced to Bill in 1990 when he was coach of the University of Waterloo varsity curling teams. Since then, Bill has held coaching positions provincially and nationally, coached at both national and international events, and at one time was Curling Canada’s national development coach at the Curling Canada’s National Training Centre (NTC) in Calgary.
Over the years Bill has published a number of articles about coaching the sport of curling, both in print media and on the web, and in addition launched an online blog a number of years ago. Bill recently retired to the community of Grand Bend, ON on the shores of Lake Huron.
Most recently, Bill has taken “A Pane in the Glass” to the airwaves, and now runs a podcast of the same name available on most platforms (see below).
Several of Bill’s many individual articles can be still found on the internet. However, in 2010 Bill published a compendium [1] of selected articles, along with additional material from other contributors who include:
- Bob Comartin, now retired, of Curling Canada’s Performance Enhancement team;
- Wendy Morgan, former Canadian national Wheelchair curling team manager and coach;
- Toby Macdonald, national coach and 1976 Brier champion from Newfoundland;
- Lindsay Sparkes, former Canadian national coach and Olympic medallist (with skip Linda Moore in 1988 at the Calgary games);
- and several other contributors including Bill’s daughter Susan.
Collectively the volume is called A Pane in the Glass: A Coach’s Companion and the book has an enormous wealth of material for coaches of all levels. The book consists of 298 pages of packed material, along with an Appendix with diagrams, drills (from “Drills to Die For“), scoring sheets, and other useful coaching material.
Regrettably, the book is no longer available in print form. Readers who are interested in acquiring a complete copy of the book in PDF format can email Bill and, in consideration, make a donation to the Sandra Schmirler Foundation.
We are pleased to provide here, with Bill’s permission, a selection of his many articles from A Pane in the Glass in downloadable PDF.
Articles from A Pane in the Glass
A Pane in the Glass Podcast
Recently Bill has moved to the airwaves to bring his coaching expertise to his listeners through another channel. His podcast, naturally entitled “A Pane in the Glass Podcast”, is available on iTunes, Amazon, and a variety of other platforms. His most recent pods appear below.Â
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Exciting News About Youth Curling In Canada
by Coach Bill on October 4, 2026 at 3:00 pmIn this episode of "A Pane In The Glass Podcast" we hear from Dustin Mikush of Curling Canada and Jill Brothers of Nova Scotia Curling. They bring exciting news for youth development in Canada.It’s your turn! Send me your thoughts by texting here!
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Have Youth Sports Become Too Expensive?
by Coach Bill on September 28, 2026 at 3:00 pm
In this episode of "A Pane In The Glass Podcast" I use an article from McLean's magazine written by Claire Gagne. The topic is the cost incurred by parents whose children play sports (& not just at the elite level). As you might guess, it can be expensive but you might be shocked to learn just how expensive. To conclude the episode I talk about the recently played Presidents Cup, a biannual golf competition started by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, involving professional golfers from the USA and other countries of the world (except Europe). I weigh on why "team" matters plus decorum on the part of spectators. I make reference to an episode from Season Two (#25) that you might find interesting in connection with team v. individual performance. It's entitled " Win As Much As You Can". It’s your turn! Send me your thoughts by texting here!
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The Chair Of World Curling's Athlete Commission
by Coach Bill on September 21, 2026 at 2:00 pm
As the title of this week's episode indicates, I chat with the newly appointed chair of World Curling's "Athlete Commission", Harri Lill from Estonia. We talk about the Athlete Commission plus curling in general. Harri welcomes anyone who wishes to contact the Athlete Commission (athlete.commission@worldcurling.org) to not hesitate to do so!It’s your turn! Send me your thoughts by texting here!
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Rules Are Worthless Without This
by Coach Bill on September 15, 2026 at 2:00 pm
In this episode of "A Pane In The Glass Podcast" we take a look at perhaps the most important part of the rule book for curling, the codes of ethics (and you'll notice I used the plural from of the noun ethics because there's more than one of them). World Curling has announced the names of individuals who have been inducted into its Hall of Fame. I talk about Team Ferbey and Glenn Howard. The curling rule book has been standardized across the curling world including a rule about "double touches". The sound bite this week is about a G.O.A.T. It’s your turn! Send me your thoughts by texting here!
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Now Hear This
by Coach Bill on September 8, 2026 at 5:00 pm
In this episode of "A Pane In The Glass Podcast" there will be sound bites, five in total. Click on "Chapters" above these show notes to see the topics and where you can go to hear them!It’s your turn! Send me your thoughts by texting here!
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Time Spent With Emily Is Time Well Spent
by Coach Bill on August 17, 2026 at 4:00 am
In this first-of-a-kind double feature episode of "A Pane In The Glass Podcast" I welcome back Emily Riley, elite athlete (curling) and Mental Performance Consultant. It was simply time to catch up with Emily, with no planned agenda for our midsummer chat but one quickly emerged about how quadrennial planning has affected curling and that morphed into a discussion about the culture of sport. When we finished our chat more than 45 min. had elapsed which prompted me to make this week's episode that aforementioned "double feature". The topic switch occurred at the 27:30 mark. Enjoy!It’s your turn! Send me your thoughts by texting here!
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Simon Says
by Coach Bill on August 10, 2026 at 2:00 am
In this episode of "A Pane In The Glass Podcast" you will hear the words of Simon Sinek American author & dynamic inspirational speaker. This episode is a Simon Sinek sound bite that touches on a number or areas regarding leadership (think coaching) with special emphasis on the Millennial generation. If that's you and I suspect many of my listeners are either in that generational group or work with those who are, then you've come to the right place! I have unpacked the topics that Simon addresses in "Chapters" above these show notes. I believe you will want to return to portions of the sound bite that might have particular relevance for you!It’s your turn! Send me your thoughts by texting here!
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The Sounds Of Summer '26
by Aylex on August 2, 2026 at 5:00 am
In this summer episode of "A Pane In The Glass Podcast" I bring eight sound bites, each with a thought provoking premise. I urge you to check out the "chapters" section above these show notes to see the topics of the sound bites and where to find them on the episode. It’s your turn! Send me your thoughts by texting here!