Webinars and video
Setup and Delivery Fault Analysis
In this webinar, presented in May 2023, I describe in detail the elements of the no-lift curling delivery and outline several of the common setup faults that I frequently observe with various athletes at every LTCD stage. In the latter part of the talk, I focus on two symptoms of what usually turn out be setup problems: drift during the forward slide, and a fishtail motion with the trailing leg.
This webinar was produced for the Ontario Curling Council and is available on the OCC's YouTube channel.
The Gauntlet Drill
In this webinar, presented in December 2021, I describe in detail the Gauntlet Drill that I use very frequently to assess an athlete's line of delivery (LOD) and diagnose delivery problems including setup issues and release issues. I also consider issues of ocular dominance in the curling delivery and potential remedies for players with opposite-eye dominance.
This webinar was also developed for the Ontario Curling Council and is available on the Council's YouTube channel.
Introduction to Strategy and Tactics
I presented this webinar in March 2023. It is a very basic introduction to curling strategy and tactics and is targetted at U18 athletes and their coaches. Topics include strategy overview, defence-first, offense-first, and balanced attack approaches to the game, what constitutes an end plan and a game plan, shot selection, and degree of difficulty. I conclude the talk with some example scenarios that, while very simple, offer a starting point when discussing strategy and tactics with young and/or inexperienced players.
This video is also available on the Ontario Curling Council's YouTube channel.
Building a Brushing Strategy
I presented this Ontario Curling Council webinar on Building a Brushing Strategy in October 2019. In the talk I discuss some of the fundamental elements of brushing: force profiles, brushing with a partner, weight judgment, team communication, along with the effects of brushing using different tactics in the context of a team's brushing strategy - that is given a specific shot and set of conditions, what is the plan for brushing the shot to maximize the possibility of a successful outcome.
While the talk is from five years ago and we have learned a little more about things like directional brushing through additional experiments, along with research from other individuals, the bulk of the talk is still quite applicable, especially to junior teams and their coaches.
This video is also available on the Ontario Curling Council's YouTube channel.
Open Footwork Trainer
In this video I present a specially-modified gymnasium sled that can be used to train athletes in brushing in a snowplough position. The idea behind this apparatus is to train the athlete to be comfortable with keeping their feet behind their hips, staying on the balls of the feet, and generating power by producing a pelvic press while striding forward. The trainer is more fully described on the Curling in Ontario website.
Closed Footwork Trainer
This video demonstrates the use of a dryland footwork trainer intended to help a curling athlete keep their feet behind their hips when brushing in a closed stance. The idea is to help train the athlete to be comfortable with keeping their feet behind them and support their body weight entirely using their upper body.