Curling: The History, the Players, the Game

Warren Hansen's 1999 book, Curling: The History, The Players, The Game, is probably the best general book on the sport of curling. The biggest problem with it is that it's out of print and hard to find. (I borrowed a copy from the Edmonton Public Library.) Hansen, director of event management and media relations for the Canadian Curling Association, is a former Brier winner and founder of national curling schools. He is uniquely well placed to write this book. Warren Hansen begins the book with the story of his own love of curling and his curling career. The story is well told and there is no hint of self-indulgence in his telling it. He then provides a relatively brief history of curling - again, interesting and well told - before moving on to a discussion of the growth of competitive curling in Canada. Hansen then gives brief biographies of 19 top men's and women's skips. Making such a list is, of course, a minefield. Some may quibble that all 17 Canadians chosen for this list - from Ken Watson to Sandra Schmirler -- hail from Ontario or, mainly, the Prairies. But it's hard to dispute Hansen's list and one has to give him credit for treating fairly those such as Ed Werenich with whom he crossed swords in his job with the CCA. All in all, he does an admirable job of recapping the careers of these skips and no doubt had to dig through some archives to provide such full accounts. Hansen goes on to provide a thorough analysis of how to develop a good delivery - his description of that alone is well worth the price of this book. He analyzes curling strategy in light of the development of the free guard zone in the 1990s. The book concludes with 2 1/2 pages that examine the future of curling. This little conclusion has the qualities that permeate the book. It is honest, objective, fair and interesting. This book is also well and thoughtfully illustrated. My only complaint is that the section on physical conditioning for curling is far too brief and contains the bizarre advice that "the recreational player needs to spend only about five minutes" a day on aerobic conditioning. Nevertheless, a lot of planning, hard work, research and quality editing went into this book. It is a true classic. One can only hope that an updated version will soon find its way into print.