Americans are not too familiar with the sport of curling having seen it primarily on TV every four years during the Olympics. But cross the border into Canada and it’s an entirely different story as many schools include it as part of the P.E. program and it’s a rare town of any size that doesn’t have an ice rink designed for curling.

It is surprising then to find women in Coeur d’Alene who venture across the border to enter a bonspiel, or curling tournament, something that originated in Scotland but is now played throughout Europe and various British countries such as New Zealand, Australia, and Canada.

Even without an ice rink in the area, a group of nurses from Kootenai Memorial Hospital including Charlene Miller, who has worked there for 34 years, decided to start the rather informal Coeur d’Alene Curling Club. The inspiration likely came from four nurses who were raised in Canada and who had been curling for a number of years.

Not having an ice rink is not a problem because. Charlene says, “The people from Creston, British Columbia will give us instruction. All we do is call up and say, ‘Hey, we’ve got some new members. Could you give us a little instruction?’ They have an instructional video and give us ice time. Then it’s pretty much on-the-job training, if you want to call it that.”

“We’ve had as many as 15 women go curling and one time as few as four,” Charlene says. Members of the club range in age from their 30s into their 70s. The bonspiels, or tournaments, are not divided by age or ability. Charlene compares it to a bowling tournament in this country. They usually play three or four games, which last about an hour and a half.

Asked how they have done she laughs and says, “We’re happy to score a point.” Then she adds, “Actually, over the years we’ve gotten better.”

“We don’t go there to take the tournament because we know that’s not going to happen. But the Canadian people are very gracious to us. They love to have us come, they absolutely do. They’ll give us instruction when we’re out on the ice, suggesting, ‘You might want to do this or might want to do that.’ They’re not pushy.”

“We almost always curl in Creston but also in Fruitdale and Salmo. Some of the gals have been to other places but basically just over the border. We usually go three times a year, always have a good time, and they look forward to seeing us.”

The enjoyment factor is a big reason for the club. Charlene explains that the bonspiels are bracketed so you might be curling at 8 A.M or 10 P.M. “You never know,” she says.

Between matches, there is a chance to look around town and have fun. “We shop and do a little partying. Creston is a nice town. They’ve just built an athletic center and it’s absolutely beautiful. We always have to hit the bakeries; they have terrific bakeries, the pharmacies to get the meds you can’t get here, and the liquor store for liquor.”

The husbands don’t travel with this all-woman curling club to the bonspiels. The team has shirts that say, “Coeur d’Alene Curling Club” and “When Hell freezes over we’ll curl there too.” Obviously these women have a good time.

For those not familiar with curling, it resembles shuffleboard on ice. A “rock,” which weighs 42 pounds, is slid along the surface of the “sheet,” which is like a bowling lane of ice. The object is to make the rock land on the “button.”

“You want to maneuver your rock into the button, or want to take out another rock,” Charlene explains.

Four people make up a team and essentially take turns sliding the rock, and then using brooms in front of the rock to adjust its speed and direction. A “skip” stands at the end of the sheet to direct the others on where to throw the rock.

“We do not look anything like the curlers on TV,” Charlene says with a laugh. “We’re not nearly as smooth but over the years we’ve had some good rocks. We do okay.”

The rocks are supplied at the rink. The ladies have brooms and some have special shoes while others just wear tennis shoes. “You can get real elaborate with sliders, and shoes, and a timer, timing how many times the rock curls down the ice. But not us,” she laughs again.

“We go to have fun but we’ve gotten better. They always have a banquet, and most of the places have a theme. We get a little crazy dressing up for the themes.”

Interest in curling seems to pick up after the Olympics and then fades as time passes. The club could use a couple more women who have a keen interest in the game. But if you join, plan for a good time.