Rockslide 2020 has been cancelled due to the COVID-19 Pandemic that has led to the shutdown of all social gatherings and cancellation of sporting events throughout BC and the world. There is no way to know with certainty how long the shutdown will last, or the recover period to get back to our normal daily lives. We are committed to doing our part to “flatten the curve” keeping all of our participants, coaches, and staff healthy and safe. In addition, we are cognizant of the economic impact to families during this time. We look forwad to celebrating the 10th anniversary at the 2021 Rockslide Summer Camp when we can safely gather to enjoy the sport we all love.
Rockslide 2021: Dates TBD
Rockslide Summer Curling Camp, presented by the Optimist Clubs of BC, is camp staged over three and a half days filled with fun, friendship, socializing and curling.
During the camp, youth curlers aged 9 to 18 can work with BC’s top coaches.
Teams or individual campers are divided into four groups based on the athlete’s experience, age and stage of development. Curlers will learn the latest in technical skill development, strategy, team dynamics, mental performance, and get to connect with athletes and coaches from across BC and Canada.
What to expect
What you can expect from Rockslide:
- On-ice and in-class sessions with BC’s best coaches
- Extra curricular activities and team building fun
- Snacks, lunches and dinners are included
- Camp clothing and resources
- Lots of time on the ice
- Full Days (Start & End Times to be Confirmed for Thursday/Friday/Saturday/Sunday ends approx 1:30pm)
- Non curlers, new curlers and competitive curlers are welcome
Registration information
Early Bird: 2021 Pricing TBD (2020 Camp $475.00 Registered before March 15th, 2020) or Regular Pricing: 2021 TBD (2020 Camp $525.00 Registered after April 1st, 2020)
Registration includes:
- Lunches
- Snacks
- Dinners
- Camp Resources
- Camp Shirt
Register Here: 2021 Registration Form (re-open January 2021)
Accommodation
Accommodation: While accommodation is the responsibility of the camper and their families, Curl BC partners with our sponsor Best Western to block rooms at the Best Western Plus Kelowna Hotel & Suites.
Room Block: to be updated for 2021
Campers Can book online here: to be udpated for 2021
Note: Travel, breakfast and accommodation is the responsibility of the camper(s) and their guardians.
Gallery
A coach's perspective
We spoke to coaches Dean Joanisse and Darryl Horne about what they think the camp can offer young curlers.
How many years have you been coaching?
Darryl: I’ve been coaching for many years; it has probably been about 35 years. I have been to all but one of the Rockslide camps (there have been five). I’ve also been involved with similar camps in Alberta.
Dean: I’ve coached a lot over the years and done a bunch of other instructional stuff as well. I helped out at camps when I was a teenager and did a handful of years at the Four Foot summer camps. This year will be my second time at Rockslide.
Why do you think young curlers should attend Rockslide?
A camper's perspective
We spoke to Kylie Karoway who attended Rockslide with her new team in 2014. In her blog, she explains what she liked about it and why you should join her at camp this summer.
I first heard about Rockslide from my mom’s friend as her son was going so she suggested that my mom send me and my brother to it as well. I had just put together a new team so they decided to go too so that we could see if we worked well
as a team.
Before I went to Rockslide, I was starting to lose my enthusiasm for curling and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to keep curling but I had a great time at the camp. We did lots of different sorts of things when we were there. First of all we were put into groups depending on our skill level and I was in one of the lower level groups. Obviously, because it’s a curling camp, we spent quite a bit of time on the ice curling. We had the chance to work with different coaches on certain parts of our game like delivery. I had been curling for about three years so I knew all of the basics but I wanted to improve and work on certain skills ,so it really helped to focus on these with the coaches.
We worked on other things off the ice as well. For example, we did a session on conditioning and keeping in shape in the off-season so that you don’t get out there for your first game and feel like you’ll pass out! We also had some talks on things like mental preparation and ways that you can read your team and know their strengths so that you can curl better together. We did some fun team-building activities too. For one of them we were in pairs and we had an egg which we had to throw back and forth without breaking it and then we did a bigger version of that with the whole group where it was a water balloon which we had throw and stop from bursting. Another cool task that we did in teams was trying to build the tallest structure we could out of marshmallows and wooden poles without it falling over.
My favourite thing that we did during the camp was a mini-sports day. We were put into different teams which were named after animals (I was a donkey!) and we had to do a big obstacle course which included things like throwing boccia balls into buckets, jumping over chairs and sliding through a soapy tarp whilst being sprayed with a hose. It was so much fun and a great way to get to know new people.
The atmosphere at the camp was great. It was just like hanging out with friends. Because people come from all over BC, and even from Alberta, I didn’t know lots of people there but you spend 12-hours a day with your group so they feel like friends or family by the end of the week. I’ve kept in touch with about five or six new people who I met at the camp and we chat on Facebook so it’s definitely a good way to meet new people.
I had a great time at Rockslide, it was really good fun and my curling definitely improved. It also rebuilt my passion for the sport and inspired me to keep curling. I can’t wait to go to this year’s camp.
Kylie’s top 5 reasons to go to Rockslide
- You get to meet lots of new people. There are campers from all over BC so you make friends who you would never normally have met.
- You can work with lots of different coaches. Because there are so many coaches, there’s a variety of coaching techniques and ways of teaching which makes a nice change and you learn new things.
- It is great for team bonding. If you’re part of a team, it’s really fun to go together and get to know them better and find out how to work well together.
- Your curling improves. During the camp you do so many different activities that help your game and you learn new tactics and techniques which are really useful. It’s also a great introduction to the sport if you haven’t done it before as it’s like a tester trial. My cousin, who had never curled before, went to the camp last year and enjoyed it and he then curled for all of the last season.
- It will make you realise how awesome curling is. Going to Rockslide reinspired me and I rediscovered a new love of curling.
History of Rockslide
The first Rockslide was held in 2011 and brought 49 young curlers together! In 2012, 70 curlers worked with a great and professional coaching team to improve and fine tune their curling skills. In 2012, 69 curlers participate in the summer camp and in 2013, 73 curlers and 13 coaches and staff made for a fun and learning filled 3.5 days! In 2014, the camp also offered professional development for coaches. The coach camp expanded in 2015 and a bonspiel was added in 2016. The camp continues to grow and reach new participants.
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