Colourful tam o'shanters and knitted woolly jumpers lit up Naseby's frozen Centennial Ponds on day one of the national bonspiel yesterday.
However, layering up was only part of the action. Staying warm on the ice during the competition also required a ''curler's cocktail''.
Cardrona Curling Club president John Harridge (64) said his cocktail had brandy, ginger wine, and port, while Mackenzie Curling Club's Bruce Anderson (83) preferred to sip on whisky.
Standing on one end of the rink sharing a jovial toast together, both agreed that ''deviousness would be a good strategy'' to win the game.
Mr Harridge, who described himself as ''a poised pensioner'', said curling was a mix of competition and camaraderie, and day one of the tournament was no exception. It was ''just the best fellowship game I have come across in my life'', he said.
Otago Central Curling Club member Ross McMillan (86) was at the bonspiel supporting his club and agreed having a ''tipple'' was part of the game.
He started curling at bonspiels in the 1950s but now attended as a spectator, and to remember his friends, because ''there are not many of us left''.
More than 300 curlers and spectators descended on Naseby for the two-day event, the village's first national bonspiel in 80 years. Curlers from 32 curling clubs answered the call for a bonspiel after they were contacted on Saturday.
The competition was not just an event for the older people.
West Coast Curling Club member Cole Stanton (28) said it was his first bonspiel but curling was a ''family tradition'' and he had played it for eight years.
Two other West Coast members could not get time off work so the three Greymouth players combined with Gore players to form a team. They were nonetheless hopeful of winning.
Mr Stanton and another player from his club were also ''nominated'' for initiation into Curlers' Court but they had no idea what to expect, he said.
When asked about the secretive Curlers' Court, New Zealand Curling Association chairman Sam Inder kept mum.
''I could tell you, but I would have to kill you,'' he said.
A small crack in one of the ponds sent water into a small section of the ice during the morning but curlers were not deterred.
Naseby Curling Council president Jock Scott said day one of the event was ''hugely satisfying."
''It was going to be a big call to stage a national championship here."
He said the crack in the ice would not be a worry going into the second day, and he was expecting another hard frost which would make for another ''brilliant day of curling''.
Mr Scott spent the day helping with catering and running the event, but had pencilled in some time on the ice this afternoon.
Full results for the day were not available but Otago Central won the morning round with two wins and 53 points.
Lowburn and Blackstone Hill took two wins and 50 points, with Lowburn finishing in second place on a countback.
National bonspiels were traditionally held at the Idaburn Dam in Oturehua but there was not enough ice on it for competition this year.
