As with curling, it is vital to take your time, New Zealand Curling Association chairman Sam Inder says. Don’t rush it. Let them acclimatise gradually. And only put them on the ice when ready.
So the 64 new stones that arrived at the Naseby Indoor Curling Rink from Scotland last week were not on the ice yet but being stored nearby to allow them to adjust to the temperature of the rink before being used.
The stones had been bought for the upcoming international Winter Games curling event in Naseby in August but would make their official debut a month before that, at this month’s under-21 national curling championships in Naseby, Mr Inder said.
At present the stones are in a storage space at the end of the rink, below rink level, where the temperature is about 6degC.
Mr Inder said the staggered introduction to the ice was vital for the stones, which were made of Ailsa Craig granite and the best in the world, made by the premier producer of curling stones, Kays Scotland.
The curling stones had been bought through a hire purchase arrangement with the assistance of the World Curling Federation, Mr Inder said. They would be paid for with the Naseby rink’s own funds and reserves.
They are the first new stones to be bought by the Naseby rink since it opened 12 years ago. The rink’s existing set of stones would be kept and used for social and visitors’ curling, Mr Inder said.
When asked what made a good curling stone, rink manager Ewan Kirk said "a good curler".
"It’s a bad carpenter that blames his tools," Mr Inder said.
