Interval Timing or Timing From the Back Line to the First Hog Line

I setted up that system of timing in 1992. The idea was to help the sweepers evaluate the speed of the rock to improve their weight jugement. That theory was one of the 12 tasks to obtain my level IV coaching certification.

At that time we were using a countdown stopwatch setted at 3.5 seconds. The idea is to start the stopwatch when the rock reach the back line and listen the sound of the stopwatch when reaching zero. The location of the stone at the sound tells the sweepers where the rock is going to stop.

After three weeks of training, we made a test to verify the effectiveness of the system. Our skip threw 10 draws ; the sweepers had to tell where they beleive the stone was to stop and they had to make their prediction when the rock was near the first hog line. We got exceptionnal result ; our sweepers never miss by more than one foot. Than, we knew we had put together a very succesfull system.

Countdown stopwatches behing difficult to find, many teams used regular stopwatches and stopped it at the first hog line. The interval timing was born.

Even though, at the beginning, the only goal of the interval timing was to help the sweepers juge the speed of the rocks, we soon found more advantages to that system. That method allowed us to find the speed of the rocks. If one or many rocks were different for draw weights, the interval timing was showing that difference. It also means that this system helps to match the rocks before or during a competition.

I remember a very special situation. At the 1993 World Junior Championship in Grindlewald in Switzerland, we had to play with horrible rocks and before one particular game I had to tell my team that I could not match the stones since there wasn’t 2 rocks the same. I told the players to manage the best they could with that situation. Beleive it or not, these curlers were making their draws with a lot of precision. At the fifth end meeting, I asked them how they could manage to make their draws with these rocks and they said : « Using the interval timing the lead tells us the speed of each rock ».

Indeed, we know that when one ear the sound of the countdown stopwatch right at the hog line, the speed of the draw is 26,5 seconds (from back line to stop) and with a little experience one knows the speed of the ice according to where the sound is listened. We also know that 10 feet for a draw equal one second for the draw weight.

During that game at the Grindelwald World Junior Championship, the sweepers could tell to each player on the team the speed of each rock. For example, if the sound of the stopwatch is eqivalent to a 27 seconds draw and that stone stop one foot in front of the house, we know that this draw is half second light. Therefore the draw weight for that rock is 26.5 seconds.

The same method may be applied when using a regular stopwatch by timing the time for the rock to travel from the back line to the first hog line. After a while one knows the speed of the ice (or the rock) according to the time obtained.

More and more highly competitive teams use this interval timing method. Most of them utilize a regular stopwatch. My personnal preference goes for the countdown stopwatch since only one touch at the start is needed and there is no stop. The margin of error is reduce in comparison with a regular stopwatch which needs a second touch to stop the timer at the hog line. Moreover, the sweepers have to read the time after stopping the watch which is not the case with the countdown system.

If you haven’t tried this method of timing yet ? You should go for it. It is easy to get use to it.