"Amazing" is the word I would use to describe this last weekend at the Canada Cup of Curling. This coming from someone who never thought much about the sport. Of course, I've watched a bit during the Winter Olympics and a few other times on TSN when there was no hockey to be seen (when Toronto was playing), but to actually go and watch it live - well I had nothing else to do so why not.

So I thought why not get there early. I got to the Rec-Plex and to my seat up in the restaurant where I am treated to a buffet dinner and an excellent view of the ice surface. What was home to an ice rink for our beloved Kootenay Ice had now been transformed into five separate lanes of ice for curling.

As I am sitting there and listing to the conversations of people around me - obviously they know a lot more about curling than I do - I hear bagpipes. Looking down, I can see the teams come.

Like I said, I have only watch curling a few times but I now who Martin and Howard are, and a few others whose names I didn't know. But as the weekend went on I would get to know them and even talk to them at the Patch (very sociable bunch, these curlers).

Then came the warm-up, each member got down on those foot things in the ice - I think it is called the hack - and pushed off, one after the other sliding down the ice with the greatest of ease, gliding for about 60 feet or more. Then came the few practice shots each with the rocks followed with the skip heaving one of the rocks down the ice trying to get the closest to the button. The closest to the centre of the two teams on that sheet of ice gets the hammer, which I am told is the last shot and very advantageous.

How good are these guys and girls? Well, when you have to have people come out and check to see who is the closest to the middle with a measuring tape and he difference is less than an inch, yeah, they are that good.

Then the games started, all five at once, both men and women from all across our country here in Cranbrook to show us how the sport can be played, how years of perfecting their skill has brought them here to share this moment with us and many others from around the country.

After this weekend you have made a few more fans of your sport.