Aug 3, 2018 Edition

Aug. 3, 2018
 

Dear USCA Member Clubs, States and Regions,

Here is the next edition of USCA Tapas for your information and sharing with your membership. Have a good weekend.
 

Rick
 

What happened in the previous two weeks:
 

Events/Sport Education

• If curling in Hawaii is on your bucket list, check out this Curling with Alohaopportunity.
• Twenty-one junior curlers ages 16-18 make up the second running of the Junior High Performance Program Developmental Pool.
• A USCA Ice Technician course will take place Sept. 8 at the Evergreen Curling Club in Beaverton, Ore.
• Tickets are on sale for Curling Night in America being held at the Chaska Curling Center Aug. 27-29. This event features all of the 2018 Olympic Team curlers competing against teams from China, Japan and Italy in a made-for-TV event that will air in nine episodes on NBC Sports Network October – December.

Competitive Programs
• USA Curling’s Paralympic program team of Steve Emt, Kirk Black, Matt Thums and Pam Wilson won the ninth annual Cape Cod International Summerspiel, defeating Canada 7-2 in the final and posting a 7-1-2 record overall. Other competitors came from Slovakia, Czech Republic, Cape Cod, Green Bay, the East and Northeast coastal areas, and there was also one team consisting entirely of U.S. military Veterans.
 

Grants/Sponsorship/Revenue Development
• Sponsorship prospecting packages have been sent to key executives at nine spirit/brewing brands as part of an effort I am working on with 21 Marketing.
• I met with Said Hakim, CEO of USA Curling sponsor ISS Ice, Sports & Solar, during a stopover of his whirlwind trip through North America visiting with curling clubs that has shown interest in the company’s portable ice mat system. During this trip, Said will have visited with the Lake Tahoe Epic Curling Club, San Francisco Bay Area Curling Club and Palmetto Curling Club, among others.
• The U.S. Olympic Committee has confirmed a total resource allocation offer of $4.4 million for the 2019-22 quad. The USCA qualified for multi-year funding commitments with the gold medal Olympic success and meeting professional standards within the operations and governance aspects of the organization as well.
• Check out the Take 5 Daily digital magazine from USA Curling sponsor Thorne for some great tips on nutritional health and stress relief.
 

Inside the Curling World
• The Key Items of Agreement coming out of the July 26 USCA Board of Directors meeting have been distributed. This includes information about the Board’s approval of a membership dues increase for the coming season. A Town Hall teleconference was held Thursday evening.
• The World Curling Federation will hold an International Wheelchair Curling Classifier Workshop in Lohja, Finland Nov. 8-9, immediately after the World Wheelchair B Curling Championship. This workshop is open for those with an interest in curling who have a background as doctors, physical therapists or occupational therapists.
• I had a good call with members of the Hollywood Curling Club who are working hard on the development of a new, dedicated curling ice facility in Los Angeles.
• The House has passed the //medium.com/@sfia/in-historic-vote-u-s-house-of-representatives-passes-the-phit-act-88610f9e302d" target="_blank" style="text-size-adjust: 100%; color: rgb(43, 170, 223); font-weight: normal; text-decoration: underline;">P//medium.com/@sfia/in-historic-vote-u-s-house-of-representatives-passes-the-phit-act-88610f9e302d" target="_blank" style="text-size-adjust: 100%; color: rgb(43, 170, 223); font-weight: normal; text-decoration: underline;">ersonal Health Investment Today (PHIT) act, which would allow the use of pre-tax savings accounts for physical activity-related expenses. It now moves onto the Senate. Passage of this bill could allow for the deduction of curling-activity related expenses.

Communications/PR
• The USA teams that will compete in the new Curling World Cup have been announced.
 

What’s up next week:
• Hawaii Charity Curling Classic planning call, Tuesday.
• WFG Continental Cup 2019 planning call, Friday.
 

What’s coming two weeks from now (Aug. 12 – 18, 2018):
• Strategic discussion call regarding Curling Canada/USA Curling joint project on The Success Files and Hit, Draw, Tap projects, Aug. 15.