New skipper at Granite Club

Laura Johnston knows how to skip a curling team.

Now she is the new skipper for the entire Granite Club.

Johnston has an impressive curling resume on the ice and now she hopes it will continue to be just as impressive off ice. Johnston has been a driven player and she expects that drive to succeed to continue, as the new general manager of the North Bay Granite Club.

Curling clubs were forced to shut down, some for good, over the last two years, trying to cope with COVID-19. The Granite did a wonderful job staying open, with some exceptions, during that twoyear period.

Johnston says remarkably, the club gained some members during the pandemic.

“There were a lot of new people coming to the sport during the pandemic, despite some shutdowns. For the most part our member base grew.”

Johnston admits club management had to be creative.

“People just looking to try something new through COVID-19, we were able to offer a social distancing type, three-person curling, lots of adaptation that we were able to do.”

Johnston adds the snowbirds staying in North Bay did not hurt numbers either.

“We do offer a trimester system, so during the winter the senior numbers do go down, but that was not a factor during the pandemic.”

Johnston thinks carrying on the game plan of her predecessor, Stacy Dobbin, is a good start.

However, there is one issue she wants to immediately address.

“Making the club wheelchair accessible, that is my No. 1 priority.

“There are so many grants and applications available, it is something we need to do to modernize this club to have it so everybody of all accessible levels can come in and curl or play tennis.”

The tennis courts are behind the curling club.

Johnston says full-time curling should return in the fall and the semester system remains.

“As of right now we are going to keep our trimester system, so we don’t have to move things around and juggle our leagues.”

Johnston admits she has to wrap her head around all the new rules and responsibilities she has

at the moment.

She is excited about the ice going back next week with three major events on the July calendar.

Beginning July 4 there will be a three-day ice technicians course, followed by the return of Summerspiel, then a weeklong curling camp for young players.