Much More Turku group visited Turku Curling Arena in January. This was the first activity in 2019 and visiting an ice rink during a cold and snowy Wednesday was a perfect way to start the winter activities. Curling is a sport in which players slide stones (7kg stones) on a sheet of ice towards a target area which is segmented into four concentric circles. It is related to bowls, boules and shuffleboard. Two teams, each with four players, take turns sliding heavy, polished granite stones, also called rocks, across the ice curling sheet towards the house, a circular target marked on the ice. Each team has eight stones, with each player throwing two. The purpose is to accumulate the highest score for a game; points are scored for the stones resting closest to the centre of the house at the conclusion of each end, which is completed when both teams have thrown all of their stones. A game usually consists of eight or ten ends.[i] 10 people were registered to the activity but only 4 of them came to the arena. Clients who didn’t arrive had different explanations why they were not able to join in. Obviously, we have to understand that the weather in Turku was harsh at that time. It was minus degrees and a lot of snow, so some of the clients didn’t want to go outside at all. Also, they were afraid to spend two hours in a cold indoor ice rink. The members of the target group are not able to stay committed to the arranged activities. Now that we have learned this, we need improve what we are doing. In future we need to support them more so they could keep their commitments to the activities they have signed up for. Back to the curling business: Previously, we had thought it to be very difficult as sliding on the ice is not something you do every day. Nevertheless, with good coaching we were able to see and understand how the rock will be thrown. After couple of falls, throwing the rock started to go better! Competition was hard and the other team won with scores 7 to 3. Slippery when on ice phrase demonstrates well the behavior of the target group. When a person has an addiction he or she is walking on very slippery ice. One wrong step can drive them to misuse again. Our next activity with clients is planned and scheduled to February. By Totti Räsänen, Blue Ribbon Association of Southwest Finland [i] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curling
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