Many women have been hurrying hard to the Juan de Fuca curling rink.

Every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon the June de Fuca curling club’s ladies league face some fierce competition with a gripper on one foot and a slider on the other.

The ladies league does have some differences from a men’s or mixed league.

“We don’t yell as much,” said Marie McKay, the ladies league president. “I think we are more relaxed, but we still like the competition and the fun.”

Many of the curlers have been members of the league for about 30 years. “I’ve been curling at this rink for about 32 years,” said Metchosin resident, Jan Smith. “But, the longer you’ve been curling doesn’t mean you’re any better at it.”

About four years ago, Smith’s doctor told her due to knee problems she would have to stop curling.

“I told him that quitting wasn’t an option,” Smith said.

After modifying her curling broom by adding a Foldaway glider, an aid that hooks on to a rock and aids in its delivery, Smith could continue with the sport she loves.

Although many of the league members started curling in their younger years, the sport allows athletes to continue into their golden years.

“They have improved things in the sport to enable people to curl longer,” McKay said. “Curling keeps you young and people can continue to play with age.”

Other than friendship and friendly competition, the JDF ladies league is a way these women find to stay active. “It’s exercise and way more than you think,” McKay said.

“It’s a team sport, but everything each other does counts,” said Colwood Coun. Carol Hamilton, a league member for 21 years. “It’s not like baseball or hockey.”

This league is full of diverse players who vary in age from their 30s to their 80s.

“It’s a friendly but competitive environment,” said curler Mavis Drabitt.

The JDF Curling Club started in the 1970s and members of the league remember when child minding was offered at the rink.

“The league paid half (for child minding) and the curlers paid half,” McKay said. “Now our kids have all grown up and we can curl without babysitters.”

It is not just the friendships and competitive fun that keeps these curlers throwing rocks, its also the old-fashioned sportsmanship.

“It’s the last sport that you shake hands at the beginning and wish your opponents good luck and then you thank them afterward for the game,” McKay said.

sports@goldstreamgazette.com