Man plans to curl at every club in Canada

A New Brunswick man plans to sweep the nation, one curling club at a time.

Rob Swan, from Harvey Station, N.B., told CBC Radio's the Afternoon Edition he plans to hit the ice at every curling club in Canada. 

Initially, his plan was to curl at every club in New Brunswick to raise enough cash for a new facility to replace the small, two-sheet rink in Harvey Station, just southwest of Fredericton.

• Regina to host 2018 Brier curling championship
• New rules for curling nix broom moves that were changing the game

"But since I work across the country, a friend of mine said, 'Why don't you curl across the country?'" Swan, who works for two weeks and then has two weeks off which he spends curling, said.

"So that's where I began. [It's] kind of stupid, I know — but that's okay."

Swan's trek will bring him to Saskatchewan from Jan. 11 to Jan. 24. His first stop will be the Granite Curling Club in Saskatoon. 

From there, he'll make his way to Prince Albert, Regina, Swift Current and several other clubs in the province. 

There are approximately 1,500 curling clubs across Canada. When he spoke with Blue Sky in mid-December, Swan had been to 217 of them. He estimates he has raised $13,000 of a $60,000 goal for the new facility in his village. 

And now his goals have evolved to more than just raising money. Swan also wants to raise awareness and garner interest in the sport itself.

• Curling broom changes welcomed by competitive players

He said when he was a kid, it seemed like everyone was curling. But he's noticed a decline in interest, which he thinks is due to a wider variety of activities and hobbies for young people to pursue.

"Every where I go, it doesn't matter what province, the sport has — I do believe — hit rock bottom," he said.

"[Younger people] look at curling as something your mother and father did."

He also said there is a lack of support from municipal and provincial governments for the sport.

But he's confident interest will return as the 2018 Winter Olympics — in Pyeongchang, South Korea — draw near.

"You can learn curling when you're four, five years old," he explained. "You've got that sport for life."

More information on his cross-country curling trip can be found on his Facebook page, Curling Across the Nation.