Stone's Throw is a new rooftop curling rink in Chicago at The Emily hotel.
A new rooftop curling rink in Chicago underscores the sport's growing popularity.
The US won its first Olympic gold medal in curling that year. He formed his own team after he was part of the team that took bronze at the 2006 Winter Olympics.
Chris Plys, Matt Hamilton, John Landsteiner, and Colin Hufman are members of the team that helped grow curling in the US.
The opening of Stone's Throw, a new rooftop curling concept at The Emily hotel in Chicago, was attended by Shuster, Hamilton, Plys and Hufman.
The outdoor function space at the Fulton Market used to be used for weddings. The team at Onni Group started rethinking the potential of the space when they took over.
Over the summer, more than 30,000 people visited The Emily's fifth-floor terrace to see the Rooftop Cinema Club concept.
The curling concept wasn't completely out of left field when the team began to imagine what a winter offering on the outdoor space would look like.
The Onni Group is based in Canada. The sport's roots are in the Midwest, with the entire Team Shuster, which is based in Minnesota, hailing from the region.
Guests can enjoy winter beverages and ’80s themed food at Stone's Throw. It will be open during the winter with heating in both the yurts and the curling rinks. The curling surface isn't real ice and curlers don't step directly on it to throw their stones, so finding the right footwear isn't an issue.
A one-hour curling reservation can be made on Tock for $60 for two people and $110 for four people. All four rinks cost $400 to rent out the entire rooftop. Guests must be at least 21 years old to participate in the reservation.
Zoltan Payerli, general manager of The Emily, said they appreciated everyone coming out. It is a great way to keep warm in the winter season, and we are about to embark on it.
The hope is that guests will stay after dining at one of the two Emily's restaurants.
The team jumped at the chance to be involved in the opening of Stone's Throw and help promote the sport in Chicago.
Curling is happening in the major metro areas in the country and on a rooftop as a result of the additional television coverage of the Olympics and the world championship.
The setup at Stone's Throw isn't textbook. And still... The camaraderie off the ice is one of the most special parts of curling.
The setting captures what it looks like. In the Chicago metro area, there are three curling clubs that people can play in real life. It's awesome to see if this can boost that.
When he was a member of the bronze medal winning team at the 2006 Olympics, he knew curling could grow. Hailing from a curling community in Minnesota, Shuster's father was a curler, and he grew a team that has become the gold standard to curlers across the country
In the lead up to the Olympics and even during them, Team Shuster has faced a number of challenges. After losing their first four games in the round-robin portion of the competition, Shuster and his crew won four in a row to advance to the semifinals, where they defeated Canada's Kevin Koe.
The U.S. curling team is participating in the Olympics. The team that lost in the best-of-three Olympic trials was led by Plys.
It was hard for them to watch as they were so close to a gold medal, but it was also validation for them. The level of play in the U.S. gave our country an opportunity to take that next step.
The members of Team Shuster are trying to get into the games. At the opening ceremony of the Beijing Games, Shuster was the flagbearer, but the gold medal winning team finished fourth.
The pursuit is more than that. In order to raise the profile of curling nationally and possibly make it so that the U.S. curlers can support themselves fully through the sport, the goal is the same as it was for Shuster in 2006
After we won a bronze in 2006 it was about figuring out if we could get our sport to a place where someone could make a living. Can the next team ever win an Olympic gold if they don't have a career path like we did?
The number of curlers in our country has grown a lot and our TV coverage has grown a lot as well.
Team USA is not supported by the government or tax dollars and relies on partnerships and raising money. The funds earned through partnerships with sponsors like Columbia and Toyota are allocated to the national governing bodies.
A curling supply company called Hardline is based out of Montreal and is one of the partnerships Team Shuster has. This support isn't enough to pay the bills.
If you want to make a difference in your family's bottom line, you need to have another career in our sport. Colin is an engineer, Chris is a food broker, and Matt is a radio DJ. My contribution was not having my kids in daycare, I stay home with my kids when I don't travel.
The gold medal win was a perfect example of how an Olympic medal can raise a sport's profile.
Hamilton said that he got the vibe that he had made a name for himself after he had a mustache. Without my teammates, I wouldn't have gotten those opportunities.
Each individual is required to give 20 percent of his sponsorship earnings to the team.
The way we all work together is something we are known for. We do that naturally on the ice, but in the way we do that off of the ice, you see us all together, at an event like this, that chemistry that we have on the ice, off the ice.
Stone's Throw is a new rooftop curling rink in Chicago at The Emily hotel.
Renting a court at Stone's Throw might be just a fun night out, but it could also turn someone on to the sport and lead them to join a club in the Chicago area. It's possible that that club will become the next Team Shuster and win an Olympic medal.
When they go to curling events like these, they hope to show people how fun and rewarding the sport can be.
Hufman said that leaving something better than when you found it is motivating.
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