The Appleton high school curling club was started in 2013, when a few members of an adult curling league had some sons and daughters attending local high schools. They thought it would be a great idea to make a curling club.
One of these curling members was Appleton North’s Reed Rudie, a freshman ELA teacher. Rudie began curling eight years ago. When asked why he started curling, Rudie said, “A friend of mine, Chad Ulman, was a member at the Appleton Curling Club and told me how much fun the sport was. He encouraged me to come to the club and watch a few matches to see if I would be interested in joining.” Rudie took a high interest into the sport, and he now is in two leagues that meet every Wednesday and Thursday.
There has also been a higher interest in the sport since the club began. “The first year, we only had about 15 to 20 students participating on four teams: one from West, two from East, and one from North. Last year, we had over 40 students and 10 teams. This year there seems to be even more interest,” Rudie commented on the increasing interest in the team.

One of the returning members of the team, Sarah Fleming, has also enjoyed being in the curling club. Fleming originally joined the club on a dare from a friend, who had heard about the club through the announcements. “I love curling because I get to hang out with my friends every Tuesday and it is such a social atmosphere,” said Fleming.

One of her favorite moments from curling would be a bonspiel she did last year. Her team lost every single game that they were in, but they still received a congratulatory pin. Fleming said, “I think students should try curling because it’s a great way to meet new people, make connections, and it’s a sport, where if you’ve never done it before, it’s very easy to learn with the help of our coaches.”