Curling, as a strategic sport, is very similar to shuffleboard and lawn bowling. Like shuffleboard, the play area is long and thin, and there's a "bulls-eye" shaped target on each end that people try to land their pieces in, in order to score points. Like lawn bowling and regular bowling, there's an element of 'finesse' in shooting - a bit of control surrounding the "curve" of the ball or rock you're throwing.
The ice surface in a curling match is called a "sheet", and the surface is not smooth like a hockey rink. In fact, after every game that is played on a sheet of ice, the "Ice Master" comes out and "pebbles" the ice. That is, he runs along the ice (usually backwards) with a hose that has a special sprinkler on the end of it, and by waving that hose back and forth as the water comes out, individual drops of water land on the ice surface and form the pebble.
The pebble is what allows for "movement" in the play of the rock.
Curling stones - or rocks - weigh about 42 pounds, and you "shoot" them by using a special device that is built into curling rinks - the "hack". The Hack is a wood-and-rubber contraption that gives you something solid and non-slippery to push off from, when trying to put this piece of granite into motion.
Basic curling equipment consists of a slider, a gripper, and a broom. The slider goes onto your left foot if you're a righty, and right foot if you're a lefty. The gripper goes onto the other foot. Curlers propel themselves down the ice by riding on the slider and pushing and braking with the gripper. When you deliver a rock, your gripper is in the hack, so you can push off onto the slider.
The broom is used for balance when shooting, for sweeping when it's your turn, and for general signal-sending between the team members.
The leader of a curling team is called the "Skip". The skip spends the majority of their time seperated from the rest of the team - while the Lead, Second, and Third are shooting, the skip is using his or her broom to signal what shots folks are aiming for, and where they should start their delivery to have the rock end up where it's supposed to.
Part of the strategy of curling is surrounding "reading the ice". A good curler will release a rock and have that rock do no more than 3-4 complete rotations before coming to rest (the rotations on the rock are what determine which way the rock will curl). A good skip will be able to quickly get comfortable with how MUCH curl comes as a result of their people's shots. Since a big part of curling strategy is being able to bury your points using the curl of the rock, this is of huge importance.
Another aspect of curling is very much like pool. Taking out the other team's rocks - executing double and triple-takeouts... it requires a good understanding of angles and how the ice is responding. Missing a takeout can be heartbreaking!
Curling isn't a sport that requires great physical conditioning, but it definately does challenge one's body. Simply the position one gets into in order to deliver the rock (very similar to the "runner's stretch") is one that requires balance and flexibility. And sweeping? It may not be very cardio-challenging, but it's a good workout none-the-less. This is a sport that requires you to learn how to tense every one of your muscles in a way that will allow you to push your full weight down through one very concentrated point. You learn a lot about your torso :)
Curling is one of those sports that is a lifetime sport. You can do it forever, and compete in it forever, and still feel at home. It's a social event in itself, and has many many fun social events throughout the year. | 
