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We're exploring the ways we find and bring joy into our lives. It’s about the things we do not because it’s a job or a necessity, but simply because we love to do them. Support for This Is My Thing comes from locally-owned Eckert Insurance. "Worry less. Live more."

This Is My Thing: Curling!

Dave Danenfelzer stands on the ice at The Pond Hockey Club on June 18, 2024 Ry Olszewski/KUT News
Ry Olszewski/KUT News
Dave Danenfelzer stands on the ice at The Pond Hockey Club on June 18, 2024 Ry Olszewski/KUT News

The third installment of This Is My Thing continues our mission to talk with people about the things they do just for themselves – not because it’s their job and not because it’s a responsibility, just because they love to do it. The stuff you do because it’s your thing.

 
On this episode of This Is My Thing, we’re talking with Dave Danenfelzer about his love for curling – ‘the kind you do on ice,’ as he puts it. Dave’s been curling all his life; he was taught by his grandfather as a kid and has been playing the sport ever since. When he moved from his native Wisconsin to Texas in the 1990s (‘I did it for love,’ Dave says), he thought his curling days were in the past. But he was wrong! It turns out other folks in the Lone Star State love this winter sport too, and Dave eventually found a curling club right here in Austin that lets him continue to do his thing.

 
Above, you can listen to the on-air version of Dave’s story, but if you check out the KUT News Now podcast feed, you’ll find a much longer version of this piece – including an expert’s explanation of why curling is harder than it looks on TV and a brief recording of me trying to curl for the first time.

 

Dave Danenfelzer's gear bag, curling shoes, and his grandfathers broom sit on a table at The Pond Hockey Club on June 18, 2024. The bag was Danenfelzer's grandfather's, who competed at a high level in Wisconsin. Ry Olszewski/KUT News
Dave Danenfelzer's gear bag, curling shoes, and his grandfathers broom sit on a table at The Pond Hockey Club on June 18, 2024. The bag was Danenfelzer's grandfather's, who competed at a high level in Wisconsin. Ry Olszewski/KUT News

We’ve talked to a lot of other people about their things and those stories will be coming in future weeks. You’ll hear from a woman who loves sword fighting, a guy who found his creative spark by milling lumber in his Cedar Park driveway, a skater who will tell us what ‘aggressive roller skating’ is and what it means to her, and plenty more. Stay tuned!

And we want to hear from you about the thing you do just because you love it! You’ll find an online form a little lower on this page where you can tell us about the thing that brings you joy, calms your mind, or feeds your soul in some way.

 

Mike is the production director at KUT, where he’s been working since his days as an English major at the University of Texas. He produces and hosts This Is My Thing and Arts Eclectic, and also produces Get Involved and the Sonic ID project. When pressed to do so, he’ll write short paragraphs about himself in the third person, but usually prefers not to.
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