Wine Country Curling Club Membership
September 1, 2023 - November 30, 2024

Join or Renew Membership

On October 13, 2023, USA Curling amended their bylaws which significantly changed how memberships would be processed.

As a refresher, here's how we've always done it. Historically, each WCCC member paid either $55 (for 1st adult/senior) and $45 (for 2nd adult/senior, same household) or $30 (for juniors). WCCC collected these dues each September at the start of fall league and then submitted them all together (both to USCA and MoPac) a few months later by January 31st. These dues covered the period of September 1st through August 31st and included benefits such as insurance (through USCA membership), MoPac membership, opportunities to represent WCCC in competitive events, and the ability to vote for WCCC Board Members.

At our WCCC board meeting on 10/23/2023, the WCCC board voted to change our membership tiers to align with USA Curling.

New model:
USA Curling has changed from 1 tier to 5 different tiers.

  • Youth Membership = curlers under the age of 18
  • Basic Membership = adult recreational curlers
  • Premium Membership = adult recreational curlers with additional benefits
  • Competitor Membership = curlers intending on competing for nationals (arenas/clubs/mixed) (2023 arenas is exempt from this model)
  • Gold Membership = top supporter of the game

Additional fees collected annually:

  • Arena Club Member = $300
  • MoPac = $5 per curler
  • USWCA (women only) = $7 per curler

USA Curling tier definitions are here: https://www.usacurling.org/membership

MoPac is our regional association and runs our competitive playdown events as well as the 5&U, the 25&U, and the Seniors Bonspiel. More benefits here: http://www.mopacca.org/ever-wonder-what-it-means-to-belong-to-a-regional-association/

USWCA details here: https://www.uswca.org/Data/Sites/25/media/about-us/brochure-wrep/uswcabrochure_2021.pdf

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So with all of that, the 2023/2024 Membership Fees for WCCC are as follows:

  • Youth: $30 for 9/1/23-11/30/24
  • Basic: $35 for 9/1/23-11/30/24
  • Premium: $60 for 9/1/23-11/30/24
  • Competitor: $110 for 9/1/23-11/30/24
  • Gold: $500 for 9/1/23-11/30/24

Most curlers will see their membership fees go down. Basic membership will go down from $55 to $35. Curlers participating in competitive playdowns will see their memberships go up from $55 to $110. However, their total costs to compete will go down because entry fees for the playdowns are being reduced by $75.

Here's what to expect over the next few weeks as we reopen our membership drive to align with these new changes.

1. You decide which tier that you want to attach yourself to for 9/1/2023 to 11/30/2024. Youth, basic, premium, competitor, or gold. I'll have some scenarios at the bottom of this email to help you with your decision. Fill out this form just to give us a heads up and to help with tracking: https://winecountrycurlingclub.com/club-membership-form/

2. Depending on which tier you choose, WCCC will either owe you a credit or you will need to pay the difference to Nick Graf (our treasurer) on Sundays or Tuesdays in November. As a reminder, if you have already curled in Sept/Oct league, then you have paid a $55 (or $45 or $30) membership fee. See scenarios below.

3. The email address with which you received this email is the one that will be uploaded to USCA and thus will be the one where you will receive access to Sport80 which is USCA's new member portal.

4. We will submit the roster/dues to USCA by November 30th so that we can earn a rebate. We kindly ask that you do not signup/pay your dues via Sport80. Please let us submit the roster.

5. If you are participating in either CLUB PLAYDOWNS or MIXED FOUR PLAYDOWNS then please contact me ASAP as I would need to fast-track your tier so that you can register for the event. Registration for Club Playdowns closes on 11/3 (yes, this week), so time is of the essence.

6. Question? Concerns? Issues? Send them my way or to any board member. We're here to make this as smooth as possible.

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Again, 2023/2024 Membership Fees:

  • Youth: $30 for 9/1/23-11/30/24
  • Basic: $35 for 9/1/23-11/30/24
  • Premium: $60 for 9/1/23-11/30/24
  • Competitor: $110 for 9/1/23-11/30/24
  • Gold: $500 for 9/1/23-11/30/24

Let us know which tier you are choosing here: https://winecountrycurlingclub.com/club-membership-form/

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Scenario #1:

Ariel curls in fall and winter leagues. She played in the Fall Brunch A league that just ended but is signing up to curl again. She has chosen the basic membership tier ($35). WCCC will give her a credit of $20 on her next league or she can request a refund ... her choice.

Scenario #2:
Vanellope is planning on joining her first league which starts next week. She is brand new to the club. She has chosen the premium membership tier ($60). She will pay this $60 plus her league fees next week.

Scenario #3:

Shrek and Fiona curl in every single league. Fiona is also intending on curling in CLUB PLAYDOWNS but Shrek is not. Actually, Shrek has decided that he only wants to curl in fun spiels for the rest of the year. As a couple, they've already paid $100 ($55 and $45). Fiona will upgrade to Competitor ($110) and Shrek will stay at Basic ($35). They will need to pay an additional $45 to WCCC.

Scenario #4:

Marlin and Nemo curl on Tuesday nights. Marlin is choosing the Basic tier and his son, Nemo, is under the age of 18 for another year. They have already paid $85 and under this new model, their new membership fee is $65 so they will receive a $20 credit on their next league (or a refund if requested).

Scenario #5:

Obi Wan dreams about curling on a daily basis. He is planning on doing everything ... he wants to play in playdowns, he wants to go watch Nationals, and he wants to wear all the gear that USCA sells on their website. He is choosing the Gold tier. He will pay an additional $445 to the club.

Scenario #6:

Fred and Wilma are both pretty competitive and curl in almost every league. They are planning on curling in all of the leagues and they are both joining a team for Club Playdowns and then curling together on a Mixed Four team. Under the previous model, they would have paid $600: $55 + $45 + $125 (men's clubs) + $125 (women's clubs) + $125 (Fred mixed fours) and +$125 (Wilma mixed fours). This new membership model will save them $380 because now they only pay: $110 competitor (Fred) + $110 competitor (Wilma) = $220. Since they have already paid $55 and $45, they will owe the club $120.

Scenario #7:

Snoopy has been curling for a year in WCCC leagues ($55 paid in Sept) and is planning on attending the MoPac 5&U in Oakland in February. The Competitor tier is not required to curl in this qualifier as USCA didn't want to create an immediate barrier for new competitors. But, Snoopy has goals and his goal is to win a berth to Nationals. If (and when) he succeeds at winning this bonspiel in Oakland, he will have to upgrade his tier to Competitor at that time. So for the initial membership tier this month, Snoopy has chosen to upgrade to Premium ($60). He will pay the additional $5 now to WCCC. In February, when Snoopy wins his berth, he will upgrade to Competitor and pay an additional $55 during registration for the Nationals.

Scenario #8:

Today, Popeye chose the Basic tier and they received a credit of $20 on his Tuesday Night League. But then, on December 2nd, they got invited to join a Mixed Fours team with Squidward, Olive, and Elsa. So they need to upgrade to Competitor after WCCC already submitted their initial tier. No problem! They send a quick email to Katie. They also pay $75 to Nick. They are now a Competitor and can register for the playdown in January.

Scenario #9:

Today, Phineas chose the Competitor tier because he wants to go to Men's Club Playdowns. He has already paid $55 because he is in league, so he pays an additional $55 this Sunday. But then circumstances change and he can't go to playdowns due to work. He cannot downgrade! He is at the Competitor tier until the next membership cycle (Fall 2024). Alert! You can upgrade at any time, but you cannot downgrade!

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Question? Concerns? Issues? Send them my way or to any board member. We're here to make this as smooth as possible. Don't know which tier to choose? We can help with that too!

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Thanks,
Katie Feldman
WCCC President
916-849-9731