The first thing you should know about curling is that anyone who gets involved in the sport has the immediate compulsion to educate anyone who is not involved in the sport. The second thing you should know is that even though curlers take their sport very seriously, they are very aware that it is a totally ridiculous, absolutely goofy activity.
In a nutshell, there are four players on each team: the lead, the second, the vice skip, and the skip. Each team alternates to throw eight stones (smooth, gray 40-lb rocks with handles), attempting to conclude each sequence (called an "end") with as many stones closest to the center (the button) of the target (the house) at the opposite end. Once all sixteen stones have been thrown, everyone switches sides and does the whole thing several more times. What most people remember about curling if they've seen it on television are the sweepers. While the stone is traveling down the ice, the skip (the strategist of the team) will call for the non-throwing players to sweep (adding friction to the ice which causes it to melt slightly) at certain points if they want the stone to stay straight, maintain speed, or go farther.
So there you have it. Consider yourself educated.
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