pglewis
Veteran
You are seriously due for a spot of luck, I call an LL skip with the timer running on the way. Hope you've got this bug on the ropes now.
Active over-30s and over-40s are more rare but there's a group kicking around, welcome!
I was mostly a deer in headlights at my first comp late last summer but I only had the vaguest idea of what to expect (hadn't been on the forums or discovered this thread until a week or three later). Definitely read up on the regulations for all events you want to compete or volunteer to judge in-- it's an easy read IMO-- and watch the competition intro video, if you haven't yet.
I've been to two comps now and there might have been an initial surprised look or two to see me wearing a lanyard but it has been a very supportive environment IME. Once you sit down to practice you're all speaking the same language and share the same sort of goals and frustrations, I felt I was alongside peers at the practice table regardless of the ages. I appear to be on an island in my particular region, though. Seems like the UK contingent sometimes rolls into comp with a half dozen or more gray hairs... folks at comps there would likely do a double-take if they were missing.
We need to trade Valks. Both my black one and stickerless became significantly more sluggish after only a couple weeks' use. The black one was so bad it was paperweight status for a bit until I got around to breaking it down and wiping most of the lube out. I suspect it was just too much core lube that leaked out and into the piece internals. Neither is as fast as when it was new but I'm afraid of putting anything besides Maru in 'em for fear of gumming up worse. With such widely varying reports I'm starting to wonder if it just doesn't like Silk specifically, which has been my go-to.
