The Spring Sweeps Tournament is set and ready to go this Saturday March 29, 2014. CHANGE: Games will be held at the Penhold Multiplex, with the social to follow at Titans Rugby Club. Both are just south of Red Deer.

"We're pretty excited to host a tournament, even with the less-than-ideal weather predicted for the weekend," says club organizer Jillian Staniec. "We'll keep warm by playing hard, as usual. You can't cancel quidditch, after all."

UPDATE: And now we can play safely by playing indoors!

The site opens at noon, with the first scheduled game starting at 12:30pm, and games continuing throughout the day until 4 pm, depending on exhaustion.

Admission is free for the event, with food, drinks, and souvenirs available for purchase on site. "Rough Game" t-shirts will be available in-person for the first time, including both black and green options in men's and women's fits for only $15 each.

Audience members are still encouraged to bring gently used books for donation to Edmonton Potterwatch's Accio Books campaign. They will be collected by the Edmonton-based Harry Potter Alliance chapter and passed forward to a First Nations group to help them form a community library.

If you're interested in playing in or volunteering for the tournament, please fill out the Google doc form here. We'll see you on the pitch in Penhold, and in the clubhouse this weekend!

Two longer-term projects have completed this week, and we're thrilled to share the results!

The first is the inclusion of Central Alberta Quidditch in the Spring 2014 issue of Red Deer Living. We're part of an article about wacky sporting events entitled "Oh, The Things We Do!" Thank you to Jock Mackenzie for taking the time to talk to us.

The second event this week was with the first media outlet who ever contacted us, Shaw TV. We've been wanting to get them out to give the game a try for months now, and the magic finally happened this past Tuesday. 

The goCentral! segment will play throughout the day for the next few days. For people outside our viewing area, we should be able to link it online here by Sunday. AND HERE'S OUR LINK. Thank you Kyle Polanski for your persistence and your enthusiasm in trying out something new, a bit exhausting, and exhilarating.

If you're interested in trying quidditch, our indoor Adults Drop-In continues to attract beginners every week and runs until the end of March at the Collicutt Centre. 

We are also hosting the Spring Sweeps tournament at the Red Deer Titans Rugby Club on Saturday March 29. You can get further information to attend or play on our Facebook Event.

Central Alberta Quidditch has been making the headlines in Red Deer. Our first media appearance of the year was a front page story by Lana Michelin for the Red Deer Advocate. Thank you very much for contacting us, Lana---it was great showing you the sport!

We will also be hosting some broadcasters from BIG 105 radio at Tuesday's open Adults Drop-in quidditch practice from 9:15pm to 10pm at the Collicutt Centre. We're excited to see the faces behind the voices!

If you're interested in trying out quidditch yourself, please come to any of our practices (announced on our main page and our Facebook page). We're always thrilled to introduce more people to the sport and all you need are some shoes and workout clothes---we provide the rest!