As published in the Spring/Summer 2015 issue of Dalhousie’s Engineering Magazine

Adam Casey (BEng’13) is not only focussing on his Masters’ thesis, but also manages to curl at the national competitive level, as skip for Team PEI.

This winter, Adam Casey, Dal Engineering masters’ student, was the skip for Team PEI at the 2015 Tim Hortons Brier. 

Casey had competed in the last three Briers for Newfoundland and Labrador, but this year’s tournament was his first time representing P.E.I., and his first time as a skip at the championship level.

“This year was different because I was skipping, which I hadn’t done in the past,” says Casey. “The first year I competed it was in Edmonton, and it’s an 18,000-seat arena and there’s thousands of people watching on television, so it’s a different outlook to adjust to. The past three years I think I’ve grown and matured a lot, and I obviously know more about the game.”

For Casey, the most important thing about being a competitive athlete is striking a balance. At the Brier especially, juggling autograph sessions, television breaks and interviews with playing several matches a day turned out to be an acquired skill.

On top of all that, he’s also working on his thesis project in applied science. “There’s not a whole lot of down time, so it’s about making sure that you properly warm up, cool down, try to maintain a certain level of fitness throughout the week, make sure you get your rest, and stay mentally focused.”

“Over the years, I’ve gotten a lot better at doing work on the road, but obviously it’s a big commitment when you’re putting 30-plus hours into curling, and at the same time trying to manage a job and school work.”

Casey is proud of his teammates. After tying for seventh place at the Brier, he says they’re happy with the way they performed and are turning it into a learning experience.

“I’m finishing my thesis, but once I’m back in P.E.I., I’ll be focusing on getting a team together, getting training, developing a support team and trying to take the next step to figure out what we need to do to get better,” says Casey. “It’s about making sure we check off all those little boxes so that when this season rolls around, we’re ready to go.”