A family affair: Two Harbors native continues her family’s curling tradition

As she took to the curling sheet last month at the U.S. Junior National Curling Championships, Courtney Osbakken wasn’t thinking about the fact that it was her final event as a junior national curler. Instead, she was thinking about her new role in the third position, as opposed to her previous role at her two other trips to nationals as skip of Team Osbakken. The team did well, finishing 7-2 in the round robin play, before falling to U.S. High Performance team in the championship game and taking home the silver medal. It wasn’t until it was over that Courtney thought about the end of her junior career. “At the beginning of the week, I wasn’t really thinking about it being my last event as a junior curler, I was really more focused on getting a medal because that was our biggest goal as a team,” Courtney said. “I didn’t really think about it being my last event until it was over and then it was like everything that you do throughout your seasons and your years paid off. I was happy that was how it ended, but it was a little bittersweet.” Courtney had met and become friends with her new team, Team Runing from Mankato, Minn., through curling and with an open spot, she fit right in. The team practiced over the summer and competed in some early bonspiels this season and was able to earn one of two spots to nationals in Willmar, Minn., at the Minnesota State Junior Playdowns over Christmas in Duluth.
 Courtney began curling at age 10, when her father, Rick Osbakken, and uncle, Jay Osbakken, began teaching her to curl. The brothers had been competitive curlers when they were younger and Courtney’s grandfather, Jim Osbakken, was a founder of the Two Harbors Curling Club and a bonspiel there still bears his name. Courtney spent a ton of time at the curling club watching her mom and dad play in their league after they moved back to Two Harbors in 1999 and decided that she wanted to give the sport a whirl, too. It wasn’t long before her ultra competitive uncle saw the youngster had a talent for curling and took her to the Duluth Curling Club to compete. When Courtney got to Duluth, she was a little miffed about being placed on sheet one, the lowest level, instead of sheet eight, the highest level. “I was curling with the younger kids and I was like, ‘just because I haven’t been in your program as long doesn’t mean that I can’t curl,’” she said. “After they saw me slide out a couple times they realized that I was a lot further along.”Duluth was helpful for Courtney, with local curling legends like Norma O’Leary and John Shuster providing pointers and other strong young curlers like Cory Christensen to compete with. It was Christensen’s high performance team that topped Team Runing in Willmar last month. After nationals, Courtney returned to Grand Forks, N.D., where she is currently studying to be a physician assistant at the University of North Dakota. Courtney also has a passion for working with young people, something that also goes back to her days in Two Harbors. She also spent time babysitting for a family in Two Harbors and she still returns to visit when she is back home. Courtney is so taken by working with young people that she is even considering pediatric medicine as a concentration at UND. “I connect easier with them,” Courtney said. “I enjoy when children have good role models in life and I know that they have someone they can reach out to that is a positive influence.” As for curling, Courtney had originally intended to take a break before returning to the competitive circuit, but fate it seems, has different plans for her. She has already joined a mixed team with Brandon Scheel, and two others, all of whom have previously medaled at either junior nationals or mixed nationals. Their team is still young, but they will be competing in North Dakota for that state’s spot at mixed nationals.As she took to the curling sheet last month at the U.S. Junior National Curling Championships, Courtney Osbakken wasn’t thinking about the fact that it was her final event as a junior national curler. Instead, she was thinking about her new role in the third position, as opposed to her previous role at her two other trips to nationals as skip of Team Osbakken.The team did well, finishing 7-2 in the round robin play, before falling to U.S. High Performance team in the championship game and taking home the silver medal. It wasn’t until it was over that Courtney thought about the end of her junior career.“At the beginning of the week, I wasn’t really thinking about it being my last event as a junior curler, I was really more focused on getting a medal because that was our biggest goal as a team,” Courtney said. “I didn’t really think about it being my last event until it was over and then it was like everything that you do throughout your seasons and your years paid off. I was happy that was how it ended, but it was a little bittersweet.”Courtney had met and become friends with her new team, Team Runing from Mankato, Minn., through curling and with an open spot, she fit right in. The team practiced over the summer and competed in some early bonspiels this season and was able to earn one of two spots to nationals in Willmar, Minn., at the Minnesota State Junior Playdowns over Christmas in Duluth.
 Courtney began curling at age 10, when her father, Rick Osbakken, and uncle, Jay Osbakken, began teaching her to curl. The brothers had been competitive curlers when they were younger and Courtney’s grandfather, Jim Osbakken, was a founder of the Two Harbors Curling Club and a bonspiel there still bears his name. Courtney spent a ton of time at the curling club watching her mom and dad play in their league after they moved back to Two Harbors in 1999 and decided that she wanted to give the sport a whirl, too. It wasn’t long before her ultra competitive uncle saw the youngster had a talent for curling and took her to the Duluth Curling Club to compete.When Courtney got to Duluth, she was a little miffed about being placed on sheet one, the lowest level, instead of sheet eight, the highest level.“I was curling with the younger kids and I was like, ‘just because I haven’t been in your program as long doesn’t mean that I can’t curl,’” she said. “After they saw me slide out a couple times they realized that I was a lot further along.”Duluth was helpful for Courtney, with local curling legends like Norma O’Leary and John Shuster providing pointers and other strong young curlers like Cory Christensen to compete with. It was Christensen’s high performance team that topped Team Runing in Willmar last month.After nationals, Courtney returned to Grand Forks, N.D., where she is currently studying to be a physician assistant at the University of North Dakota. Courtney also has a passion for working with young people, something that also goes back to her days in Two Harbors. She also spent time babysitting for a family in Two Harbors and she still returns to visit when she is back home. Courtney is so taken by working with young people that she is even considering pediatric medicine as a concentration at UND.“I connect easier with them,” Courtney said. “I enjoy when children have good role models in life and I know that they have someone they can reach out to that is a positive influence.”As for curling, Courtney had originally intended to take a break before returning to the competitive circuit, but fate it seems, has different plans for her. She has already joined a mixed team with Brandon Scheel, and two others, all of whom have previously medaled at either junior nationals or mixed nationals. Their team is still young, but they will be competing in North Dakota for that state’s spot at mixed nationals.