Rink Checker: Edmonton AM profiles city's best skating spots
Impervious to the bone-chilling temperatures, a legion of dedicated volunteers trade in their free time to maintain Edmonton's community rinks.
These ice surfaces are a cornerstone of city neighbourhoods in winter, giving throngs of foolhardy Edmontonians a chance to lace up their skates.
As we head into the final half of this winter, CBC Radio's Edmonton AM is introducing a new weekly segment, in which we'll showcase the city's best rinks and the volunteers who maintain them.
Host Mark Connolly will visit a different community rink and find out what it takes to keep the ice — and operations — smooth.
Hairsine rink
The Hairsine neighbourhood in east Edmonton has the distinction of having two rinks side-by-side, one dedicated to hockey, another for community and kid-friendly skates.
Maintaining both ice surfaces requires long hours in the cold.
The paid icemaker is at the rink every night, said Les Barker, vice-president of the Hairsine Community League.
"He sometimes even sleeps here overnight just to get the water down and just get the few inches of base going," Barker said.
Barker credits a small but mighty legion of volunteers for picking up the slack from their tiny staff.
"We have some great volunteers so if the snow comes, a few of us live across the street so we'll just come over and grab the shovels and grab the sweeper and pitch in.
"We have a good community here."
Holyrood
Connolly visited the new community ice rink in the southeast Edmonton neighbourhood of Holyrood earlier this month.
Andrew Ambrocichuk, the rink's facilities director, said running a rink comes with its challenges.
"For me, it's time. It's time," Ambrocichuk said. "It's difficult because it eats time out of your regular workday."
After more than a year of working with the city on planning and construction, the community league-run rink welcomed its first round of skaters last weekend. The facility will hosted its grand opening Saturday at 5 p.m.
"So far, people are excited. A lot of people were worried it wasn't going to be open this year," Ambrocichuk said.
"We feel really good. We're about ready to celebrate here."
Randall Frye, the rink co-ordinator for Holyrood, is feeling more laid back about the work ahead.
"It takes time," he said with a chuckle. "Once the ice is here, it's not that bad, it runs itself."
Frye knew how he wanted to celebrate the grand opening.
"Fireworks. Some chili. Some libations."
Tune in weekly for the latest edition of Edmonton AM's Rink Checker. If you would like Mark Connolly to visit your community, email us at edmontonam@cbc.ca with details of your rink story.
