Skating fun in the sun
Outdoor rinks offer unique experience in Rankin
Darrell Greer
Northern News Services
Wednesday, April 12, 2017
RANKIN INLET
Squeals of laughter, the sounds of sticks and pucks, flashing blades and kids of all ages having the time of their lives is an annual rite of passage every spring on Williamson Lake in Rankin Inlet.
Both outdoor rinks on Williamson Lake go flat out mere minutes after the final school bell of the day rings in Rankin Inlet. - Darrell Greer/NNSL photo |
The hamlet's recreation department oversees the construction and maintenance of the outdoor rink on the lake for about six weeks, and even the arena's Zamboni is pressed into service to give the rinks a smooth surface and a touch of class.
There's wild action in front of the net as players of all ages try to score, with some following hockey's rules and some not so much on the outdoor rink on Williamson Lake in Rankin Inlet last week. - Darrell Greer/NNSL photo |
The outdoor rink has been a staple of springtime fun on the lake in Rankin for the past 15 years.
In fact, it's become so popular during the past five years that the hamlet has had to increase the number of rinks to two, and sometimes three, to meet the demand.
And, not only do the rinks cater to the fun and enjoyment of people of all ages, they also come with their own set of unwritten rules that the community enforces.
The recreation department has also improved its efforts during the life of the outdoor rinks, as its workers learn from their mistakes and stay with anything and everything that works well.
They've consistently produced a better sheet of ice year after year, and have gradually put a system in place that allows them to create the best ice possible under whatever conditions they face.
Hamlet recreation co-ordinator David Clark said hundreds of kids are down on the rinks during the weekends and after school every day the weather is decent.
He said the kids police themselves and everyone's there just to have fun.
"You look around, watching all the kids, and they all have a smile on their face and are just so excited to be out there," said Clark.
"It's such a great opportunity for the kids who are into hockey to get some extra ice time and just enjoy playing the game, being around their friends and the spring weather.
"It's a long winter in Rankin Inlet, so it's nice when you can finally get out, enjoy the sun and spend some time with your family and friends.
"I picked my son up at the rink at 9 p.m. a few evenings back, so it's nice to finally have the sun be out a lot longer now."
The outdoor rinks attract kids from the age of three or four, all the way up to adults and even a few elders.
Clark said he doesn't care if some people think it's corny, because, to him, it's a special kind of awesome to see grandparents out skating on the rinks with their grandkids.
He said it's a good feeling to see hundreds of people on the rinks during the weekends, and some people still pull over to the side of the road to watch when the Zamboni arrives to clean, scrape and flood the ice.
"It's always been convenient to use the Zamboni with the arena being just behind the rinks.
"We go through a bit more propane using the Zamboni, but it's not hard on the machine at all.
"We usually have about 100 kids at public skating at the arena, but, this year, the first day it was really nice out, we never had one single kid at the public skate.
"It was actually kind of eerie with the arena being dead quiet with the lights turned out, while all the kids were outside playing on the rink and having a blast, and that's what you want to see."
