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Showing posts from January, 2017

Great Skate #40: Bryant Park, New York City

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The rink at Bryant Park doesn't have the same "I saw it in the movies" cachet as the rinks at Central Park and Rockefeller Center , but it is pretty spectacular. The rink is the centrepiece of Bryant Park's Bank of America Winter Village . Chalk up a point in favour of corporate sponsorships: admission to this rink is free. (I did pay for a lock to secure my locker though.) The amenities include a spacious changeroom, a snack bar and skate rentals. Also, a platoon of penguins and snowmen that unsteady skaters can use to keep their balance. There were lots of good things about this Great Skate, but here's what I got excited about: the skating direction was clockwise. Skating clockwise is a very rare thing on public ice rinks. I asked one of the staff members if they always skated clockwise. He said that the skating direction was counter-clockwise in the mornings, and clockwise in the afternoons. So sensible. On a Friday afternoon, the rink was busy but...

Why I did not skate at Rockefeller Center

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Along with Central Park, the rink at Rockefeller Center is what everyone thinks about when you say "I went skating in New York City." But I did not skate at Rockefeller Center. Why? Because the Rockefeller skating rink admission fee is $25 U.S. (And that's the cheaper, off-season rate. It goes up to $32 during most of December.) I discovered that there is a limit on what I am willing to pay for a Great Skate experience. Photos were free, however.

Great Skate #39: Wollman Rink, Central Park, New York City

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When I had the opportunity to come to New York for a conference this week, I was very excited to be able to take my Great Skate Project international. I researched the rink options, circled them on my map, and made room in my luggage for my skates. Skating in Central Park was high on my list. I didn't realize at first that there are actually two rinks in Central Park: the Wollman Rink and the Lasker Rink . Wollman was closer to my hotel, so I headed there in the evening of January 11. (And I only got a little bit lost on the way.) Unsurprisingly, skating in New York City is a more commercial enterprise than in Toronto. The Wollman Rink admission fee (in U.S. dollars) is $12 from Monday to Thursday, and $19 from Friday to Sunday. (It's cheaper for children). A locker rental is $5 with a $6 refundable deposit, and you can rent skates for $9. A snack bar sells everything from sandwiches to cotton candy. I think it's worth it. How often do you get to feel like you'...

Great Skate #38: Wallace Emerson Park

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Another January, another year for the Great Skate Project. Since 2012, I have set myself a goal each January: to skate at a different outdoor rink each week, inviting friends and family to join me. I'm heading into Year 6 now, and still have a long way to go to cross all the Toronto rinks off my list. Yesterday I launched Great Skate 2017 at the Wallace Emerson Park rink , on Dufferin just north of Bloor. It's a double rink, separating the shinny players from the more leisurely skaters. The non-shinny rink is shaped like a comma and unfenced, a nice change from the typical hamster cage rink design. There's an indoor change room and lots of benches around the rink. I often feel like the Zambonis wait until I show up to start cleaning the ice. Yesterday, I wished that was the case. The mild weather meant the ice was very soft and it hadn't been cleaned in a while. Since my skates badly need sharpening, the combined effect was rough and slow. Probably just as well b...