Cochrane’s outdoor skating rinks are open - a wintry and wonderful perk of this month’s unseasonably cold weather. “We always hope to have the two maintained rinks ready for Christmas.
Cochrane’s outdoor skating rinks are open - a wintry and wonderful perk of this month’s unseasonably cold weather.
“We always hope to have the two maintained rinks ready for Christmas. Sometimes Mother Nature co-operates … and this year is one of them, ” said Gerry Murphy, the Town of Cochrane’s manager of parks and open spaces.
As of last Friday, Mitford Pond in Jumping Pound and the Tim Bannister Memorial Rink in the East End are now open for public skating - both during the day and in the evening, when the lights are on from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Murphy said his department drills test holes in multiple spots to determine whether the pond is safe and ready for outdoor activity. When the ice reaches seven inches in thickness, workers are able to use snowplowing equipment - and they usually wait until closer to 10 inches thickness before doing any flooding.
While it usually takes a while to reach that tipping point, Murphy said recent frigid temperatures made quick work of freezing Mitford Pond.
“At some point last week, we were gaining an inch and a quarter every day - it was that cold, ” he said. “It’s winter - it’s for sure winter. ”
In addition to the two town-maintained rinks, developer La Vita Land has provided space in the play fields of Fireside for the second season so members of the west Cochrane community can have a rink of their own.
La Vita’s community supervisor Mark Brooks floods the space during the day, and residents help in the evenings and weekends.
“It has been a huge success so far and the residents are really starting to band together to take ownership of it in terms of flooding, clearing it of snow, upgrading the hockey nets, ” said development manager Laura Button. “We are planning to continue having the skating rink every winter. ”
Across the highway in Riversong, members of the Cochrane River Heights Community Association have been working on a plan to erect an outdoor boarded rink in their local park. Now, the grassroots group is exploring an idea with the town and Bow Valley High School to build on the education facility’s grounds.
Liability insurance and maintenance details still need to be worked out with the Rocky View School Division, but the players involved are hopeful there will be winter skating in Riversong soon.
“Ideally, we always wanted to have it at the school so it could be a permanent structure, ” said association secretary Amanda Theriault. “How can we work together in order to get that? If it happens, I will be ecstatic. ”
“The concept of us having an outdoor rink on our property has all kinds of positive possibilities for our programming here, ” echoed Bow Valley principal Rob Kimura, adding an outdoor rink would also benefit the neighbourhood as a whole. “It can be a gathering area where people can get together with their family members or other friends. It would be good for the students, (and) I think it would be good for the community. ”
For now, outdoor enthusiasts can check on town-run rink conditions through the facility status line at 403-851-2552. Murphy reminded residents to watch for thin ice signs at Mitford Pond, which signal the surface may be unsafe, as well as to keep away from retention ponds and other unsanctioned skating spots.
