Do you go to Public Skate when your not competing?

[aliceanne]

I think the insurance companies are behind the increasing restrictions on public sessions. What amazes me is that some of these rinks that restrict freesyle have now come up with broomball sessions. People go out on the ice in their shoes and chase a ball around with brooms. As if that isn't an accident waiting to happen! It doesn't look like much fun either, but I guess people will try anything.

[misskarne]

I think the insurance companies are behind the increasing restrictions on public sessions. What amazes me is that some of these rinks that restrict freesyle have now come up with broomball sessions. People go out on the ice in their shoes and chase a ball around with brooms. As if that isn't an accident waiting to happen! It doesn't look like much fun either, but I guess people will try anything.

I've heard of that. It bemuses me somewhat. Still, they're fairly harmless. I'd rather compete for ice time with them than with the hockey jerks that inhabit our rink.

[aliceanne]

I've heard of that. It bemuses me somewhat. Still, they're fairly harmless. I'd rather compete for ice time with them than with the hockey jerks that inhabit our rink.

When hockey became a collegiate and public school sport ice rinks sprang up like mushrooms in my area, so I try to keep an open mind. Not all of the rinks have been successful though.

[sk8er1964]

Hockey pays the bills at the rinks around here (and we have a lot of them).

[antmanb]

My main practice takes place on public ice. It is included in the price of adult group lessons and is generally a quiet session except the adults on it.

Conversely I skate on the "patch" session at another rink on Wednesday which has kids in rentals and even tots pushing those penguins around to help them stay up! How the rink classifies that as "patch" I will never know. The worst bit about this particular session is that there are a number of primary school aged kids all with a few single jumps under their blet, some up to early doubles and exactly none of them ever look where they are going. During a one hour session these kids will wipe each other out 4 or 5 times. I go just to try and get a second practice in but i rarely get a full practice because i'm constantly looking out for obstacles.