Strathmore Arena receives new ice resurfacer!

The Strathmore Family Centre Arena received a much needed upgrade with the purchase of a new ice resurfacer! The $50 000 machine has a life span of 5000 hours, which is around 8-10 years.

The new machine, an Olympia Model "Ice Bear" is an electric model that replaces an older gas powered Zamboni model. While most refer to all ice resurfacers as being Zambonis, this is actually a brand name for ice resurfacers, and the new one is an Olympia. It's a similar topic to the brand name Kleenex versus facial tissues.

Mayor Fule on the new Olympia model, which has been decorated for Halloween!

Family Centre Arena Manager Craig Dilts explained this is the second electric model they bought, meaning they now have a fully electric fleet. He added there are many benefits to electric models, including that they run quieter than a gas powered one.

"There's a lot of negative connotations regarding running combustion equipment inside. You have to exhaust the air quite heavily, so a lot of facilities have gone the route of going electric. With virtually zero emissions, it's a lot safer for our patrons too; we don't want to expose them to potential carbon monoxide exposure. It's safer for our patrons, it does great quality ice, and you can't complain when you get a new piece of equipment in our fleet that retires an old piece," he said.

On top of that, Dilts added it'll save money in the long run as well.

"They do boast having a lot lower operating cost and they're simpler to run. The biggest thing is the low operating cost with them, and just simple maintenance items. We don't have to change oil and different things that you do on a drive line machine with a combustion engine."

Mayor Pat Fule is also happy with the new electric ice resurfacer, and he specifically pointed to it's environmental friendliness.

"We're really excited because this electric ice resurfacer is going to do an incredible job in the arena, and it'll be great as far as no emissions for the crowd that is watching the game. Our recreational facilities are really important to our residents and the new electric ice resurfacer means better air quality for all of our users and we're happy about that. It's another step forward in Strathmore council's strategic goal of environmental stewardship, so we're really happy about this."

Along with the pool's upgrade, Fule is looking forward to continuing to improve amenities for Strathmore.

"It's really important to be able to keep our recreational facilities working well for our residents."

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