This year the winter has seemed long, but the outdoor skating season has been very short.
Operations Manager with the Town of Strathmore Donna McCallum says that the shorter skating season can be attributed to the fact that it was closed near the end of January.
“The week of January 23 we experienced several days of weather above the freezing point. This melted the skating surface to the pavement. In the following weeks, we experienced several snowfalls and freeze-thaw cycles, creating challenging conditions for flooding.”
The operations team's main priorities McCallum noted are clearing priority routes before they start on recreational areas in town.
“There were several significant snowfalls in February that required the attention of crews. Ultimately factors including weather, plus pathway and sidewalk road maintenance lead to the outdoor rink remaining closed through February and the beginning of March.”
McCallum explains that as of March 17, the weather tends to indicate that freezing new ice wouldn’t be possible to do and the outdoor rink was closed for the season, “We look forward to enjoying outdoor skating surfaces again next winter.”
There is one more free family skate at the arena this Sunday, April 9th from 2:30 - 4:30, these open ice times were sponsored by the Town's community partner UFA throughout the winter.
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