Winter and the cold weather have arrived, bringing with it the skating season.
On Nov. 15, the ice plant used to flood the Scott Seaman Sports Rink was turned on and the ice making process started Monday.
“It takes a good five days to get enough water down,” said Wes Amendt, director of community services for the town. The plant needs a minimum of -10 C to keep the ice. If temperatures climbed back up to 5 C or 10 C the process would have to be delayed.
However, with highs of only -11 C and lows of -27 C estimated for this week there shouldn’t be many challenges to get the ice in this year.
Last year the rink wasn’t flooded until late December because of the sun and its dangerous potential as it reflected off the boards, causing conditions that would have weakened the ice.
“Even once the ice is in, we’ll have the public watch for signs. If it gets unsafe for use we’ll have to close it down for a period of time,” said Amendt. He also warns the public to wait for signs saying the rink is ready for use after the ice process is complete.