Growing up in the country outside Orangeville, I didn’t have a backyard skating rink; I had something better – a pond.
In December, I would watch the ice slowly forming, and I would pester my dad with questions about how soon we could skate. It was never as soon as I would have liked.
Like any outdoor rink, I know it was a lot of work to maintain. My dad prepared for skating season by running long extension cords to floodlights that he would mount in the trees. When the ice started to look good, Dad would trudge across the front yard to the pond, axe in hand, to chop a hole and check the thickness. If the snow was deep, which it often was, he would take the snowblower across the yard, cutting a path for us to get to the ice.
Ice conditions were often poor to begin with. But Dad would wait for a crisp, still night, and use the pond water to flood the ice above.
He would return with icicles on his mustache, saying we would just have to wait and see whether the work would pay off.
When the weather turns cold, dads (and probably some moms) take part in similar rituals in yards across Canada. Guelph is no exception. But I fear it’s a dying art.
Last week’s thaw decimated rinks across the city, many of which had been operating for only about a week. The previous winter, most rinks never even had a chance.
When I compare the conditions in recent years to my childhood memories, I’m pretty sure the outdoor rink is an endangered species and climate change is the culprit.
So I was interested when I learned that a couple of Wilfred Laurier geography professors created a website to track how climate change is impacting backyard skating.
They want anyone with an outdoor rink to create a profile with its name and location at www.RinkWatch.org. Registered users are asked to return to the site weekly to check off the days they were able to skate. The website will track the results and compare conditions with rinks across Canada.
Researchers hope the site will generate valuable data about climate change. I think the potential awareness-raising factor could be invaluable.
People who might have trouble getting their heads around climate change may have a better understanding when they can relate it to their ability to skate outdoors during any given winter. It certainly hits home with me.
But when I checked out the site, I was disappointed that no Guelph rinks had been registered. Last week, I could probably have named at least five community rinks, and there’s no telling how many more were hidden behind backyard fences.
Those rinks are gone now, but I hope to see them make a comeback as temperatures fall. I know it’s hard work, but for the people who do it, I believe it’s a labour of love, and one I hope can continue for generations.