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Ice rink

 
Ice Rink

 
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Ice rink
 
 
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An ice
Ice

Ice is a solid phases of matter, usually crystalline solid, of a non-metallic substance that is liquid or gas at room temperature, such as ammonia ice or methane ice....
 rink is a frozen body of water
Water

Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
 where people can ice skate
Ice skate

File:Blue skates.jpgFile:Eislaufen 01.oggIce skates are boots with blades attached to the bottom, used to propel oneself across a sheet of ice....
 or play winter sports.






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Rockefeller Ice
Rideau Canal in Winter
An ice
Ice

Ice is a solid phases of matter, usually crystalline solid, of a non-metallic substance that is liquid or gas at room temperature, such as ammonia ice or methane ice....
 rink is a frozen body of water
Water

Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
 where people can ice skate
Ice skate

File:Blue skates.jpgFile:Eislaufen 01.oggIce skates are boots with blades attached to the bottom, used to propel oneself across a sheet of ice....
 or play winter sports. Some of its uses include playing ice hockey
Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to simply as hockey, is a team sport played on ice. It is a fast paced and physical sport. Ice hockey is most popular in areas that are sufficiently cold for natural reliable seasonal ice cover such as Canada, the northern United States, Scandinavia and Russia, though with the advent of indoor artificial ice r...
, figure skating
Figure skating

Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform figure skating spins, figure skating jumps, moves in the field and other intricate and challenging moves on ice....
 exhibitions and contests, and ice
Ice

Ice is a solid phases of matter, usually crystalline solid, of a non-metallic substance that is liquid or gas at room temperature, such as ammonia ice or methane ice....
 shows.

Natural ice rink


Many ice
Ice

Ice is a solid phases of matter, usually crystalline solid, of a non-metallic substance that is liquid or gas at room temperature, such as ammonia ice or methane ice....
 rinks consist of, or are found on, open bodies of water
Water

Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
 such as lakes, ponds, canals, and sometimes rivers; these can only be used in the winter
Winter

Winter is one of the four seasons of temperate zones. Calculated astronomy, it begins on the solstice and ends on the equinox. It is the season with the shortest days and the lowest average temperatures....
 in climates where the surface would freeze thickly enough to support human weight. Rinks can also be made in cold climates by enclosing a level area of ground, filling it with water, and letting it freeze. Snow
Snow

Snow is a type of precipitation in the form of crystalline water ice, consisting of a multitude of snowflakes that fall from clouds. The process of this precipitation is called snowfall....
 may even be packed to use as the containment material.

Artificial ice rink


In any climate, an arena ice
Ice

Ice is a solid phases of matter, usually crystalline solid, of a non-metallic substance that is liquid or gas at room temperature, such as ammonia ice or methane ice....
 surface can be installed in a properly built space. This consists of a bed of sand, or occasionally a slab of concrete
Concrete

Concrete is a construction material composed of cement as well as other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, construction aggregate , water , and Chemistry admixtures....
, through (or on top of) which pipes run. The pipes carry a chilled fluid (usually either a salt brine or water
Water

Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
 with antifreeze
Antifreeze

Antifreeze is a cryoprotectant used in internal combustion engines, and for many other heat transfer applications, such as HVAC chillers and solar water heaters....
) which can lower the temperature of the slab so that water
Water

Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
 placed atop it will freeze. Such rinks were developed in the late nineteenth century, the first being the Glaciarium
Glaciarium

The Glaciarium was the world's first mechanically frozen ice rink.The rink was opened by John Gamgee in a tent in a small building just off the Kings Road in Chelsea, London, on 7 January 1876....
 in London. This methodology is known as 'artificial ice' to differentiate from ice rinks made by simply freezing water in a cold climate, indoors or outdoors, although both types are of frozen water. A more proper technical term is 'mechanically frozen' ice.

Construction

Modern rinks have a specific procedure for preparing the surface:

  • With the pipes cold, a thin layer of water
    Water

    Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
     is sprayed on the sand or concrete to seal and level it (or in the case of concrete, to keep it from being marked).
  • This thin layer is paint
    Paint

    Paint is any liquid, liquifiable, or mastic composition which after application to a Substrate in a thin layer is converted to an opaque solid film....
    ed white or pale blue, for better contrast; markings necessary for hockey or curling
    Curling

    Curling is a team sport with similarities to bowls and shuffleboard, played by two teams of four players each on a rectangular sheet of carefully prepared ice....
     are also placed, along with logos or other decorations.
  • Another thin layer of water
    Water

    Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
     is sprayed on top of this.
  • The ice
    Ice

    Ice is a solid phases of matter, usually crystalline solid, of a non-metallic substance that is liquid or gas at room temperature, such as ammonia ice or methane ice....
     is built up to a thickness of 2-3 centimetres (approx. 1.2 inches) by repeated flows of water onto the surface.



Periodically after the ice
Ice

Ice is a solid phases of matter, usually crystalline solid, of a non-metallic substance that is liquid or gas at room temperature, such as ammonia ice or methane ice....
 has been used, it is resurfaced using a machine called an ice resurfacer
Ice resurfacer

An ice resurfacer is a truck-like vehicle or smaller device used to clean and smooth the surface of an ice rink, originally developed by Frank J....
, commonly known as a Zamboni. For curling
Curling

Curling is a team sport with similarities to bowls and shuffleboard, played by two teams of four players each on a rectangular sheet of carefully prepared ice....
, the surface is 'pebbled' by allowing loose drops of cold water
Water

Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
 to fall onto the ice
Ice

Ice is a solid phases of matter, usually crystalline solid, of a non-metallic substance that is liquid or gas at room temperature, such as ammonia ice or methane ice....
 and freeze into rounded peaks.

Between events, especially if the arena is being used without need for the ice
Ice

Ice is a solid phases of matter, usually crystalline solid, of a non-metallic substance that is liquid or gas at room temperature, such as ammonia ice or methane ice....
 surface, it is either covered with a heavily insulated floor, or melted by heating the fluid in the pipes.

A highly specialized form of rink is used for speed skating
Speed skating

Speed skating or speedskating is a competition form of skating in which the competitors racing each other in travelling a certain distance on skating....
; this is a large oval
Oval (geometry)

In technical drawing an oval is a figure constructed from two pairs of arcs, with two different radius . The arcs are joined at a point, in which lines tangential to both joining arcs lie on the same line, thus making the joint smooth....
 (or ring) much like an athletic track. Due to their limited use, speed skating ovals are found in much fewer numbers than is true of the more common hockey or curling rinks.

Those skilled at preparing arena ice
Ice

Ice is a solid phases of matter, usually crystalline solid, of a non-metallic substance that is liquid or gas at room temperature, such as ammonia ice or methane ice....
 are often in demand for major events where ice
Ice

Ice is a solid phases of matter, usually crystalline solid, of a non-metallic substance that is liquid or gas at room temperature, such as ammonia ice or methane ice....
 quality is critical. The level of the sport of hockey in Canada
Canada

Canada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean....
 has led its icemakers to be particularly sought-after. One such team of professionals was responsible for placing a loonie
Loonie

The Canadian 1 dollar coin is a gold-coloured, bronze-plated, one-dollar coin introduced in 1987. It bears images of a Great Northern Diver, a well-known Canadian bird, on the Obverse and reverse, and of Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom on the obverse....
 coin under center ice at the 2002 Winter Olympics
2002 Winter Olympics

The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XIX Olympic Winter Games were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in 2002 in and around Salt Lake City, Utah, United States....
 in Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah

Salt Lake City is the Capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC....
; as both Canadian teams (men's and women's) won their respective hockey gold medals, the coin was christened "lucky" and is now in the possession of the Hockey Hall of Fame
Hockey Hall of Fame

The Hockey Hall of Fame is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey of ice hockey, it is both a museum and a hall of fame....
, after having been retrieved from beneath the ice.

Rink size


Speedskating

In speedskating, the official Olympic rink size is 30 x 60 meters for short track, and 400 meters for long track.

Ice Hockey

Main article: Hockey rink
Hockey rink

An ice hockey rink is an ice rink specifically designed for the game of ice hockey. It is rectangular with rounded corners and surrounded by a wall approximately 40 inches high called the boards....


There are basically two rink sizes in use (as below), although there is a great deal variations in the dimensions of actual ice
Ice

Ice is a solid phases of matter, usually crystalline solid, of a non-metallic substance that is liquid or gas at room temperature, such as ammonia ice or methane ice....
 rinks. Historically, earlier ice
Ice

Ice is a solid phases of matter, usually crystalline solid, of a non-metallic substance that is liquid or gas at room temperature, such as ammonia ice or methane ice....
 rinks were smaller than today.
National Hockey League (NHL) - Canada & USA
size x The dimensions originate from the size of the Victoria Skating Rink
Victoria Skating Rink

The Victoria Skating Rink was an indoor skating rink located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, which opened in 1862. The building was used during winter seasons for pleasure skating, ice hockey and skating sports on a natural ice rink....
 in Montreal
Montreal

Montreal, or Montr?al, is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada of Quebec and the List of largest cities and second largest cities by country List of the 100 largest municipalities in Canada by population....
, Canada
Canada

Canada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean....
.

International/Olympic Ice Hockey
Official Olympic/International rink x (4*4)

See also

  • Bad Reichenhall ice rink roof collapse
    Bad Reichenhall ice rink roof collapse

    At approximately 15:00 UTC on Monday 2 January 2006, in the town of Bad Reichenhall, Bavaria, Germany, near the Austrian border, the roof of a 1970s-built ice rink collapsed, possibly under the weight of heavy snowfall, trapping 50 people underneath the rubble....
     (January 2, 2006)
  • Ice rinks in Australia
  • Synthetic ice
    Synthetic ice

    Synthetic ice is the name given to a synthetic material intended to substitute for ice as a skating surface. It is a lightweight, low-friction, wear-resistant polymer material used for skating with standard metal-bladed ice skates....


External links

  • in the U.S. and Canada
    Canada

    Canada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean....