There are people who get warm in cold weather. People who, when the mercury dips towards zero degrees, start talking about irons that need to be removed from the diet. They no longer have lunch, but stop by the cookie-and-zopie stand.
It is those people – also known as skating enthusiasts – who are quietly gaining hope again this week. Because King Winter seems to wake up slightly from his hibernation and gives a small, wintery pinprick. And so skating rinks in the province are in full action mode. Because can we go ice skating at Christmas?
“It’s all hands on deck,” says Marinus Hulshof from the ice rink in Drouwenerveen. Six volunteers have been working since last Saturday to get the track in the village ready for possible ice fun. “All the leaves have to be removed. And everything has to be nice and clean,” Hulshof explains. He expects the track to be ready during the morning. Then it is a matter of turning on the pump and carefully spraying water onto the track.
There is also a cautious ice fever in Nieuw-Buinen. Or as Monique Wessels from the local skating club puts it: “The colder it is, the warmer I become.” They have also been working there since last Saturday to get the track in tip-top condition.
“We would rather be well prepared than be a few hours late,” Wessels explains. The track is very clean and tonight the board is meeting to discuss the approach for the coming days. Will this disrupt Christmas planning? “I could just leave my gala dress hanging in the closet and wear a thick coat along the ice rink,” laughs Wessels. “But celebrating Christmas together at the track is wonderful.”
This kind of enthusiasm can be heard from all involved ice cream enthusiasts who the reporter on duty calls during the ice fever temperatures in Drenthe. In Gasselternijveen they have already completed two DIY Saturdays to ensure everything was properly prepared.
“When the temperature drops, the first messages start coming in,” says an enthusiastic Albertha Ottevanger from IJsvereniging Oostermoer. It’s the people who crave a layer of ice. “But of course, safety comes first,” Ottevanger emphasizes. The association in the village aims to ensure that the children from Gasselternijveen can skate first.
“But anyway, we are on an open plain behind the mill. So many factors play a role, such as the wind, in combination with the sun,” Ottevanger looks ahead to the weather forecast for next week. The ice rink there needs a thicker layer of ice anyway, because it does not have an asphalt roller rink as a surface.
When you say skating fever, the battle for the first marathon on natural ice often comes up. But it is still far too early for that. “It would be nice if we could at least skate on Boxing Day,” says Jan Geert Veldman from the ice rink in Noordlaren. The association just across the provincial border in Groningen has often had the honor of hosting the first marathon, but according to Veldman that is still too difficult with these temperatures.
Either way, the volunteers from all courses are ready to brave the cold. “If it is -3 or -4 at night, we will spray,” says Veldman. That’s how they look at Ice Skating Club Hou Streek in Een. “Although it really needs to freeze for two nights for us. If that is the case, we can act quickly and open,” said Mark Ekhart of the ice skating association.
They are also aiming for Christmas in New Amsterdam/Veenoord and Drouwenerveen. “That would be really great. We are now busy discussing which night would be best to apply water,” Margriet Sieben explains from Nieuw-Amsterdam/Veenoord.
Ice skating at Christmas. The best gift for under the tree for enthusiasts. Now we just have to wait to see if King Winter will peak.