Debris on the ice!!!!!!

[garyc254]

I was at a local club skating show recently (although it could happen as well at any competition) and was watching a young synchro team perform for the crowd. A young lad ran down to the boards and tossed a coat button (larger than a quarter) onto the ice. I was in a panic about what to do. Jump the boards and retrieve it? Yell to the team to watch out? Wave my arms?

As it was, I watched the team closely, ready to yell if their pattern came toward the debris. They missed it and I retrieved it after they were done.

What should I have done?

[manleywoman]

Was anyone quick enough to catch the brat who threw it on the ice and reprimand the hell out of him?

8O

[garyc254]

Originally posted by manleywoman
Was anyone quick enough to catch the brat who threw it on the ice and reprimand the hell out of him?

8O

Heh, heh, heh..... I caught up with his mother in the warming room. ;)

He wasn't but about 3 or 4 years old, so wouldn't have understood the possible complications of his action, but his mother should have been watching him closer. I had no problem telling her so.

[flo]

It's hard to tell what to do. If you see a person with a headset at the door as in competitions- they're a good place to start.
This reminded me of club this Saturday. We have had quite a few new members and guests, and we need to remind all to empty or zip their pockets. One of the coaches found cat food on the ice, and I found a quarter. They all know I have two kitties, so I assured them that I had no pockets, and also it wasn't my brand!

[Black Sheep]

I've been in at least one show in which they had to stop and tell the audience not to throw pennies on the ice (in the dark and everything)! :roll: :evil:

[RoaringSkates]

I skate at a semi-enclosed rink, so we sometimes get debris blown onto the ice from the highway next to the rink. At our December competition, a paper plate and some leaves blew onto the ice. The skaters saw them, as did the judges. The judges had the ability to stop the skater if they thought the debris would be a danger. Since the skater didn't go near the plate and leaves, the judges waited until after her program and then had someone go onto the ice to remove the debris.

I think the best thing would be to notify someone working at the rink - a coach, a judge, or the person with the clipboard at the boards, and let them know about the debris. They can then assess the situation and decide when it would be best to remove the item.

[kayskate]

Birds tend to get into the rinks where I skate, although they are enclosed. So guess what kind of debris we have on the ice? One day it was particularly bad and I had to wipe the stuff off my blades.

Kay

[eliao]

It's unbelievable that some people would purposely throw debris out on to the ice, at a competition or show, nonetheless! I skate at a mall rink where the food court overlooks the ice. I was doing a spiral once and I was so peeved when I saw a penny roll right across my path, no doubt thrown from above with me as its target. I would have so loved to have been given the chance to confront the perpetrator! Good for you, Gary for telling the mom!

Emily

[itsgr82sk8]

This year at Canadians, I think during Ken Rose performance there was a Pop can on the ice.

[Mrs Redboots]

At the World Synchro championship last year (2002), they had a team of small girls whose job it was, after every team had skated, to skate down the ice looking hard for any debris - a hairgrip, say, or a sequin.

Once, watching the Russian all-stars doing Peter Pan, I saw a book in the "nursery" fell on the floor, and they had to skate round it, and one skater was able to stoop and pick it up almost without looking as though he was doing anything special - I was impressed!

I get very teed off with the Great British Public, who will eat sweets on the ice, and drop the wrapping-paper everywhere. Also tissues - you can't always help dropping tissues, but you can at least pick them up!
We do get insects - usually spiders - frozen to the ice, but that is the only "natural" hazard.

[RoaringSkates]

Originally posted by Mrs Redboots

We do get insects - usually spiders - frozen to the ice, but that is the only "natural" hazard.

Our natural hazard is pigeon droppings. Pigeons live in the rafters of the rink, and while they sit on the beams, they poop. You have to avoid the poop at both ends, if it's fresh. The stuff that's already been zambonied is fine.

[quarkiki2]

I was in a skating camp this past summer at our rink (in a mall) with our Russian coach and while we were practicing, these 12-13 year old boys threw a handful of Skittles on the ice. For those of you who don't know what Skittles are, they're "fruit" flavored candies about the size of M&Ms. Well, I'm quite sure they'll never do anything like that again as the coach stormed over to the boards screaming at them in Russian. They looked shocked and terrified and ran away. We picked up the candy. Even though it was dangerous, they candy pieces left lovely bright colored polka-dots on the ice, though I don't really recommend the process.

[AshBugg44]

I too skate at a mall rink, and there has always been tons of crap thrown on the ice. French fries is a favorite! There has even been a chair thrown, and also those litle fire-popper things that you get on the 4th of July!