I went to the new Extreme Ice Center in Indian Trail, NC today for a public session. It's a little SE of Charlotte and is a huge, 2-story facility as big as the Ashburn, VA rink. There is a large lobby, snack bar, video game room, pro shop, 2 rinks, and a separate mini-rink. Upstairs, there's a party room and balcony where people can watch one of the rinks from above. As you'd expect a public session the day after Thanksgiving, it was crowded with mostly people who could barely skate forward. I tried some spins n the middle of the rink and twice was run into mid-spin, once by a boy about 12, and the second time, by a middle age man who flew over me and wound up on his stomach. Luckily, no one was really hurt. I have a bruise on my elbow, but that's pretty good given that I was spinning and could've hit my toepick into them-- or they could've hit my face with their blades. Ugh, soon after the
2nd episode I got off the session, having been there over an hour. Guess I got my $6.50 worth. The rink is a great facility. It looks like it could easily accommodate a big competition. The website is something like xicenter.com. Check it out if you're ever in the Charlotte, NC area!

i've been there a few times because their freestlyes are cheaper than other rinks in this area.

i have to say they are quite slackish in maintaining their ice now. they used to do an ice cut between just about every freestlye, now its rare to see that fresh cut ice.


i'm just happy this rink created some competition so the other rinks are having to make improvements to gain back customers

they have some interesting variations to their freestyle rules:

Advanced and beginner skaters need to watch out for each other. There will be no yelling of any kind to another skater if they happen to get in your way. This is a large ice surface, adjust your pattern.
I guess I would not be able to yell my usual "MOVE" or my new "EXCUSE ME"????

When the Olympia comes out, all skaters, including anyone doing a program run through, must stop and exit the ice promptly.
and who is THE OLYMPIA???? Does THE OLYMPIA wear a badge or something???

The first locker room on each ice surface is open for the Figure Skaters to change skates and prepare for Freestyle Sessions. Please use them, and keep them tidy. This will allow for the skaters to have a comfortable space to prepare to skate, and eliminate clutter in the main corridors of the XIC Facility.
We could use the locker rooms at my rink-but they are really cold, dirty, and they stink...after all, they are used mostly for hockey

I hope they put up pictures!! I want to see what "the puddle" surface looks like!

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Skate@Delaware
Ah, show skating!!! I do it for the glitter!

Okay then, how are people supposed to learn MIF patterns if they are having to "adjust their pattern" to everyone else?

The Olympia is the other name for the Zam.

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Adult Nationals, 2009 "The Time of My Life"

No, it's a different (competitor) brand entirely. That's like saying the Chevy iis the other name for the Ford.

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Casey Allen Shobe | http://casey.shobe.info
"What matters is not experience per se but 'effortful study'."
"At first, dreams seem impossible, then improbable, and eventually inevitable" ~ Christopher Reeve

Wow, I defenatly want to slake at least once there!!! Seems like a good place! How much are the frrestyle sessions?

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What Nourishes Me Destroys Me

Really!!! Or skate around all the people constantly while you are doing your program, sheesh!

(red in face) I thought THE OLYMPIA was a PERSON!!! Holier than thou highly decorated Olympic competitor....walks on (frozen) water-type....actually, it's quite funny and I really wanted to know who it was..... but golly, a ZAM??? now that makes sense. Meanwhile, everywhere else it's just called a zam

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Skate@Delaware
Ah, show skating!!! I do it for the glitter!

It's not a Zamboni brand ice resurfacer, it's an Olympia brand ice resurfacer. Olympia probably made them say that.

So are pairs skaters allowed to call out spin position changes to each other? Are coaches allowed to yell at two skaters who are about to collide?

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"You don't have to put an age limit on your dreams." - Dara Torres, 41, after her 2nd medal at the 2008 Olympics

Perhaps whoever made that rule is new to this world. It's commonplace to yell out excuse me if you are in the middle of your program or lesson, since you have the right of way.

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- Ashley

Olympia and Zamboni are competitors. Olympia has to distinguish itself from Zambonis for marketing and trademark reasons. My understanding of the Olympia marketing angle is that they used electric sources instead of gas for power. (Cleaner source of energy...)

My weekend rink has a Zamboni. My home rink has an Olympia...

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Cheers,
jazzpants

11-04-2006: Shredded "Pre-Bronze FS for Life" Club Membership card!!!
Silver Moves is the next "Mission Impossible"
(Dare I try for Championship Adult Gold someday???)

Thank you for the support, you guys!!!

they do not actually enforce these stupid rules just so you know. there is never anyone out supervising a session so if you are on a freestlye your expected to just be curteous because they didnt even have a sound system- just a portable stereo untill like a month ago.

the sessions are pretty empty anyways so theres never an issue- and skaters knbow your program and dont really get in the way

Zamboni makes electric-powered models too. Olympia's primary line is propane or natural gas powered as well, though they do have an electric model also. The electric models aren't too popular because they actually cost more to operate (electric isn't cheap) and who wants their resurfacer to start petering out before the resurface is complete once the batteries start to degrade? It's a lot cheaper to maintain a gas-powered model than to keep up with the more finicky electric models too, replacing batteries all the time and such. And if you run out of gas, just slap on a new tank. Same reasons 99% of forklifts are gas-powered as well. Natural gas and propane are pretty clean too...certainly more so than a gasoline-powered engine would be. Electric models do indeed have the advantage of being the cleanest though...or at least, the emissions are relocated from the back of the resurfacer to the power plant.

Umm no, they probably just said it because that's what they've got. They could have just put ice resurfacer, but calling it a Zamboni is simply wrong.

Zamboni's a company based out of California, and Olympia's based out of Ontario. The machines look and operate quite different.

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Casey Allen Shobe | http://casey.shobe.info
"What matters is not experience per se but 'effortful study'."
"At first, dreams seem impossible, then improbable, and eventually inevitable" ~ Christopher Reeve

Our rink has an Olympia, I believe, but Zamboni seems to be the generic name for an ice-cutting machine, rather like Hoover is for a vacuum cleaner and Thermos for a vacuum flask.

I was at Peter Pan on Ice with my parents today, and when the machine came out in the interval, my father commented that "it looks as though he's mowing the lawn". I told him that I had once accidentally said that he (my father) had been Zamboni-ing the lawn.....

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Mrs Redboots
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I love my computer because my friends live in it!
Ice dancers have lovely big curves!