Top 10 Ice Skating Rinks.

[Skittl1321]

Thought some might be interested in this article.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21672530/

Suprisingly, my mall rink in Iowa didn't make the cut ;)

[sue123]

I now have a strong urge to take a road trip to all these rinks. Although I wonder how many of them have good ice.

[Terri C]

I think these rinks are listed on the ambiance alone.
Maybe we ought to start our own list based on schedules, prices, customer service, etc.

[jazzpants]

Is Bryant Park really "all that?" I guess I'll find out this Christmas when I visit NYC again! :mrgreen: (I don't see myself going to any of the other rinks, sadly...)

I think most of these are also seasonal rinks too!

[sue123]

Bryant Park is nice, but I've only skated there once, and I rented skates because we went on whim. I don't know if I would bring my own skates, because there was a lot of twigs and leaves on the ice, but it is pretty cool skating in the middle of Manhattan.

[flikkitty11]

How come most of the rinks listed are only open some of the year? shouldnt year round rinks be listed because they are much more skater friendly

[Skittl1321]

I agree they are ambiance only listings- but their main target in the article is public skaters who go around in circles.

I've been to the Houston Galleria rink, and it's not bad in the summer, but in the winter when they put the tree there you have almost NO ice left.

[Morgail]

I think that is an ambiance-only list:)

The two rinks I would love to skate at one day are the rink in Canada that has something like 7 sheets of ice (bliss!), and Lake Arrowhead where there are mirrors so you can see how high your spiral actually is and whether your program choreography looks good or just silly:lol:

[Madame Saccoche]

what I look for in a rink:

Well maintained ice surface with good glide to it.
Realatively warm temperature 8-15 degrees Celcius is nice.
Excellent indoor air quality.
Good availability of ice time.
Reasonably priced.
Easy to get to with lots of parking space.
Minimum 200' x 80' surface.
Clean bathrooms with good lighting (especially for competitions).
A good quality sound system.

Palm trees??? Artwork??? I'm too focused and too busy to care about that stuff.

One of the best rinks to skate in in the Montreal area is the Maurice Richard Arena, it's got pretty much all of the above criteria.

[Emberchyld]

I do have to say that these are the "Must skate casually at least once" rinks. Honestly, as a Philly-area skater, I've been planning on going to River Rink one of these winters (I think... and don't quote me on this... that they're open on new years eve so that you can see the fireworks over the Delaware from the ice. But I coullllld be wrong). I've never been to Bryant Park, but have skated a few times at Rockefeller Center (not mentioned, but since I've never been to Bryant Park...) and it was a nice experience-- not great to do much on (unless you go off-season, like me, on a weekday), but a must do. There's nothing like being outside on the ice with the sun setting and sparkling on the skyscrapers around you.

Of course, in a perfect world, these would have good ice, good and cheap freestyle times, natural (or outdoor) lighting, clean, CLEAN BATHROOMS, and no little stinkers who leave doritos and coins on the ice.
Oh... and a comfortable not-too-cold, not-too-hot temperature.