Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Mr. Ducky!


Mr. Ducky!
Originally uploaded by Big Swede Guy.

Mr. Ducky likes the water!

Sometimes it's hard to believe that just last week we were playing hockey on this surface.

Have fun Mr. Ducky! But come November you'd best be off....

THIS IS HOCKEY COUNTRY!

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

"That'ssssss all folks!"


Last Skate of 2006/2007
Originally uploaded by Big Swede Guy.


A beautiful, warm Saturday afternoon allowed us a final skate on the old ice rink before it melted. A few of the girls off of Hannah's hockey team dropped by for a few hours to shoot some pucks around the rink.

2 days prior to this, it was cold enough during the night (-10c to -20c) that I was able to get two solid floodings in - which provided a pretty decent ice surface for Saturdays skate. Even though the temp Saturday was about +5C or so (the girls were taking off coats because they were too warm) the ice held up for about 3 hours. By the end of it though, it was pretty chewed up, and one end had become a wading pool.

In the end, goals were scored... saves were made, and smiles were had by all. I'm glad we were able to say goodbye to the rink in a more fitting fashion.

Last night we had a pretty good thunder shower, with temps well above freezing. Put a fork in it, we're done for the season.


LastSkate0607-6
Big thanks to Jeff, Tony, Laura and Jay for helping out with the rink this year. Big plans for the summer and next fall for next year. I can hardly wait!

See you then!

Friday, March 16, 2007

Brief but Cold

The rink was in horrid shape. The far end was slush the other day... But thanks to a full solid 24 hrs of -18C, it has all refrozen. Looking at the forecast, (showing highs of -2C and lows around -10c for the next two days) I decided to flood once more in an attempt to have one final day of skating.

I checked this morning, and the ice was actually skatable again. Yay!

Hopefully it stays that way until Saturday when we go to use it... I'm going to invite some of the girls over from Hannah's hockey team if they're around.

Monday, March 12, 2007

"I'm meeeeeeelting..."



Part of my yard is under water... This would be the area right around my shed, and the far end of my rink. About a foot in some places, thanks to the warm temperatures the last 3 or 4 days.

It looks like it might get a bit cooler over the weekend - but I fear too much ice will be lost by then to salvage anything. I may be wrong, cross your fingers. Maybe I can get one more skate in Saturday afternoon...

Friday, March 9, 2007

For Posterity...

I thought I'd mention Hannah's hockey games last weekend, for posterities sake. She was recruited again to play for the Canadiens, as they were short on players due to some of their girls playing in another hockey tournament. In the first game, Hannah scored 5 goals as the team went on to beat the Sabres 5-0. Immediately after that game, she played for our own team and scored 2 goals, 3 assists in a 6-5 win over the Bruins. On Sunday, the Canadiens beat the Sabres 3-1 (Hannah had 1 goal, 1 assist) and then the Leafs tied 3-3 (Hannah had all 3 goals).

Just before the first game, I promised her I'd pay her a dollar for every goal she scored.

She kept track, and daddy paid up.

Nearing seasons end?

It's always hard to tell up here when Spring has truely arrived.

In the next few days, it's going to be mostly above freezing... Forecast is as high as 11C next Tuesday. For me, that's shorts weather.

In preparation for this thaw, I shovelled off the rink yesterday. 2" of snow may not seem like much, but when it accumulates over the size of your rink... it adds up. My neighbour joined me near the end of my ice clearing to lend a hand, so that was nice.

Why am I shovelling? SHouldn't I just pack it in? Well, following the 11C day - the chinook will pass us and it looks like we'll be back in -10C for a few days after that. So I guess we'll just wait and see what Mother Nature brings us.

When the thaw does come, I've got a few things on my list to accomplish.

o Mark boards so I know where they go next year
o Paint back of boards with wood preservatives to prolong their life
o Repaint the front of the boards white - with a 10" strip of yellow along the bottom
o Finish the netting for the back boards


I'm not looking forward to the deconstruction and transportation of the rink/boards to my dads property, about 40 minutes east of town. But it beats storing the stuff in my yard. Besides, I have to make room to build our full size soccer net for Hannah! :)

Current Temp: -3C