Yesterday's Friday shinny pre-game conversation surfaced an interesting measure of how much a parent loves their children. It started with some commenting about road trips and the miles that some parents drive over the course of a weekend, season or indeed, for the entire duration of raising children, when said children play rep level hockey. …
Category: rinks
A Man and his Son, A Man and his Father, and Me
I skated today for the first time in 9 weeks on this cold bright January morning. I headed off to Vic park early, knowing the rink would be mostly mine, which is for the best as i know I'm in no shape to actually skate with others around me yet. I took my stick and …
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Ski Week Without Hockey
When I was at Uni, I would come home to Peterborough during ski (reading) week each year. I remember one particular year where I was looking forward to some R&R and a little hockey and being big time disappointed when a big thaw hit either just as the break arrived or shortly thereafter, washing all …
This Isn’t Normal and Why We Are Lucky Here in Canada
At our game last night in Elmira, a teammate who is a well-traveled cat made the comment about how lucky we are to place in such a fine facility. He travels so much he hasn't had a chance to play all that regularly over the past few years and he marveled about how nice it …
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Shoveling The Rink
Ah, the beauty and the beast of the Great White North's winter season. The cold being the beauty that gives life to the treasured outdoor rink. The beast being the snow, sleet, rain and combinations thereof that transform the act of shoveling the rink to something between a minor annoyance and a heart-attack inducing hell-on-blades …
Puckette
Several years ago, when the Crowley backyard rink was the centre of family action in the winter months, my youngest flipped a stick upside-down and attempted to control the puck with the end of the stick instead of the blade. She was imitating a neighbourhood friend who played ringette, but given our rink was always …
Begging For Shinny
I snapped this shot on my way to work a couple of days ago in downtown Kitchener. Classic January morning in Canada - an open air rink, freshly flooded looking for action.
Things That Matter, Things That Don’t
Brian Burke got fired. Yawn. The circle of life and death that is Toronto Maple Leaf hockey continues. What does matter, and is truly a little bit sad though, is the warm weather hitting southern Ontario over next few days because there are tons of outdoor rinks just nicely established that will shortly disappear into …
Christmas Ice
One of the great things about the Christmas season is spending time with family and friends. It's a cliche, but it's true. Squeezing in a game or two of hockey with old buddies fits nicely into this category. For those of us lucky enough to have kids who play the game as well, Christmas sometimes …
The Love Affair That Is A Rink
There is something wonderful about building a rink. It's one of those must-do things in life if you love winter and your kids. I've built (or helped build) many and have come to the conclusion that there is a dual zen for the rink builder in this life - the passion and emotion that bubbles …
Rink Tales 