The Ice: Not Your Average Sheet

Wednesday, October 12, 2016 - 11:15
Marc
Marketing Manager


If you’ve ever been Curling, you have probably heard a lot of chatter about the ice. “Get your knees off the ice!” “If you fall down get up as fast as you can!” “Don’t chip the ice!” Well, as nagging as these demands can seem, they are pretty important. Here’s why:

  • Before the ice is even made, water samples are sent to testing facilities to make sure that the PH levels are optimal for creating the ice they want
  • The water is then purified so that it can form perfect pebbles when pebbling the ice
  • A laser is used to make sure the ice surface is as flat as possible
  • They flood the rink, shave it flat, then flood it, and shave it again
  • Once the ice is perfectly flat, and smooth, pebbling begins
  • Workers spray from a copper hose and apply two layers of pebbles (drops of water that freeze on top of the flat surface to reduce friction)
  • Once the ice is totally done, the temperature has to be constantly monitored and kept near -5 degrees Celsius
  • Finally, if the ice is cracked badly enough, it can force the ice technicians to start this entire process over again

So, next time you’re Curling in our Leagues or playing in a FunSpiel, have a look at the ice and appreciate the science, work, and passion that has gone into it. And please do your best to not wreck it! That ice is someone’s baby.

Have fun out there.