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Whither the canal?
It’s the one question on the blue and frozen lips of Ottawans, who feel that enduring a week of record-breaking Arctic weather should at least be rewarded with the opening of the 48th season of the Rideau Canal Skateway.
National Capital Commission spokesman Jean Wolff shares your frustration, but when it comes to ice-making, he says, things aren’t always so simple.
“Every single winter is different. If there’s one constant, it’s that it’s unpredictable,” Wolff said.
“Impatience with the opening of the canal is always high. The Skateway is the No. 1 winter icon in the capital. But at the end of the day, it’s a natural surface, natural ice outdoors and we have to do it with the weather we have.”
There was a cold snap in the middle of December but the temperature climbed above freezing the night of Dec. 19-20, eroding much of the ice growth, he said.
It takes at least two weeks of consecutive nights below -10 or -15 to get the ice to a thickness it needs to be to support the 20,000 skaters who visit on the average day. The current cold snap puts us “inside the margins” to open, but it’s only been a week since the ice was safe enough to have crews on it to begin preparing the surface.
Since Dec. 28, the NCC has had crews of as many as 40 people working to clear and flood the 7.8-kilometre skateway. Snowfall can also slow the ice growth, as it acts as a thermal blanket that can slow or even reverse ice growth.
“There’s a lot of second guessing out there,” Wolff said. “This is the 48th season and we’ve built quite a bit of expertise. But the No. 1 variable is the weather. Yes, it’s been cold, but if the water did not freeze in those few days before Dec. 21, then there’s nothing to build on.
“You might think of the skateway as an average rink, but that ice surface is floating on water and we have to make sure that it is safe.”
In 2014-15, the skateway opened Jan 10 and stayed open for a record-setting 59 consecutive days, not closing until March 9. The 2015-16 season began Jan. 23 and lasted 34 days. Last year, the canal opened Jan. 14 and closed on Feb. 18, a paltry 34-day season that included 11 days of no skating.
Wolff is hoping for better this year.
“I know there are a lot of theories out there — that we’re not putting in the staff, that we’re not putting in the money, that we’re not putting in the time. I can tell you, that is not the case. The budget has not changed. The skateway is important. It’s an icon. It’s a symbol of the capital. We are as impatient as everyone else to have it open,” he said.
“The good news is that we’ve had these cold stretches and we are feeling optimistic. We are going to open soon.”
bcrawford@postmedia.com
Twitter.com/getBAC
查看原文...
It’s the one question on the blue and frozen lips of Ottawans, who feel that enduring a week of record-breaking Arctic weather should at least be rewarded with the opening of the 48th season of the Rideau Canal Skateway.
National Capital Commission spokesman Jean Wolff shares your frustration, but when it comes to ice-making, he says, things aren’t always so simple.
“Every single winter is different. If there’s one constant, it’s that it’s unpredictable,” Wolff said.
“Impatience with the opening of the canal is always high. The Skateway is the No. 1 winter icon in the capital. But at the end of the day, it’s a natural surface, natural ice outdoors and we have to do it with the weather we have.”
There was a cold snap in the middle of December but the temperature climbed above freezing the night of Dec. 19-20, eroding much of the ice growth, he said.
It takes at least two weeks of consecutive nights below -10 or -15 to get the ice to a thickness it needs to be to support the 20,000 skaters who visit on the average day. The current cold snap puts us “inside the margins” to open, but it’s only been a week since the ice was safe enough to have crews on it to begin preparing the surface.
Since Dec. 28, the NCC has had crews of as many as 40 people working to clear and flood the 7.8-kilometre skateway. Snowfall can also slow the ice growth, as it acts as a thermal blanket that can slow or even reverse ice growth.
“There’s a lot of second guessing out there,” Wolff said. “This is the 48th season and we’ve built quite a bit of expertise. But the No. 1 variable is the weather. Yes, it’s been cold, but if the water did not freeze in those few days before Dec. 21, then there’s nothing to build on.
“You might think of the skateway as an average rink, but that ice surface is floating on water and we have to make sure that it is safe.”
In 2014-15, the skateway opened Jan 10 and stayed open for a record-setting 59 consecutive days, not closing until March 9. The 2015-16 season began Jan. 23 and lasted 34 days. Last year, the canal opened Jan. 14 and closed on Feb. 18, a paltry 34-day season that included 11 days of no skating.
Wolff is hoping for better this year.
“I know there are a lot of theories out there — that we’re not putting in the staff, that we’re not putting in the money, that we’re not putting in the time. I can tell you, that is not the case. The budget has not changed. The skateway is important. It’s an icon. It’s a symbol of the capital. We are as impatient as everyone else to have it open,” he said.
“The good news is that we’ve had these cold stretches and we are feeling optimistic. We are going to open soon.”
bcrawford@postmedia.com
Twitter.com/getBAC
查看原文...
