Volunteers get ice rinks ready for skating season [Video]

Skating rinks will be opening soon in neighbourhoods across the City of Kitchener.

Now that there’s a stretch of sub-zero temperatures in the forecast, volunteers have been busy getting ice rinks ready for skaters.

At the Pioneer Park West rink, on Green Valley Drive, it’s a labour of love for their dedicated crew.

“We’ve been doing this rink now for 12 years,” explained Laura Myers.

Getting it ready requires long hours and faithful flooding to build a solid base.

“We’re up all the time,” Myers added. “You can find us here every hour. Sometimes the guys stay up all night.”

It also takes several days of consistent temperatures, ideally -5 Celsius and below.

The Pioneer Park rink is one of 25 across the city and more than 100 volunteers are needed to create and maintain them.

“We’re hoping to get more of the volunteer rinks operational in the next week …