Okay, so the ice was better than it has been in the past month or so, but it still wasn't flat. At Valley that is.
This is what one person said: "On Wednesday it was great, Thursday it was good, and today (Friday) it was okay". The public session is after morning hockey ("old-man hockey" - I wouldn't call it this, but that is an exact quote from one of the zamboni-guys who works there) and a once-over with the zamboni isn't really enough to get the hockey ruts out. So there were some ruts, not bad, but my blade happened to fall into them a few times, which makes a person more cautious.
And the hills and valleys? They are still there, but they are better than before the zamboni broke. You no longer feel like someone is pushing from behind or that you have to labor to get up the hills. But they are not gone.
Those hills are just waiting to come back, waiting to turn us all into cautious, scared skaters. Waiting. Lurking. It will be just a matter of time I think.
Lighting is also a problem as the "big lights" are largely burned out - so you will go from very bright to darker - sun, shade, sun, shade, sun, shade - kind of like our Portland weather lately... disconcerting.
Word must have gotten out, though, that the ice was better because there were quite a few of the regulars there, plus a few "freestyle kids" and ice-dancers. Hard to do any figures, but oh well, that is for another rink at another time.
Maybe.
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