Outdoor ice oval expected to be ready for winter games. Photos 250 News

Prince George, B.C. – The largest and least controllable factor in staging an outdoor event is the weather. In some instances it can put the best-laid plans squarely in the trash bin.

There may have been a touch of concern among organizers of the long track speed skating events at the upcoming Canada Winter Games last week as an onslaught of warm weather caused vast amounts of snow to disappear and melted the ice at the Prince George Outdoor Ice Oval, forcing its temporary closure. However, it appears things are setting up well for the Games competitors.

Ice Oval Society member Kathy Lewis says “things are going really well, this colder weather that we’ve had has helped us. We had to repair some of the (lane) lines that we’d put down earlier for the B.C. Long Track Championships. Some of those got shifted when they kind of melted out, but we’ve been able to re-build the ice. We didn’t lose much at all, we had a really good base down and that helps maintain the ice itself.”

She says “so once we repaired the lines we’ve been flooding. Of course we had a lot of snow removal to do Friday, and the forecast is looking really good so we’re very optimistic that the ice is going to be in great shape.”

The extended forecast for Prince George has temperatures below zero both day and night through February 6^th. That’s followed by a couple of days with highs and lows above zero, and then nighttime lows well below zero through the course of the games from February 13^th to March 1^st. Lewis says “that will be fine as long as it goes below zero at night, and we have the option of having the races a bit earlier in the morning and then we keep everybody off the oval in the afternoon which is when its warmest. And then we do our ice maintenance late and night and we’re ready to go again with early-morning races, if that’s what we have to do. But the forecast is looking like we may actually not have to do that.”

We asked Lewis whether the outdoor oval might be closed to the public in the period leading up to the games. “It depends on the weather here for the next few days,” she says. “We’re really hoping to get open to the public because I know the public would like to get on there. If we can build up enough ice over top of the lines, then we will open to the public. We just haven’t decided yet but hopefully we will be able to open for a few days.”

She says a suitable thickness for the ice is an inch over top of the lines. “We have a base of between 4 ½ and 6 inches, and then we have these lines which are actually paper, and then we have another inch over top of that. If it’s more than that you can’t see the lines anymore. So once we get about an inch over we’ll be good. Part of it is the hockey blades that come down onto the ice. They’re quite hard on it, especially when its warmer and the ice is a bit soft you get deeper gouges than you do with speed skates.”

Lewis says she’s been told the building being constructed on the west side of the oval (above) will definitely be ready for the games. “We haven’t moved into it yet with our equipment but I’m fairly confident that will be ready, hopefully a few days in advance so we have some time to get in and get settled.” The building houses an office area that will be used for the electronic timing of the races. It also will house the equipment used for making and maintenance of the oval ice.

Lewis says plans are in place for spectator seating. “On the east side of the oval they’re moving the chain link fence back a little bit toward the Kin centre, and they will be putting in bleachers there. And also we’ve been clearing the snow on the berm at the north and south ends for people to stand on if they want to come around closer to the finish lines.”

Practice sessions for Long Track Speed Skating take place on February 13^th and 16^th, with the races going on the 14^th, 15^th, 17^th and 18^th. The 19^th and 20^th are extra days, if needed.