Edwards outdoor ice rinks set to open again this winter
The seasonal rinks provide space for both hockey and recreational skating through the winter months
Tom Boyd/Courtesy photo
Volunteers and Mountain Recreation are again partnering to provide outdoor skating on a pair of outdoor rinks on one of the infield areas at the Freedom Park ballfields in Edwards.
On Monday, the Eagle County Board of Commissioners heard an update about this season’s skating from county planner David McWilliams and Brad Johnson, the Edwards facilities supervisor for Mountain Recreation.
McWilliams said there will again be lighting at the rinks — one larger and one smaller — and portable toilets. In addition, the rinks’ layout will be changed slightly to better handle drainage in the spring and to direct drainage away from the Eagle Valley Trail.
Skating, both hockey and recreational, will end at 9 p.m. every night.
Johnson said the rinks will start being prepared for use about Dec. 1, but a memo to the commissioners noted that skating should start between roughly Christmas and New Year’s Day. Depending on how cold the season is, Johnson said the season should last through February.
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Responding to a question from Commissioner Kathy Chandler-Henry, Johnson said it’s hard to determine exactly how many people use the rinks, but said both rinks tend to fill up on weekends and are generally busy in the evenings.
Edwards resident Tom Boyd, who is running unopposed to replace the outgoing Chandler-Henry as county commissioner, is the lead volunteer for the rink project and said he and other volunteers are “trying to build a tradition” of outdoor skating in the community.
When the rinks were first proposed two years ago, residents, especially those nearby, didn’t know what to expect, Boyd said. “Now they do,” he said, adding that the rinks enhance the community.
There’s “always” someone on the ice surfaces, Boyd noted, adding that a local resident, a woman in her 50s, is frequently seen figure-skating on the smaller ice surface.
“I can’t wait” to see what the future holds, he added.
Chandler-Henry asked Johnson if there was anything the county could do to help.
“We could use year-round bathrooms,” Johnson said.
If you’d like to volunteer, email tom@tlrboyd.com.
