For those in Duluth who have been itching to get their ice skates out of the closet, you'll have to hold on just a little bit longer. The City of Duluth, MN Government has announced a brief pause on their Open Skate sessions this holiday season, taking to social media to let residents know that the rinks will be temporarily barren this week. "Happy Holidays! There is no Open Skate this week," the City of Duluth, MN posted on their official Facebook page.
But before you start lamenting the lost opportunity to carve up the ice in true winter fashion, there's a silver lining not too far out on the horizon; the city has extended an invite for the next Open Skate, which is scheduled for Sunday, December 29, from 3 to 5 pm, it's a bit of a hiccup in the regularity that locals have become accustomed to but, surely a chance to get back on the ice is worth the wait. Residents looking to glide into the new year with some freestyle laps or perhaps a cheeky hockey scrimmage will have to mark their calendars and practice their patience just a bit longer.
Turning towards the future, Duluth Parks & Recreation has confirmed the return to normal hours will happen promptly after the new year kicks off. From Sunday, January 5, Open Skate will resume its usual schedule; this means all the triple axels you can handle, or if you’re like me, a delicate dance with gravity as you try not to look like a newborn giraffe on blades. For now, what’s a few more days in a year that has offered us time to reflect on the collective yearning for community joy and traditions such as these?
So, lace up and lean into the latter part of this festive season with a swirl and twirl on the ice, Duluth residents can just envision those frosty afternoons spent under the open sky, the laughter of families rebounding off the icy expanse that is just begging for skaters to etch their memories into its surface—and when the time comes, don’t forget to bring your best game face, and maybe a thermos of cocoa or two, to that Open Skate session on December 29, it's not the seamless winter fable perhaps you'd imagined but the invitation to revel in the chilly thrills of community ice skating is extended, with all the clumsy grace it entails.
