Pavilion ice rink hot site for skaters - Dan Rodgerson

Pavilion ice rink hot site for skaters
The Greenville News - Greenville, S.C.
Author: John C Stevenson
Date: Dec 8, 2004
Start Page: CE.1
Section: City People-Eastside
Text Word Count: 858

Document Text
Staff writer

jstevens@greenvillenews.com

Sports you associate with the South: golf, tennis, youth soccer.

But it's a sport you wouldn't normally associate with the South -- ice skating -- that brings Greenville resident Amber Goodwin to The Pavilion Recreation Complex in Taylors.

"I get to skate a lot," the 14-year-old said before taking to the ice recently, "and it's something that I really, really enjoy doing. I wish everybody loved it."

Goodwin said that, on average, she skates at The Pavilion three times a week, 11/2 hours at a clip, "unless I'm really energized, then I'll skate for like three hours on a Saturday."

She is just one of an estimated 2,000-3,000 skaters who each week glide across the frozen surface of the only public ice rink in the Upstate. She said she can do a few "little jumps and some spins," but The Pavilion plays host to skaters of all skill levels, from novice "ankle-benders" to pro hockey players, according to Dan Rodgerson, executive director of the Greenville County Recreation District.

Fans and wanna-be ice princes and princesses will have a chance to see the skills Upstate figure skaters have honed when the Pavilion presents "Christmas on Ice" this Friday and Saturday. The show features skaters from the area and is free to the public.

The Pavilion attracts a wide variety of ice-skating enthusiasts, Rodgerson said. "It's from toddlers to senior citizens, really. Our program caters to everyone. We don't have a 'typical' clientele. ... We've got some special Olympics figure skaters."

In addition, the minor-league Greenville Grrrowl practices at The Pavilion, and there are three youth ice-hockey leagues and four adult ice-hockey leagues that share time on the ice.

But since this is the South -- a region where ice is usually associated with tea, not sports -- Rodgerson said the Recreation District is aware of the uniqueness of the ice rink.

"In years past, a lot of the ice has been monopolized by some of the high-end folks," Rodgerson said, "and we wanted to switch that around and focus a little bit more on recreation and make the beginning skaters feel comfortable ... kind of take away that embarrassment factor."

To that end, group lessons are available for children and adults, and private lessons are available in figure skating, ice dance and pairs skating.

Ice enthusiasts can also schedule snow carnivals from 10-11 a.m. weekday mornings for groups of 10-25 children. For $7 each ($5 per child who lives in the Recreation District), children can ride sleighs and build snowmen, all with the icy "snow" created by the Zamboni ice-resurfacing machine.

The Pavilion's ice rink is open year-round, which makes it a cool alternative to summer's heat. And although the rink and the entire complex is 13 years old, its popularity continues to grow as traditional cold-weather sports creep southward.

"We've got a population base of 350,000 people and only one sheet of ice," Rodgerson said. "I think (when the rink was constructed) it may have been looked at as a wacky idea, but if you think about it, you've got a lot of hockey teams down South. And you also have a lot of transplants. I'm a Yankee transplant down here, and I grew up playing hockey.

"Not only do you have that population, but you've got an explosive growth population."

Write to City People, c/o The Greenville News, Box 1688, Greenville, SC 29602. The e-mail address is citypeople@greenvillenews.com

WANT TO GO?

-- What: "Christmas on Ice," a holiday figure-skating show

-- When: 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday

-- Where: The Pavilion, 400 Scottswood Road

-- Cost: Free. Call 322-7529 for more information.

FAMILY SKATING

Open skating hours through March:

- 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., 7:45-9:15 p.m. Mondays

- 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. (adults only) Tuesdays

- 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Wednesdays

- 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., 2:45-4:15 p.m., 7:45-9:15 p.m., 9:30-11 p.m. Fridays

- 11:45 a.m.-1:15 p.m., 1:30-3 p.m., 3:15-4:45 p.m., 7:45-9:15 p.m., 9:30-11 p.m. Saturdays

- 1:30-3 p.m., 3:15-4:45 p.m. Sundays

Admission: $4 for ages 12 and under and senior citizens; $5 for ages 13 and older; $4 per person for groups of 15 or more. Skate rental: $2

WHAT'S IN A RINK?

The Pavilion's ice rink is a sheet of ice 2 inches thick that rests on a bed of sand. Buried in the sand are cooling coils that keep the ice at a chilly 15 degrees. As the ice sheet forms, it's spray-painted white; later, the various stripes and circles that mark the rink for hockey are painted on by hand before the final ice layers are applied. The ambient temperature at the rink is 50 degrees year-round; so even if it's August and 95 degrees outside, skaters should eschew shorts and T-shirts for warmer garb when they come to skate.

Cutlines:

ALAN DEVORSEY / Staff

Local students enjoy College Night at the Pavilion ice rink, the only such public facility in the Upstate.

Skaters get in some ice time at the Pavilion on the Eastside

Kelsey Taunero, 11, stretches with help of her mom, Patty, before freestyle ice skating lessons at the Pavilion.

SUZIE RIDDLE / Staff graphic

Location of The Pavilion Skating Rink






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