Live & Learn

Or not. Last year I didn’t put up the ice rink until the middle of December. It was FREEZING! And I had to shovel the snow from the entire backyard before I could even get started. By the time I was done, I was an icicle. So I vowed that this year I would do it differently, I would put the frame up in October before it gets cold!

Too late:( Here we are in November and the rink is still not up. I must rectify this!

So my helpers and I took to the backyard to get started. As you can see, from the way the boys are dressed, we didn’t manage to do it in the warmth, it was -1’C!

If you are thinking about building your own rink – see this link below to my tutorial. I’ve done a few things differently this year, so make sure to read both posts!

Building a Backyard Skating Rink

The first thing we did was lay all of the wood out where we would want it to go.

Instead of using 1ft lengths of wood the join the 8 ft lengths, I bought metal bracket joins (I don’t know what they are actually called) and 1 & 1/4 inch decking screws and used them instead. This went much faster than using the wood to join, because it took a lot less screwing.

For joining the frame at the corners I screwed 3 – 2 & 1/2 inch screws from the plank of wood on one side of the corner, into the plank of wood on the other side of the corner. Then I used a corner bracket to strengthen the join on the inside.The wood I used this year is the same wood I used last year, and it got quite warped, as you can see – but it all worked out in the end.

Now that the rink frame is built, I just have to wait until it gets SUPER cold! Then I’ll spread the blue tarp, attach it to the frame and flood!

While working out there I couldn’t help but snap this picture of the winter sky. It doesn’t quite show the beauty of the evening, but it gives you some idea! I can’t wait to get my Digital SLR camera!

Maybe, just maybe, I’ll get it up in October next year and get a tan instead of frostbite:)