Wordless blog post from the cat

writing a blog post, a photo by coach_stacey on Flickr.

A new rink, a new beginning for skating in Singapore

JCUBE Rink, a set on Flickr.

The new rink opened in Singapore at the end of March. It's Olympic size and the people hired to manage it are former skaters from the UK who have run a rink previously in Dubai. I am so happy about this new change for both the local skating scene and for me too. Finally a rink where figure skaters and hockey players can book ice and start building teams to participate in international events.

The other rink in Singapore is like a lot of the rinks in Asia –– like a carnival ride. You pay a bunch of money, you skate in a circle and you leave. These novelty ice rinks are run by corporations who discourage anyone from doing anything other than the above by imposing rules on what is or isn't allowed on the ice and charging fees of upwards of $2,000 for a two hour ice booking. There's a two hour minimum booking! The local staff aren't allowed to negotiate much and the rules appear to come from people who have never seen skating before. Terrible right? It gets worse...