By Karen Rice
Official Kids Mag
Kids! Have you ever ice skated or
played hockey? Do you know what it
feels like to glide across the ice?
Ice skating is fun, and it's been
around for a really long time.
In fact, the first ice skaters were
probably Scandinavians and Russians,
thousands of years ago. The blades of
their skates were made from the leg
bones of horses, cows, deer or other
large animals. In fact, the modern word
for skate comes from the Dutch word
meaning "leg bone." They drilled holes
on each end of the bone and tied them
onto their feet with leather straps. But
they weren't ice skating for fun…their
bone skates were a way to get around
on frozen rivers, lakes and canals.
Later, the Dutch invented wooden
platform skates with iron runners
on the bottom. Then, they added a
double-edged blade to the bottom of
the skates.
Sometime in the 17th century, King
Charles II saw ice skating in Holland
and decided to bring it to England.
In the 1740s, the British introduced
ice skating to North America.
In 1850, an American named E.W.
Bushnell of Philadelphia introduced the
all-steel skate, replacing the wooden
footplate. In the modern version, steel
blades are attached to a boot. The toe
pick, the jagged teeth at the front of
an ice skate blade, helps skaters push,
stop and have more control.
Today, ice skating is a fun winter
activity for kids and grown ups too!
Remember, falling is part of learning
how to ice skate, so be prepared. It's a
good idea to wear a helmet when you
are learning to ice skate. Elbow and
knee pads are a good idea too!
And you don't need a frozen river
or lake to ice skate here in Northwest
Arkansas. You can ice skate, and even
learn to ice skate, at the Lawrence
Plaza Outdoor Ice Rink in Downtown
Bentonville (through February) or at
the indoor ice rink at the Jones Center
in Springdale (all year long.)
What is an Axel?
the axel is considered
the most technically difficult
jump in figure skating, and
involves jumping and rotating
in the air.
It is named after
Norwegian figure skater axel
paulsen, who, in 1882, was
the first skater to perform
the jump.
lawrence plaza outdoor Ice Rink in Downtown Bentonville
Visit these websites for more information:
www.thejonescenter.net/ice-arena
www.bentonvillear.com/887/the-Rink-at-lawrence-plaza
Reconstruction
of ~1800 BC bone
skate, left.
Photo courtesy of
Federico Formenti.
www.officialkidsMag.com • JaNuaRY 2023 • 27
