Alpine Ice Arena: still cool after 50 years
Alpine Ice Arena celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2010, but 20 years ago, it was on thin ice.
“They were going broke, and they were going to close,” said manager Scott Farmer. “There was talk of building an ice rink at the zoo.” That’s when Farmer’s father, Robert Farmer, laced up and skated in.
With two sons practically living on the rink, he joked, he might as well put his money into buying the business. What began as a one-year lease with an option to buy turned into a family business that continues to serve generations of Louisville skaters.
The ice rink at 1825 Gardiner Lane is an important part of life for young skaters like Earl Phelps, 17, of Louisville, who visits twice a week for lessons and recreation.
“Figure skating is the most beautiful sport of the winter sports,” Earl said. “I enjoy doing the tricks a lot, such as an arabesque.”
Alpine isn’t the only ice rink in Louisville, but Earl said he likes “that it’s small and family based.”
“There (are) about 3,500 ice rinks in the United States. Most are owned by municipalities. Only about a dozen are owned by a family. We’re one of them,” Scott Farmer said.
These are good days for the business, thanks in part to a 2002 renovation that brought dressing rooms, showers and new equipment geared for the growing local interest in ice hockey.
“For about 40 years there wasn’t much interest in hockey. In the last 15 years, hockey interest has really grown,” Scott Farmer said.
Alpine is the home of the University of Louisville ice hockey team. The rink also offers hockey lessons and skating school, and various skating pros offer their own skating lessons there. It’s also home to Moms on Ice (and one Pop) and The Belles, a group of adult figure skaters who represent Alpine Ice Arena in competitive synchronized skating competitions. The rink hosts Special Olympics skaters, too.
Alpine is open seasonally, closing for the warmer weather months, approximately mid-April through mid-September. The rink is open from 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and adds a 7 p.m.-to-midnight shift on Fridays and Saturdays. Sundays offer open skating from 2 to 6 p.m.
There's a pro shop, snack bar, meeting rooms and five party rooms. Skate repair and sharpening is available. If you go, dress warmly in layers. The arena keeps its cool with ice chilled to about 22 degrees.
“It’s very cold. I usually wear my winter coat, gloves and a hat,” Earl said. But once the skating begins, “you warm up a lot.”
- by Bill Wolfe, Louisville Reporter for HelloMetro
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Bill WolfeBill Wolfe is an experienced journalist with a broad background in writing, editing and photography. He has worked as staff writer at The Courier-Journal in Louisville, Ky., and the Atlanta Journal & Constitution in Atlanta, Ga., covering beats ranging from consumer news to religion and business.
