Ice Rink

Like a lot of guys in these parts, when I heard the distinctive "ping" of frozen precipitation bouncing off houses, I had mixed emotions. Big, bad winter was back in town. But this time we were ready.We have been waiting a long time. Ever since the ice-storms-are-us winter of 1994, when we all ran out of salt and bent the edges of our snow shovels hammering sheets of ice, we have been retooling, stashing ice-melting material in our basements, biding our time.Moreover, we now know the ice-storm drill.

It was the final rehearsal before the annual Nutcracker on Ice, and the young skaters, dressed as mice and dolls and clowns and soldiers, were waiting to get on the rink. Donna Timlen, president of the Columbia Figure Skating Club and manager of the show, was alternately shouting directions to the performers and keeping track of what still needed to be done. "April needs a hat, we know we don't have a wand, we know we don't have a blanket," she told one of the many parent volunteers, who nodded and jotted detailed notes.

I keep getting messages from a tipster who claims to know about the existence of daily high-stakes poker games in Baltimore. My informant, wishing to remain anonymous, says he keeps getting text-message invitations to the games, one of which has a $500 buy-in. "There are at least four games being played in various locations around the city every day," he says, adding that he knows all the places and all the game times, and that he has shared this with vice squad police - and yet, the games go on. "I must be the only person who thinks this is an issue in this town," the informant says.

An ice age may be coming to Northwest Baltimore.A Pennsylvania-based development company has proposed building two indoor public ice-skating rinks beside the Reisterstown Plaza Metro station on Wabash Avenue, city and state officials announced yesterday.The $50 million project by LCOR Inc. on 20 acres of state land would also include 344 apartments, 125 senior housing units, and 55,000 square feet of offices and retail buildings that might include a drugstore, coffee shop, video store and bookstore.

The Naval Academy ice rink is going through a two-year thaw.That means figure-skating lessons are off, Navy hockey might be on hiatus, and military personnel, their families and thousands of midshipmen will be out of luck when they want to strap on skates in the winter."

In Baltimore CountyAppeals panel spares golf clubhouse but limits activityKINGSVILLE -- The county Board of Appeals agreed yesterday to limit activities at Mount Vista Golf Course, but stopped short of requiring the owner to knock down the illegal clubhouse.The board, ruling in a decadelong dispute, said the golf course cannot open a kitchen and the driving range cannot be lighted. It also limited clubhouse hours of operation and said occupancy cannot exceed 100 people.Board member Lawrence Stahl favored demolition of the clubhouse because it exceeds size limits approved by the zoning commissioner.

Jean Lopez lives a cold and icy existence. However, she wouldn't have it any other way. The Sparks mother of one spends at least four days every week, sometimes more, at the Northwest Ice Rink, where she brings daughter Leandra.For some, like Lopez and her family, ice rinks are a year-round activity. For others, ice rinks are an occasional event, a seasonal activity on cold winter days.Donnell Myers, 10, is an ice-skating neophyte. Recently, he skated cautiously around the crowded ice rink looking pretty good for a first-timer.

In Baltimore CityWarm weather delays opening of harbor ice rink until Dec. 10The opening of Inner Harbor Ice Rink has been postponed until noon Dec. 10 because of warm temperatures and the inability to make ice, the city Office of Promotion said yesterday.The opening of the rink -- on Rash Field next to Maryland Science Center -- had been set for Friday. The facility is to remain open through March 5. Hours will be noon to 2 p.m., 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Mondays through Fridays; 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Saturdays; and noon to 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Sundays.

Still thinking about whether to go out and party on New Year's Eve? We know, we know. There's that little Y2K thing that may have some of you staying close to home and hearth. But here's a salute to the party animals among you -- and you know who you are. Let the celebration begin!Baltimore and Annapolis are both laying out the red carpet for the new year.In a change from past years, Baltimore's celebration will have no activities at the Convention Center."We decided to move it from the Convention Center because we wanted to make it available to anyone.

Westminster's portable ice rink, which had been set up at the Dutterer Family Park, is closed for the season."We operate with Mother Nature's approval," said Ronald J. Schroers, supervisor of recreation. "We need three days of below-zero temperatures or it turns into a big slush pond."The rink was closed Friday and will not be opened again until next winter.Pub Date: 2/23/99

Paul McLaren "Mickey" Pardew, who built a Towson sports complex and earned honors in his many decades as an amateur tennis player and coach, died of congestive heart failure Tuesday at Gilchrist Hospice Care. The Towson resident was 91. Born in Baltimore and raised on University Parkway, he attended Polytechnic Institute but switched to City College because he could join the school's swimming team. He earned a mechanical engineering degree from the Johns Hopkins University and worked in aircraft production at the Glenn L. Martin Co. in Middle River.

You might want to rethink stepping onto that questionably thin ice atop the neighborhood pond. The smartest of frolickers know that wintertime fun doesn't have to end when they venture inside. Indoor ice-skating rinks might just be a perfect way to get into the spirit of the season. In light of Northwest Ice Rink's recent closure, loyal skaters will find solace in knowing there are still several open rinks scattered throughout the Baltimore area. Beginners can rent skates and sign up for group lessons.

After nearly 20 years of technical glitches, construction delays and frequent closures, the rebuilt ice rink at Quiet Waters Park in Annapolis is set to open Nov. 29. The state's Board of Public Works awarded $1.35 million last fall from the state's Project Open Space program, with the county contributing the rest of the $2 million reconstruction costs that will restore the original design of the 16,000-square-foot rink. The centerpiece of the 350-acre park will be used for skating in the winter and as a decorative reflecting pond in warm-weather months, county officials said.

Olympian Michael Phelps and his coach, Bob Bowman, hoping to replicate their athletic success in the world of business, will announce a partnership today aimed at transforming the Meadowbrook Aquatic Center in Mount Washington into a world-class training facility. Their newly formed company, Aquatic Ventures LLC, will own the Aquatic Center and its two 50-meter pools. It will also oversee the North Baltimore Aquatic Club, which has produced seven Olympic swimmers since it was founded in 1968.

BEIJING - Michael Phelps has backed away from a previous comment he made about purchasing a pool in Baltimore, saying at a news conference yesterday that he's not sure of his plans. Phelps, still in China after winning eight gold medals at the Olympics, said, "We're definitely going to start training back in Baltimore. "But I'm not really sure exactly. I never know what I'm really talking about, I just say things." A day earlier, Phelps told NBC's Nightly News that he and his coach, Bob Bowman, had bought a pool in Baltimore and were looking to change the sport of swimming.

Fourteen blind students and five adults complained last night that they were not allowed to skate freely at a North Baltimore ice rink because of their disabilities - a charge the management denied. Police were called to the Northwest Ice Rink in the 5700 block of Cottonworth Ave. about 9:30 p.m. to mediate a dispute between the rink's management and students participating in a summer residential program sponsored by the National Federation of the Blind. No arrests were made. Rosy Carranza, a leader for the Teen Empowerment Academy, said the teachers and students came to skate about an hour before police arrived but were denied access by the manager.

Construction has begun on the new ice rink at Quiet Waters Park outside Annapolis, Anne Arundel County Executive John R. Leopold announced. The contractors, Ice Builders, began demolition work last week on the floor of the old rink. Work will continue throughout the summer and early fall, with a completion date set for Oct. 15. The new $2 million rink is scheduled to open for public skating in November. The rink, which opened in 1990, closed for two seasons a few years later because of problems in the construction of its cooling system, then shut down permanently in 2003 after crews discovered that the mats set up under the cooling apparatus had been leaking chemicals into a nearby pond, killing fish.

After years of scheduling ice time in other places, skaters in Baltimore County have their own indoor rink with the opening of a $6 million sports facility at Reisterstown Regional Park. The 58,000-square-foot Reisterstown Sportsplex includes a 200-foot-by-85-foot ice rink and a 180-foot-by-80-foot indoor soccer and lacrosse field with artificial turf. The facility opened to skaters this week, and a ribbon-cutting ceremony was held yesterday. "There was a great need for this facility because there are more and more hockey teams, skating groups, and colleges with adult leagues who are looking for ice rinks," said Hanan Y. Sibel, chairman of the board of the Baltimore County Revenue Authority.

It was the final rehearsal before the annual Nutcracker on Ice, and the young skaters, dressed as mice and dolls and clowns and soldiers, were waiting to get on the rink. Donna Timlen, president of the Columbia Figure Skating Club and manager of the show, was alternately shouting directions to the performers and keeping track of what still needed to be done. "April needs a hat, we know we don't have a wand, we know we don't have a blanket," she told one of the many parent volunteers, who nodded and jotted detailed notes.

$1.35 million OK'd to replace ice rink The state Board of Public Works has approved $1.35 million to help replace the ice rink at Quiet Waters Park just outside Annapolis, putting it on track to reopen this time next year. The money awarded Wednesday from Program Open Space funds covers two-thirds of the cost of the much-anticipated $2 million project to reopen the popular rink. Anne Arundel County, anticipating the state funding, set aside the remaining money in its budget for this year, with County Executive John R. Leopold saying it was prudent to pay for the repairs sooner rather than later, as the costs will increase over time.