Campus

Skating fever heats up

The harder it freezes, the hotter the skating fever among the members of ELS. The student skating association hopes to set a short tour on natural ice.

There was a lot of skating on the Oude Delft in 2018. Will there be skating this year too? (Photo: Sam Rentmeester)

‘Natural ice on the way!’ The most recent news item on the website of the TU Delft student skating association starts with this triumphant cry. It is fantastic of course, especially for a student association like ELS which stands for Effe Lekker Schaatsen (enjoy a bit of skating). However, what are the options on frozen water in these uncertain times?

For obvious reasons, the skating association is not organising any competitions or setting routes on natural ice, no matter how thick it is. “It’s out of our control. It’s just the times we live in,” says Chair of ELS Wiebe Siegmann resignedly. “Of course our members are skating crazy, but corona means that we can hardly do anything.”

Nevertheless, the Board is looking into what is possible. Instead of the regular training at the Uithof – the corona proof version of training, of course – the student skating association, that has around 180 members, will skate on natural ice this Friday at about 10:00 – if it is at all possible, that is.

‘We will check if the ice is thick enough on Thursday afternoon and see if we can set a short tour’

Where and how is still up in the air. It could be the Dobbeplas Lake, the large lake in the Delftse Hout woods, perhaps Vlietlanden or a man-made outdoor ice-rink somewhere close to Delft. In any case, it will be corona proof, stresses Siegmann, “that is top of our agenda”. This means skating in pairs and complying with social distancing rules. And, just as in the Uithof, trainers on the side for any instructions.

Siegmann says that their plans are ready. “On Thursday afternoon, we will check if the ice is thick enough for an enjoyable short tour so that we can still have a skating highlight this year. We do not yet know where a tour might be, but we have had contact about the condition of the ice in Vlietlanden. They expect the ice to be safe for skating on Friday, but at the moment, the ice is still very new.”

What he means to say is that there are still many uncertainties. “It all depends on the thickness of the ice and whether we can do it corona proof. Our members are completely motivated to skate. They are talking endlessly about how to best prepare for skating on natural ice.”

Good preparation is imperative, says the Board on the ELS website. It refers to a list of 20 ‘golden rules’ on schaatsen.nl (website in Dutch). These range from wearing head protection to warning others about wind holes and poor ice close to the sides.

To prepare for maximum ice fun on Friday, the members should read the list carefully. If it will be possible to skate, that is. Siegmann is optimistic. “We believe that the chance of skating on Friday increases by the day.”

Jimmy Tigges / Redacteur Sport

Editor Redactie

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