It is snowing a bit in Doorn, and ice master Theo Schippers is happy with that. “This way you get white ice, which melts less quickly in the sun.”
On Monday morning, the Doornsche Ice Club was one of the first natural ice rinks in the Netherlands where skaters could get back on the ice. This is thanks to all the volunteers who kept the track free of leaves, Schippers emphasizes. “They will be mopping all night tonight.”
All ice that forms due to the cold outside air is considered natural ice. Tracks like the one in Doorn, made of asphalt on which a layer of water is sprayed, are always the first on which the skaters can go. If it freezes for longer, then the land ice rinks will be added, which in the summer look like meadows with a few light poles in them.
“At such ice rinks there is always water under the ice,” says Jurre Trouw of the KNSB skating association. “The ice has to grow from above, and it also helps when there is no wind.” That's not it – it is precisely that cutting northwest wind that is now bringing the cold above the Netherlands.
Skating on ditches or lakes is certainly not an option. Even centimeter-thick ice could still be unsafe there this year. This has to do with the high water that is still being pumped out. This can create a layer of air under the ice, which makes the ice fragile. “The current will also make it less likely to freeze over,” Trouw expects.
First marathon
In Winterswijk they are now hoping for the first marathon on natural ice of the season. Every year the question is which track will be the first to have the required 3 centimeters of ice. The Winterswijk spraying team expects to need another three nights, writes the ANP news agency. Until then, skaters are not allowed on the track.
The question remains whether this will lead to a marathon during these few cold days. During the week, the wind is expected to turn back to the west, bringing moist, relatively warm air to replace the dry, cold air that has blown from the north in recent days.
The ice rink in Doorn is too small for a real marathon. Ice master Schippers didn't feel like waiting until the ice was 3 centimeters anyway. “We have a thousand families with subscriptions, that's why we do it. And not for television.”
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