The recent survey showed that most Winnipeg residents consider outdoor rinks rather obsolete. Do you agree?
John Danakas, an executive at the University of Manitoba, said that for him outdoor rinks are not only waves of nostalgia. Outdoor rinks are very important for city residents.
“I think a lot of us who grew up in Canada in that time would say that everything we needed to know in life, we learned on an outdoor hockey rink,” he said. “No parents around at all, letting us play four to five hours at a time, no equipment except what we could figure out for ourselves. Boys and girls together, ages four to 14.”
The writer also said that he sees very talented students every day. However, the modern generation takes the time spent outdoors with friends to the background. As Danakas added, the skating rink is not just a fun pastime. It can give a person a lot. For example, a skating rink develops imagination, it teaches to be a leader and to work in a team, and it teaches people to improvise.
“I think everybody needs to find that space to be creative – that space to use their imagination, and the piece I wrote is a tribute to that time. I’m sure the kids these days will find their own space.”
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