With spring in the air and the days warming up, it’s time to get excited about the sunny days ahead. As much Queensland summers mean splash-tasic water fun, it also means hot sticky days spent searching for ways to keep the kids active but out of the sun. Let’s go ice skating!
Lucky for Brisbane, the best summer entertainment is easily accessible. It’s the perfect way to stay chilled, while also burning plenty of energy. Ideal for burning off plenty of energy, ice skating is becoming one of the River City’s favourite summer sports.
In addition to being a lot of fun, it’s also great for your health. Andrew Leventis from Iceworld believes ice skating offers families the best of both worlds in the summer.
“When you enter the rink, you’ll escape the intense Queensland heat and instantly feel refreshed and revitalised,” Mr Leventis says. “The music and lights will dazzle you, the skating will surprise you and most importantly you’ll be as cool as ice!”
Ice skating in Brisbane
Iceworld has two Olympic-sized ice rinks in Brisbane — Boondall and Acacia Ridge. Each has cool internal temperature of 10C, making it an appealing destination during hot summer months.
Before he was an Olympic speed skater, Steven Bradbury worked his butt off, honing his skills at Iceworld.
As the only Olympic-sized rink in the south-eastern pocket, Iceworld offers training facilities for competitors at national, international or Olympic level. You mightn’t consider yourself the next Bradbury, but you can still take a break from the sunshine and sand with a spin around the rink.
Both Boondall and Acacia Ridge rinks have cafes serving everything from hot food to barista quality coffee. There are also skate shops at both rinks for all your skating needs.
Iceworld also specialises in hosting children’s birthday parties. You’ll find a range of catering and function options available on its website.
The many benefits of ice skating
As well as keeping kids chill, ice skating comes with many health benefits.
- Improved balance. Ice skating helps to improve your balance in a fun and positive way. The slippery surface quickly trains you to stay on your feet!
- Build leg muscles. Ice skating is a great way to build and tone leg muscles.
- Increased cardiovascular fitness. Ice skating is a fabulous aerobic workout. You can crank up your cardio fitness without even knowing it.
- Improves flexibility. Through gliding and synchronised movements, your joints and muscles get a great workout, which will have you feeling more flexible in no time. Skating is said to be more beneficial than cycling and running because it works almost every major muscle.
- Builds endurance. Ice skating requires energy over an extended period. And the longer you skate, the longer you push your endurance. This helps with other sports and activities too.
- Weight management. Ice skating burns between 300–650 calories per hour (depending on how hard you skate). This makes it a great way to burn calories while still having fun.
- Stress relief. Regular physical exercise can help combat the effects of stress. Ice skating is one of the most fun ways to exercise.
Professional coaching at Iceworld’s Skate School
If you go to a public session and it sparks a love of ice skating, you can now receive professional coaching in the Iceworld Skate School program.
“Iceworld’s Skate School runs during each school term and is suitable for ages three years and above,” Mr Leventis says.
“The program caters for all abilities, from basic through to more advanced levels. Skaters enrol in the same class time each week so they can work together with their instructors and fellow classmates, in a positive social environment.”
He says the Skate School program is enormously popular and has seen record attendance in 2022.
“Some of the very best competitive skaters in Queensland started their ice-skating journey as young children,” Mr Leventis says. “It’s the perfect platform to start learning all those new and exciting skating skills.”
Iceworld locations
Acacia Ridge, 1179 Beaudesert Road, Acacia Ridge Qld 4110
07 3277 7563
Boondall, 2304 Sandgate Road, Boondall Qld 4034
07 3865 1694
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