Ice skating was around as early as 100 BCE, evolving from sliding on lakes with skates made of animal bones to large ice arenas and slick steel blades. Ice skating is now a worldwide pastime, with an average of 20 million viewers for the Winter Olympics figure skating competitions, but is ice skating really all that? 

(Kayla) Ice skating: Bop

Talk about a n-ice start to the winter season! Once you stop clinging to the side of that ice-cold metal railing, you’ll feel like you’re straight out of the movie Frozen. If you stay on the railing and block those little kids who can barely stand on the sidewalk, falling is bound to happen, as it should. Karma is real. Slipping doesn’t hurt once you do it a few hundred times. Ice skating is not for the weak; it’s for the best of the best. People who don’t enjoy ice skating are jealous of the six-year-old professional figure skaters that defy gravity. They are always in the middle of the rink putting their heart and soul into their routines. Jealousy isn’t a good look on anyone! Seeing them should make you want to turn your two-hour session into a lifetime of leaps and spins. What tops off this amazing activity is that when you work up a sweat, you’re already in a cold room that counteracts that body heat. The cold wind when you start to glide across the rink hits your face and creates this feeling no one can forget. Go ice skating this season for the cold ice and warm hearts.

(Frida) Ice skating: Flop

I’ve never liked ice skating. From the first time I put on a pair of ice skates, I never got the ice skating hype. I only enjoy ice skating when I sit in front of the television with my mom for Winter Olympics figure skating and pretend like I can do whatever spins and jumps they’re doing. I will admit, part of my hatred comes from envy and bitterness over my inability to look graceful on the ice. However, there are other factors, too; everything about it makes my skin itch, especially the awkward balancing the minute you stand with your skates on and the cold wall you cling onto when you step onto the ice. Then, when you finally get the hang of it, the random divots in the ice cause you to slip and fall. Of course, this causes all of the pros to stop and stare. All of it just makes for a miserable experience.