Centre ice · Guide
Centre ice in Mooresville: the practical guide
Written for the parent doing the planning rather than the child doing the asking.
The middle of the rink is where the wall stops helping. Getting there is the milestone every new skater sets for themselves without being asked.
Nothing about the visit assumes you know the area. The centre is inside Concord Mills, which is signposted from everywhere in Concord and impossible to miss once you are there.
What it actually is
Space in the centre is what lets a child try a turn. Near the boards there is always somebody to avoid; in the middle there is only the turn.
It is also the best place to watch from the rail: the whole rink is between you and them, and every lap comes back past you.
Who it suits
The middle of the rink is where the wall stops helping. Getting there is the milestone every new skater sets for themselves without being asked.
Agree the leaving time before you walk in, out loud, to the child. Announcing it later sounds like a punishment; agreeing it first sounds like a plan.
What to expect
Space in the centre is what lets a child try a turn. Near the boards there is always somebody to avoid; in the middle there is only the turn.
It is also the best place to watch from the rail: the whole rink is between you and them, and every lap comes back past you.
Before you go
The middle of the rink is where the wall stops helping. Getting there is the milestone every new skater sets for themselves without being asked.
If it is the first time, do not also make it a birthday. Learning a place and celebrating in it are two different visits.
Questions parents ask
How long before a child leaves the rail?
Some in the first session, some in the fifth. Neither is unusual.
What are the opening hours?
10:00 AM to 8:00 PM Monday to Saturday, and 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Sunday.
Where is New Life Entertainment?
Two centres: 433 Opry Mills Drive, Nashville TN 37214, and 8111 Concord Mills Blvd, Concord NC 28027.
Planning your visit in Mooresville
From Mooresville the practical question is timing rather than distance. Arriving in the first hour after opening is worth more than shaving minutes off the drive.
Let the child lead the order of things. Adults optimise; children choose the thing that looks best, and they are right more often than they are wrong.
Let the child choose what to do first even when it is the thing you would have chosen last. The order matters less than the choosing.
Families around Mooresville who have done it once tend to plan the second visit differently: shorter, earlier in the day, and with the machine the child liked in mind.
The practical details
- XCAV ZONE — 433 Opry Mills Drive, Nashville TN 37214: four child-operated machines over a ball pit.
- ICE PARK — 8111 Concord Mills Blvd, Concord NC 28027: a real rink with bumper cars on the ice.
- Opening hours — 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM Monday to Saturday, 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Sunday.
- Phone — +1 (424) 387-6232 · +1 (615) 968-4925
- E-mail — info@newlife-entertainment.com
The two centres are at 433 Opry Mills Drive in Nashville and 8111 Concord Mills Blvd in Concord, open 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM most days and 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Sunday.