First laps on the ice · Guide
First laps on the ice in Gastonia: the practical guide
Everything below is the sort of thing you would want to know before the drive rather than after it.
The advice that helps most is the least technical: bend the knees, look ahead rather than down, and take short steps instead of long glides.
Coming in from Gastonia with more than one child, the useful thing to know is that the room does not need to be rationed - there is more than one thing to do at the same time.
What it actually is
Twenty minutes is a long first session. Confidence grows faster over three short visits than over one long one.
A first lap is mostly about the wall. Children hold it, let go of it, grab it again, and somewhere in the third lap they forget it is there.
Who it suits
Falling is part of it and is less dramatic than parents fear. Ice is slippery at walking speed, which is the speed a beginner moves at.
A birthday group runs better with a rough plan of who goes where first, even if you abandon it in the first five minutes.
What to expect
Warm layers matter more than anything else. A cold child asks to leave long before a tired one does.
The advice that helps most is the least technical: bend the knees, look ahead rather than down, and take short steps instead of long glides.
Before you go
Twenty minutes is a long first session. Confidence grows faster over three short visits than over one long one.
Decide how long you are staying before you walk in. A visit with an end time attached to it finishes on a good note rather than a tired one.
Questions parents ask
What age can a child start skating?
Children start at very different ages. What matters more is whether they are willing to hold a rail and shuffle.
How long should a first session be?
Short. Twenty minutes of trying beats an hour of being cold and frustrated.
What should they wear?
Layers, long sleeves, gloves. Gloves are the item most often forgotten and most missed.
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 Gastonia
Parents from Gastonia tend to ask the same first question: how long will this hold their attention. Long enough to be worth the drive, and short enough to leave while they still want more.
Do not schedule anything immediately afterwards. An hour of concentrated play is tiring in a way that shows up in the car park, not in the room.
If two adults are coming, split up rather than shadowing the same child. One at the rail, one free, and everybody has a better hour.
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.
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
If a visit needs planning around a date, a group or a long drive, the centre is easiest to reach by phone: +1 (424) 387-6232 or +1 (615) 968-4925.