First laps on the ice · Seasonal
First laps on the ice in Indian Trail: what summer is like
The season changes what a visit feels like more than you would expect.
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.
A Indian Trail school holiday runs out of ideas by about day three. This is a day-three answer rather than a day-one one.
Why this time of year
Warm layers matter more than anything else. A cold child asks to leave long before a tired one does.
Feed them first. Every attraction in the world is improved by not being hungry in it.
What changes
Twenty minutes is a long first session. Confidence grows faster over three short visits than over one long one.
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.
What to wear
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.
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.
Planning around it
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.
Warm layers matter more than anything else. A cold child asks to leave long before a tired one does.
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.
How do I get in touch?
By phone on +1 (424) 387-6232 or +1 (615) 968-4925, or by e-mail at info@newlife-entertainment.com.
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.
Planning your visit in Indian Trail
Weekends bring more of Indian Trail out at once. If the schedule allows a weekday, take it; the same visit is quieter and the machines wait for nobody in particular.
Check the day of the week against the closing time before you leave. Sunday finishes earlier than the rest of the week and catches people out.
Photograph the machine as well as the child. In two years you will have forgotten what the room looked like.
Coming in from Indian Trail 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.
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.