First laps on the ice · Tips
First laps on the ice in Mint Hill: practical tips
The things nobody tells you until you have done it twice.
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.
From Mint Hill the practical question is timing rather than distance. Arriving in the first hour after opening is worth more than shaving minutes off the drive.
Before you leave the house
Warm layers matter more than anything else. A cold child asks to leave long before a tired one does.
Count on the drive home being the conversation. Children tell you what they actually thought about twenty minutes after leaving.
When you arrive
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 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.
While you are there
Twenty minutes is a long first session. Confidence grows faster over three short visits than over one long one.
Take the photographs early. The best ones happen in the first fifteen minutes, before anybody is tired.
On the way home
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.
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.
Where is New Life Entertainment?
Two centres: 433 Opry Mills Drive, Nashville TN 37214, and 8111 Concord Mills Blvd, Concord NC 28027.
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.
Planning your visit in Mint Hill
Families searching from Mint Hill are usually weighing one thing: whether it is worth the trip for an hour of something the children have not done before. The honest answer is that it depends on the child, and the rest of this page is about telling which.
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.
Bring less than you think. Coats and bags are the part of the visit nobody enjoys managing.
The nearest of the two centres to Mint Hill is the one to aim at - Concord Mills in Concord - and the drive is the ordinary sort rather than an expedition.
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
Questions about a specific day, a group or a party are best asked directly - info@newlife-entertainment.com, or either of the numbers on the contacts page.