Ice bumper cars · Guide
Ice bumper cars in China Grove: a parent guide
Written for the parent doing the planning rather than the child doing the asking.
No skating is involved. Children who would not step onto the ice on blades will sit in a car and go straight out onto the same surface without thinking about it.
For a China Grove family the trip works best folded into something else - the shopping that was happening anyway, a birthday that needed a venue, a Saturday that needed a plan.
What it actually is
It suits families with mixed confidence. One child can be a natural on skates and the other can be nervous, and the cars put them on the same footing.
Photograph the machine as well as the child. In two years you will have forgotten what the room looked like.
Who it suits
The rink underneath is real ice, which is why the cars behave the way they do. On any other surface it is a different, duller ride.
The cars turn on the spot, so the game is less about racing and more about aim - and about the spin you leave behind when you connect.
What to expect
Bumper cars on ice do something bumper cars on a floor cannot: they keep spinning. A nudge that would stop dead on rubber sends the whole car turning, and everybody in it laughs.
If one child is nervous, let them watch for the first ten minutes without being asked to join in. Almost all of them join in.
Before you go
No skating is involved. Children who would not step onto the ice on blades will sit in a car and go straight out onto the same surface without thinking about it.
It suits families with mixed confidence. One child can be a natural on skates and the other can be nervous, and the cars put them on the same footing.
Questions parents ask
Do you need to skate to ride?
No. The cars sit on the ice and the rider stays in the seat.
Is it rough?
It is a bump and a spin rather than a crash. The speed is low and the ice does most of the work.
What should a child wear?
Something warm. A rink is cold even when the ride is not.
Where is New Life Entertainment?
Two centres: 433 Opry Mills Drive, Nashville TN 37214, and 8111 Concord Mills Blvd, Concord NC 28027.
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 China Grove
Families searching from China Grove 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.
A birthday group runs better with a rough plan of who goes where first, even if you abandon it in the first five minutes.
Bring a spare layer even in summer. Malls are air conditioned, rinks are colder than that, and a cold child is a child who wants to go home.
Parents from China Grove 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.
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
Anything time critical is worth a phone call first: hours are 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM Monday to Saturday and 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Sunday.