Family members, from right, Kingston Ho, Vivian Cao-Dao, Kathleen Pham, Alice Cao-Dao, Brian Dao and Danny Pham skate together. “It’s a good place to meet and hang out,” Vivian Cao-Dao said. “Even if you’re a beginner, it’s OK, because everyone falls.”
Skaters swirl across the outdoor rink, despite the sub-freezing chill, contrasting with a slow Saturday afternoon at the Reston Town Center (RTC). Mothers with younger children make their way around the edges, as teenagers converge on the wall to chat.
The Ice Skating Pavilion, located in the center of the older section of RTC, is open seven days a week, from the first week of November to the second week of March. The office next to the rink offers skate rentals, ice passes and lockers.
The rink rests on top of a chiller system and 90 percent of the ice is protected from inclement weather by the pavilion.
“The only thing that caused us to close this year was the snowstorm,” the rink’s general manager Luke Hunsaker said.
The rink hosts events, including their Cartoon Skate on Saturday mornings.
“We have our skate hosts dress up as cartoon characters and go out there with the kids,” Hunsaker said.
There are also Rock and Skate events, with a live DJ, every Friday night at 8 p.m. and periodic fundraisers for schools and churches. During fundraisers, the rink offers discounted tickets for skating and rentals to the organization and returns a share of the profits.
“Some fundraisers get a lot of people,”Hunsaker said. “We had at least 200 people for one.”
Though the rink did not reach those numbers on the freezing weekend of Feb. 13, it was nonetheless a popular destination for cold weather lovers in the Reston area.