Sioux Falls Preparing For Another Exciting Ice Skating Season

It's that time of the year again, when you need to trade wheels for blades, ice blades, that is.

If you're a skating enthusiast, it’s officially that magical time of year again, when you retire your rollerblades and dust off the ice skates.

The City of Sioux Falls has officially called “game over” on rollerblade season in the Sioux Empire and is now fully embracing the frozen tundra that is about to come. That’s right, the Parks & Recreation Department is hard at work transforming the skate ribbon at Jacobson Plaza from a smooth concrete loop into a glistening stretch of ice.

Get our free mobile app

Mother Nature is getting ready for her annual fling with the deep freeze.

According to Pigeon 605, if temperatures play nice and stay chilly, the ice ribbon at Jacobson Plaza could open just in time for Winter Wonderland, the big holiday light-up at Falls Park, on November 21.

Sure, the next few days may feel more like pumpkin spice latte weather than hot cocoa weather, but forecasters say the long-range temps are about to take a graceful swan dive back into the 30s, perfect for ice-making and slightly less perfect for exposed skin.

So, sharpen those skates and stretch those hamstrings, because you could be gliding on ice again before you know it.

The coolest part (literally) about the Jacobson Plaza skate ribbon is its all-season design.

The 14,000-square-foot surface is concrete in the summer and refrigerates into ice in the winter, making it the perfect year-round recreation space.

READ MORE:  Sioux Falls Wendy's Locations Brace For Uncertain Future

Once winter fully sets in, Jacobson Plaza has plenty of fun planned, including Mascot Monday, Family Fun Skate, and the ever-charming Prince and Princess Skate Party.

When it opens, supervised skating hours will run from 4–8 PM Monday through Thursday, 4–10 PM on Fridays, 11 AM–10 PM on Saturdays, and 11 AM–8 PM on Sundays. Admission is $5, and skate rentals will be available for those who don’t have their own gear.

With a little cooperation from Mother Nature, Sioux Falls hopes to keep the ice season rolling, or should I say, gliding, from November 21 through St. Patrick’s Day.