Vol. 18, No. 15	Dec. 17, 1998

Zamboni is added attraction at UD ice arenas

The Zamboni in action, resurfacing the ice

Pat Guyer is one of about a dozen "zam" drivers who provide the complimentary 10-minute show. After skaters have nicked away at the ice's smooth surface, it is Guyer's responsibility to resurface it back to a slick sheen.

"It's a lot of fun," Guyer, said. "Everyone's watching you, and all the little kids are waving at you."

A bumper sticker proclaiming "Ice is nice" would describe Guyer's long-standing relationship with the frozen stuff. He's been sliding across the slick surface since age 10, when he began propelling pucks toward a net. Guyer got a part-time job at the rink when he turned 16. Two years later, the position was expanded into full-time work, enabling him to finance his bachelor's degree in marketing, which he will finish in May.

Even though Guyer is the youngest full-time employee at the arena, at UD he's the old man of the ice. He said maneuvering one of the arena's three machines is like driving a car with lots of levers. But, it requires much more than simply climbing aboard and hopping behind the wheel.

It takes about 50 hours of training on the big rig-10 hours of actual training at those rare times when the rink is not in use, 20 hours with a supervisor driving with you and another 20 hours with the supervisor watching from afar.

"You get a feel for what groups like," Guyer said about the surface, which can be either hard or soft depending on how it's prepped.

"The first step in ice maintenance is the Zamboni, knowing when to lay a little bit more water and where to cut," Jim Kaden, manager of the arena, said.

Figure skaters like softer ice for a more cushioned fall, Guyer said, while it's the harder, the better for hockey players. The area is sprayed with hot water that melts the top layer, Guyer said, and causes the layers to bond better. Flooding the ice with more water creates a softer surface, he added.

Pat Guyer prepares to get on the ice.

With 11 years on the Zamboni, Guyer can make a sweep in about 10 minutes, which happens about four to five times during his shift.

Zamboni work accounts for only a part of Guyer's shift; the big part of time is devoted to customer service.

"He works at all of our public sessions," Kaden said, "and he does a great job with all our customers. Plus, he's also very flexible and willing to work a schedule that is always changing, depending on our needs."

"Trevor! Tie your shoes!" Guyer shouted to one youngster-an accident waiting to happen.

He knows many of the skaters by name and most of their parents, too. Guyer has a friendly hello for everyone and vice versa. As he walked past one group of kids, he scooped up a small, blonde girl dressed all in pink; she giggled in delight at the attention. Guyer laughed about babysitting being part of the job.

On the more serious side, the Newark native is also certified in first aid. If a skater falls, the staff members are usually the first ones on the scene. Guyer has also been known to do small repairs on the Zambonis-even on his day off.

If you want to kid Guyer about his job-keep in mind, he's heard it all before: "The Ice Man Cometh" and "Does he have a cot stashed away in the building somewhere?" Some ice skating parents like to play the country-western song, "I Want to Drive The Zamboni."

"The Zamboni really attracts attention," Kaden said. "When it comes out, it's like a separate attraction. Everyone stops what they're doing to watch it."

-Paula Kelly
Photo by Jack Buxbaum