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Message from M. Long from Yakley 11/01/10

Message from I. Foreman 19/10/09: A couple of interesting items: Great book 'Handbook of Fen Skating' by the Goodman brothers, Neville and Albert (1882). Good quality paperback reprint for less than £20 available at www.kessinger.net. There is also going to be a skating track around the Wembley arena in December - hardly suitable for speed but worth a look: www.wembleystadium.com.

Sorry to have missed the skating at Bury Fen earlier this year due to commitments at York and Leeds outdoor rinks. Incidentally the Leeds rink at 40 x 30 metres is just about navigable on long skates - I can recommend a late night skate all alone in a city centre - its a bit special!

Hope to see you on the ice - Ian Forman

Message from Roger:To the lady who rang up from Central London on Saturday 10th January and said she had no car but wanted to skate in the Fens one more time:

Well done for getting here! This woman had to get trains, buses and even hitch hike to get to Bury Fen - but get there she did! And from what I've heard, put on a really excellent performance - the other skaters told me that she's got many years of great skating left in her yet! So Well done - I think you should get a medal of some sort! For skating in the face of adversity (i.e. public transport!)

Update! We now know who this mystery lady is! Her name is Charlie Helliwell! We all look forward to seeing you skating next time Charlie!

Message from Roger: To the young people from London who searched the internet and rang me and turned up to collect skates from Welney club at the crack of dawn! Great enthusiasm!

They skated at both Bury Fen and Welney and demonstrated that there are still young people out there with plenty of get up and go!

Message from Charlie: (The mystery lady!!): I'm mad about skating! The two hours I spent at Bury Fen last Saturday on that glorious ice and the conversations I had with the people I met were well worth the time and trouble it took to get there and back from London by public transport!

I grew up in Wroxham on the Broads, boating in the summer and skating in the winter; the regular places were Westwick and Gunton. Best was 10 weeks of skating in '63 - just two or three of us teenagers at night on Wroxham Broad under a moonlit sky, unforgettable! This was supplemented for several years by my mother (both my parents skated) taking me to Brighton or Streatham rink for a week's tuition to give me something to try out when it did freeze. As a student in London I snatched what opportunities I could in the '70's and '80's - once I climbed over the railings to a pond the parkies hadn't smashed on Hampstead Heath (and was helped back over when a copper turned up two hours later!) and for a couple of years I was the lone skater on the paddling pool in Victoria Park . In 2000/1 I somehow found out about Whittlesey but a fall in the final moments of a 3 hour skate on New Year's Day resulted in my spending the evening at Peterborough hospital A&E with a sprained wrist and a rather later train back home than I had planned! However I got hold of a couple of useful phone numbers which I have rung from time to time to enquire about Fen skating - and this year I was sure there would be some! A check on the internet revealed the possibility on the 10th January and a couple of phone calls told me that Bury Fen was my best bet. A chance conversation with a woman of my age on the train (who turned out to be a roller blader) led to a lift from Huntingdon. Whilst putting on my skates, I met a Canadian, both of us 60 last autumn, neither skated for ten years - but it didn't seem to hold us back! The ice was brilliant - I must have skated miles and I hated to leave but two hours was probably enough - besides I had to get back. That was the only low - the last bus never turned up , but a very kind lift from a local family all the way to Huntingdon saved the day! Never did a plastic cup of Earl Grey (an unexpected find at the station newsagents) taste so sweet!

Disclaimer: Any Skating on the Fens is done at the skaters’ own risk. No company or persons can be held responsible for any injury or loss of life. Never skate on rivers, lakes or dykes where the water depth exceeds 4 inches.