When was the last time you visited a backyard ice rink? Ice skating and ice hockey are both popular athletic activities that can be enjoyed in backyard ice rinks.
A 2014 survey showed that there were around 10.65 million people six years and older that enjoyed ice skating and ice hockey. More than half, or roughly 65%, of the youth that participated in sports such as ice skating and hockey do so to spend time with their friends. What’s more, 71% of these youth didn’t care if anyone was keeping score.
Hockey continues to be a popular sport. In the 2013-to-2014 season, USA Hockey reported that there were 519,417 registered players in the previous season. Currently, the United States also has 1,900 indoor ice hockey rinks and 500 outdoor ones.
If you would like to be more active with friends or prepare to play amateur or professional hockey, having a homemade ice rink in your backyard is a great idea. When you have a backyard skating rink, you can invite all your friends over to skate and play hockey together–and no, you don’t need to keep score.
If you’re a parent, you may be interested to know that around 67% of teenagers in the United States have shared that they really want to spend more time with you. Creating a backyard ice rink is just one activity that you can share. Once your ice rink is completed, you can also spend time on the ice together.
As an adult and parent, you’re probably aware that sports are known to improve cardiovascular endurance. This can make a difference in decreasing heart disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Furthermore, interactive sports are a fun way to spend time with your children and their friends. This can make a major difference in the quality of your relationships.
You may be interested to know some findings from a Pew Research report on childcare. It was found that fathers are spending three-times the amount of time caring for their children than they did in the mid-1970s. Even though 71% of mothers now work outside the home, they are spending 57% more time caring for their children.
Backyard ice rinks can also bring a neighborhood together. Once you learn how to build a backyard ice rink, you can call on your neighbors to help you put it together. Just imagine all the fun you and the neighborhood will experience. Helpful research also found here.