Your comments really caught my interest, as we also had quite a few outdoor rinks when I was growing up as well. The town I grew up in, had a huge outdoor rink and it was free to residents. (I remember my first double runners when I was about 4 years old, trying to skate on that rink!
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A few weeks ago, I was watching a rerun of Chuckmas (Chuck is a chef from Montreal on the Cooking Channel). About 2 years ago, he had a Christmas special that gets repeated each year. It's a really nice show, because they highlight not just the food, but his family and where he lives in the city, the shops, and winter activities. Anyway, what amazed me were the number of outdoor rinks spread around the city neighborhoods. Hockey is so big in Montreal, and it's not uncommon for anyone to just drop by at any point and join in a neighborhood game of hockey. What a nice community effort they put forth in Montreal, with all these open rinks, at no cost to the skaters.