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Parabolic Ice Park

Extreme ice skating
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Ice skating is fun, but a little boring. You really just skate around in a circle, and the tricks you can do are limited by the flat surface.

Using Parabolic Pool Table technology, spin water into the shape of a parabola and freeze. Stop the park from spinning, and the equivalent of a skateboard park is ready for ice skaters.

Worldgineer, Oct 09 2004

Inspired by http://www.halfbake...0Skateboard_20Basin
Centrifugal Skateboard Basin [Worldgineer, Oct 09 2004]

Other inspiration http://www.halfbake...olic_20Pool_20Table
Parabolic Pool Table [Worldgineer, Oct 09 2004]

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       If this keeps up, we just might have to make an entire section called sports:parabolic!I think downhill hockey is cool, though. Maybe in winter...
croissantz, Oct 09 2004
  

       I would table a parabolic pool (swimming). Holy vertigo, Batman! The water skier in the joke would finally find a sloping lake, but still not get anywhere.
spidermother, Feb 11 2006
  

       This would have to be a big rink. If the curve was at all measurable over the length of a skate, the skate would dig itself in at each end. You could of course cheat and curve the skate slightly, but this would only work consistently in a hemispherical rink. Of course the zamboni is another matter entirely.
wagster, Feb 11 2006
  

       Ah, good point. A new patented variable shape blade will need to be developed. Start with, say, 10 blade segments, and hold them in a straight line using springs. Pressure on the ends changes the shape.
Worldgineer, Feb 11 2006
  

       And a bendy zamboni?
wagster, Feb 11 2006
  

       Sure, why not.
Worldgineer, Feb 11 2006
  

       //Stop the park from spinning// Why?   

       Bun anyway.
dbmag9, Feb 13 2006
  

       Maybe just different levels in a flat rink would be feasible. Skaters could jump from a low level up to a high level, make a biiiiiiiiig jump off a high level to a low level, etc.
phundug, Sep 25 2006
  

       After a bit of research, it appears that both ice hockey skates and figure skates have the "flat" part of the blade curved with a radius between 7 feet and 13 feet. This is called the rocker. There are advantages to more or less curve. Since the radius of curvature of the rink will significantly larger than this, I suspect that any skate in that range would be usable, but people who come here often might want to select skates with a slightly smaller rocker radius than they would normally use.
scad mientist, Jan 09 2019
  

       What [dbmag9] said.
Voice, Jan 14 2019
  

       ////Stop the park from spinning// Why? //   

       If you left it spinning at the same rate, it would behave like a flat, stationary rink in most respects. However, skaters would experience a Coriolis force if they travelled radially.   

       Hey, if you spun it fast enough (before and after freezing) you'd have a rink where you could skate up a near-vertical wall as easily as you could horizontally.
MaxwellBuchanan, Jan 14 2019
  

       Yeah the same concept is being discussed on two separate ideas right now.   

       Must be a hit.
Now I'm wondering about the chassis needed to support that much spinning ice plus erratic skaters at a constant rpm all winter long.
  

       If it doesn't have to be water ice - other "ices" are available, such as methane and ammonia - you could just get a small moon, gouge out a parabolic pit, then spin the thing up to a high rotational speed.   

       You'd need one with a rocky core, otherwise it might disintegrate as it got up to critical angular velocity.
8th of 7, Jan 14 2019
  

       And when it isn't being used by skaters, coat it with something shiny, place a downward pointing light source above it to fashion a death ray searchlight.   

       At least, that's what we tell the military, since it's their budget.
DenholmRicshaw, Jan 14 2019
  

       "Ah, Lord Vader. What have you to tell me ?"   

       "Good news, my master. Your new parabolic ice rink is complete and fully operational."   

       "Ex-cellent. Everything is proceeding as I have forseen. Now, help me on with these skates ..."   

       <Wonders if someone will post "Star Wars: A New Hope, On Ice"/>
8th of 7, Jan 14 2019
  


 

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