ICE BAHAVIOUR & SAFETY
© Isplanket 1999 
Safety - the top priority - always
When you go tourskating, you´ll have to respect a few safety basics
- The first skater
As first skater you have a special responsibility, ice thickness, variations, wide cracks etc - it´s YOU that will have to detect them.
- To betray unknown ice.
You have to use an icepick and examine the ice with a few powerful strokes. There are pikes (i.e. "Hansapiken" watch figure on the Equipment page) especielly designed to estimate ice thickness. If you strike through the ice with one powerful stroke, the ice is to weak, 2 strokes hard to decide, 3 strokes safe.Of course you´ll have to try it out for yourself - it all depends how powerful your strokes are.
- Particulary exposed places
Certain places or areas are generally speaking in greater risk of having thinner ice or open water. That´s places where you´ll have to be particullary on the alert of course. Inlets, outflows, mouths and narrow channels (straits) with flowing water are the most exposed places. Other could be capes and points, jettys, bridges and shallow beaches.
- Signes on/in the ice
You can "read" the ice. It´s variations is not only fascinating but also tells you lots and lots about the thickness, density, age etc. A skilled tourskater in fact gets a lot of information about icethickness through listening to the sound from his own and friends skating. By scouting for i.e wide cracks and beachcracks you´re almost certain to get some early warning that you´re closing in on an area not as safe.When you do, you repeatedly strikes the ice with your pike, icequality can change from one step to another.The ice having been thick and safe yesterday or this morning is NO GUARANTEE. A crack can open wide within seconds. Constant alertness is prompted
- History of the ice
Do you live by a lake? Do you often pass by an interesting skatingarea? Then bear in mind what is happening during the season. A lake can run open in some areas and other remain covered by ice during i.e. a thaw period or a windy period. This´ll turn into unvaluable knowledge the very day you want to go skating - You´re in possesion of the history. It´s very common that through day to day checks you can pick that single skateable day before the snow moves in. It is almost more a rule than an exception that you get to hear "Pull my other leg - have you been skating? But there is no ice - is there?" Those are most often the days offering the very best ices. But - of course - now The Ice Billboard is here -so lets hope that you and everybody else reports your observations so we get to get more tourskating days out of the winter.
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