Family fun
With eight kids, the Otis family of Roseville has almost enough people to field a hockey team. But competitive hockey is not what their back-yard rink is about. None of the kids (the oldest is 10) plays on an organized team. Still they're outside every day, skating, shooting pucks and making up their own games -- "Tornado Alley" is a favorite.
"It's just for family fun," said mom Deirdre. "We're surprised how few people have rinks who don't do hockey."
"With so many kids, it's a good physical outlet," said dad Sheff, who built the rink using surplus materials from his remodeling company.
The Otises had wanted to install a back-yard rink for a long time, but finally did it this winter. "It was almost a whim," Sheff recalled.
After a December snowstorm dumped 17 inches in their yard, the whole family started shoveling, and just kept going. Even Deirdre, 7 1/2 months pregnant at the time, picked up a shovel. "We had so much fun, we decided to go ahead and flood it," she said.
Sheff even made a Zamboni substitute -- a sheet of metal with a rope handle; he builds a campfire on it, then drags it around the ice to "iron" out the bumps.
Their screen porch gives them a built-in warming house, which Sheff appreciates. "We're a stone's throw from rinks in any direction," he said. "But by the time I finish tying all the skates, the first ones need tying again. That's one of the things I really like about having a rink at home."