The Times Advocate, 2004-01-07, Page 1010
Exeter Times–Advocate
Wednesday,January 7, 2004
Iceculture work on display
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Hensall's Iceculture recently had its work on display in New York City's
Rockefeller Center during the opening ceremonies for the centre's famed skating
rink. Iceculture created a 10 foot ice bridge for the event. (photo/submitted)
NEW YORK — They say
if you can make it in New
York, you can make it
anywhere, and that's just
what Hensall's Iceculture
recently did.
Singer Natalie Cole per-
formed at the opening cer-
emonies for the skating
rink at Rockefeller Center
in New York City earlier
this week and Hensall-
based Iceculture with a
crew of 10 built a bridge
of ice, taking guests from
the edge of the rink to a
carpet in the center.
Refreshments were
served from two ice bars
also designed and built by
Iceculture for the event
sponsor, the Wachovia
Bank.
"It's among the biggest
single projects we have
ever undertaken," said
Iceculture general manag-
er Heidi Bayley. More than
140 blocks of ice were
transported from Hensall
for the project and one
lane of New York's busy
50th Avenue was blocked
off to provide a parking
and unloading area for the
job.
"There's a lot of work
involved with a project like
this and fortunately we
have an excellent business
relationship with New
York event planners,
Tishman Speyer",
explained Bayley.
"We had to visit the loca-
tion ahead of time to
establish the best routes to
take to the rink, finalize a
timetable and then make
plans to dispose of the ice
after the ceremonies."
"It's all about logistics;
and it seems the actual
production — the design-
ing and carving of the ice
— takes a back seat to the
organization of the event,"
she adds. "Arranging for
the ice, props and tools to
get to New York on time,
having our crew get to the
airport, catch a flight and
then get a shuttle to the
Rockefeller Center sounds
easy but it is very, very
time consuming. And then
of course, it has to be done
in reverse," she says.
"Coping with the traffic
in New York City is yet
another interesting chal-
lenge and I guarantee you
it's a little easier negotiat-
ing the streets of Hensall
than New York," Bayley
said.
The ice bridge which
spanned 28 feet, kept ice
carvers at the Hensall
plant busy for five days,
cutting and carving ice to
fit closely around a robust
wood stairway. It was
erected in the studio and
then taken apart for ship-
ping to be re -assembled at
the Rockefeller Center.
Building the bridge pre-
sented a tough challenge.
The ice had to be
unloaded at street level
and then taken below to
the ice rink, which
involved carrying the
blocks by hand down
many flights of stairs.
The Iceculture team
worked through the night
to have the bridge ready
in time for the opening
ceremonies.
Then a short rest before
taking the ice bridge down
and disposing of the ice,
just four hours later. The
rink had to be ready for
public skating by 7 a.m.
the following morning.
After breaking the
bridge down, disposing of
the ice and re -loading the
The Business Association
The Exeter Business Association is organization that actively
pursues its mandate to promote, beautify and maintain a strong business community within
a defined geographic area. The annual presentation of flowers along the Main Street, the
financing of the Santa Claus parade, streetscape items such as Christmas
decorations, litter receptacles and signage, together with the advertising of local promotions
to bring people to Exeter are just a few examples of our ongoing efforts. Additionally, in
2003, we were pleased to have provided the landscaping around the new library, new sod at
the downtown parkette and new state-of-the-art watering machine to better facilitate the
watering of our summer flowers.
The responsibility to maintain, beautify and promote our Main Street on behalf of the entire
membership rests in the hands of those persons who form the Board of Management. The
Board's three-year term of office runs consecutive to the election of each Municipal Council
because it is, by definition, a "committee of council". The nominating committee, com-
prised of Board members, is looking for some fresh faces as it prepares to put a new Board
of Management in place for the coming term. We are seeking up to seven (7) members who
would allow their names to stand for the newly formed Board. We also need up to fifteen
(15) persons who would agree to sit on either the Promotion or the Beautification
Committee under the direction of their respective Chairs. It you are interested in endorsing
the mandate of the Exeter Business Association as it has been set out for us and have new
ideas and enthusiasm to bring to the table, you would be a valuable asset to the Association.
PLEASE SUBMIT YOUR NAME TO EITHER THE MUNICIPAL OFFICE
OR ANY OF THE FOLLOWING PERSONS BY MONDAY, JANUARY 19, 2004.
Karen Pfaff @ Looking Good Fashions
igt,` Betty Thomson @ Purple Turtle Co.
Marilyn Waldeck @ Country Trenditons
'1 Bob Gehan @ Stedman's V&S
B Ron Bogart @ RSD Authentics
BUSINESS ASSOCIATION
iho
trucks with props, the
team caught a few hours
rest before returning to
Canada just in time to pre-
pare for another large ice
display at a private event
in Toronto.
High profile events such
as that in New York have
helped establish Iceculture
as a major force in design-
ing and building large
scale ice projects and this
fact has not escaped the
attention of the business
press.
Iceculture and one of its
founders, Julian Bayley
was featured in a two
page article in the
`Entrepreneur' section of
the latest issue of Forbes
Magazine (Oct. 13 /2003 ).
For a small rural busi-
ness to make the editorial
pages of Forbes is an
opportunity experienced
by only a few and the cov-
erage has prompted
enquiries from all over the
world.
C The
ntreFor
Employmer Learning
Are you a mature student close
to completing your Ontarla
Secondary School Diplom'
If so, you are encouraged to
contact The Centre for
Employment & Learning nearest
you to enroll in a secondary
school credit course prior to
January3l. 2004
Stratford
Exeter
Goderich
Wingham
519-271-4896
519-235-4079
519-524-2515
519-357-4995
Avon scN oCLT
y so+�I0
Maitland
Learning fora Lifetnnr
www.londonbridge.com
TLe Pwc14)tect
At first glance, this may look like
child's play, but it's really the miracle
of early learning. By building with
these blocks, this child is learning
about gravity, balance and stability.
He's learning about perspective and
how shapes fit together and creatively
experimenting with different patterns
and designs. He's building a
foundation for life-long learning.
Early Childhood Learning Centre
Opening January 2004. CaII 235-0710