Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/326847
A few thoughts as I write my 26th Final Cut. It's been a busy few weeks in the office as the STAR staff continues to work toward NARCE while putting the finishing touches on our Regional Training Programs that kick off in June. And like we do every spring, we're also prepping materials to head out on the road with in order to support the state and professional associates that support us. Even in the controlled chaos that is the norm at the STAR office, we still manage to steal a few quiet moments each day to catch up on industry happenings, whether it be through national media or an e-mail from one of our members filling us in. I'm not sure if it's related to global warming, lead in the drinking water, a full moon or just people shaking off their cabin fever from one of the longest and coldest winters in a while, but it seems like over the past few weeks, we've had more noteworthy and at times head-shaking events that have kept our staff talking around the water cooler a little longer than normal. Noteworthy Harvey the Hound, the Calgary Flames mascot, missed an appearance to attend a game with a local youth hockey associa- tion that had pulled themselves up by their boot straps and rallied the community after experiencing devastating floods just eight months ago. Most GMs would have probably sent a handwritten apology and thrown in some tickets to a game and maybe a free parking pass, too. The Flames organiza- tion took their apology to an entirely new level by providing buses to get the kids to Scotiabank Saddledome to play in a game on their ice. They were provided with cus- tom jerseys, along with autographed gear passed out by their team captain, Mark Giordano, before the game. Pretty cool — and good to see a profes- sional team right a wrong. Throwing in Hartley and his coaching staff as water boys was a nice touch, too! Head Shaking Chicken Little. R-22 phaseout. Just like the nursery tale, the sky isn't really falling. Don't get us wrong, the animated, hyped-up articles from authors that have no technical refrigeration background are a fun read, but they're doing more harm than good. We share the sentiments from our members who provide the rational, realistic dialogue needed regarding the Montreal Protocol. We hope we accomplished that starting on page 24 in this issue of RINK Magazine. Rest assured that refrigerant manufac- turers are pursuing suitable replacements to keep the water frozen beneath our feet and the sky from falling on our heads. Truly Head-Shaking Unfortunately, another NHL building was the site of some head-shaking news. Tied 3-3 in the second period at the Islanders' Nassau Coliseum, a bench-clearing brawl took place, turning the neutral zone into a scene reminiscent of SlapShot. Granted, fighting in hockey isn't a rar- ity, but what makes this a bit more of a headline is that the fighting broke out between New York's Finest, the NYPD, and their Bravest counterpart, the FDNY … at a charity game, of which the New York Police and Fire Widows' and Children's Benefit Fund would be sharing in the proceeds. After protective equipment, sticks and jerseys were cleared off the ice and players from both sides were escorted off the ice to their respective locker rooms, the game resumed, and the NYPD ended up with an 8-5 "victory." Milestone Not everything we talk about in the office is ripped from the headlines. Craig Petersen, a friend and strong supporter of STAR, shared with us his own news via Facebook when he posted a photo of his ice resurfacer hitting 7,000 hours. Craig, a CIRM, was the operator at the time and was halfway through cleaning the ice when he hit the milestone after his fig- ure skating club's session. We know Craig has a ton of IR drivers at his facility so we were kind of wondering just how many days he had been hanging out in his IR room for 6,999 to come up. J 54 / MAY.JUNE.2014 RINKMAGAZINE.COM by JOHN MONTELEONE, CIRM Final cut Lessons learned around the rink REST ASSURED THAT REFRIGERANT MANUFACTURERS ARE PURSUING SUITABLE REPLACEMENTS TO KEEP THE WATER FROZEN BENEATH OUR FEET AND THE SKY FROM FALLING ON OUR HEADS. The Sky Is Not Falling