Since then it has hosted a series of international competitions and produced leading curlers including former double World champion and European champion Ewan MacDonald, Olympic gold medalists' Janice Rankin and Fiona MacDonald and more recently, Scottish and World junior champion Sarah Macintyre whose team retained the World Junior Curling Championship crown this year.

These and other achievements were celebrated at a civic reception in Inverness earlier this month to mark the centre's 40th anniversary.

It was also an opportunity for members to reflect on the complex's history and its future development.

The ice centre has changed hands several times since being built in 1968 by Northsport Limited whose chairman Angus MacLeod was a former owner of the city's Kingsmills Hotel.

Plans to add a hotel to the facility were mooted when Rio Stakis bought the ice centre in 1971 but when the company changed its focus to casinos the ice centre was sold to John MacGregor, Allan O'Neill and Eric Brown who in turn sold it to CAC Leisure in 1986.

It was eventually sold to David Cameron of Upland Developments in 2002 as part of a larger property deal. He had no interest in the business and offered it to members after six months.

Current chairman Tom Pendreigh explained previous owners had a lack of vision for the centre.

"Things were just ticking over," he said. "When David Cameron acquired the building it gave us an opportunity to buy it and change the service provision and try and improve the facility, which was a bit of a tough task.

"The building was 34 years old at that stage and was looking a bit tired and weary."

Users raised more than £70,000 and with the help of funders including Highland Council, Inverness Common Good Fund, Sportscotland and the National Lottery, were able to purchase the ice centre."

Set up as a charitable company, a period of stabilisation followed, including attempts to attract new users.

Over recent years, funds have been raised to install a new kitchen and make alterations to the bar area. A new lift and disabled toilets have been added and equipment including skates and £30,000 worth of curling stones have been purchased.

Re-building the run-down business has been a slow process for members. Given the history of the building and the investment which has taken place, Mr Pendreigh said it was a considerable achievement in its own right. Although he admitted money was tight, the centre, which remains in need of investment, stands on its own two-feet when it comes to running costs.

But times are difficult. It has already got to the point of no return for some with ice rinks in Pitlochry and Brora forced to close. A brand new facility in Perth has also closed to skaters.

"It is a pretty serious concern," Mr Pendreigh said. "These facilities are extraordinarily expensive to run but for me, from a community point of view, we have got to have these facilities in a city. It is just nonsense not to. It is a facility that should be in every city and they are becoming few and far between.

"Where that stands us for the future — looking at some of the energy costs being banded about — we are pretty apprehensive and a bit nervous about the whole situation, especially because it is an old building, which is generally inefficient."

But he remains upbeat about the opportunities ahead. Now with members in charge, he thinks the facility is in a position to move forward. The board is looking at the options, although one thing is clear, the centre needs to expand to meet the demands of different users.

Although at an early stage, discussions are ongoing between the ice centre, funding bodies and the council.

"We are trying to look at the economics, who we can get into bed with. We own the building and the land so we have a valuable asset."

Ice Centre chairman Tom Pendreigh. Gary Anthony

Mr Pendreigh admits he has his own vision for the next 40 years.

"I would expect to have an independent ice skating facility alongside an independent curling facility," he said. "Two facilities would take that pressure of time away and allow us to give users a much better service."

Inverness would also be a regional centre of excellence for curling and a national centre of excellence for skating. The facility would also have strong links with the proposed new University of the Highlands and Islands' campus, with educational opportunities in the science of ice-making.

One of the options could be a new more efficient facility closely linked with the existing leisure complex, with an environmental and cost-effective system in place to warm water in the pool from heat generated by the ice-plant used to freeze the rink.

For the time being, Mr Pendreigh's aim is to ensure every customer is given the very best experience, something, which he admits has been a challenge because of the ageing facility and equipment.

"A lot of these things are holding us back at the moment," he said. "Some of those experiences are still not as we would like them to be but we are getting closer.

He added maximising use of other facilities such as the cafe and bar area were important. "I want people to come here and have a really nice time," he said.

The centre has also been looking at alternative income streams and lets rooms, which are used by the local bridge club and for martial arts. One of the major challenges for the ice centre is getting the balance between public skating, activities like synchronized skating and sports like curling and ice hockey correct. In the winter, almost 700 curlers use the facility every week as well as 180 figure skaters, almost 60 ice hockey players and 200 public skaters.

Last month, around 1500 skaters used it, including 150 ice hockey players and 250 figure skaters.

"It is really difficult for us," added Mr Pendreigh, who is also the Great Britain Wheelchair Curling Coach. "It is about how we balance demand with costs."

While curling provides the largest income, the centre wants to be a community facility providing activities, which often leads to criticism about the lack of time allotted to public skating.

Changing use is time-consuming and is not a simple process. Skating ice is different from curling ice, which needs to be perfectly clean and level. To change from skating to curling, the rink has to close. The ice is then cut and flooded and left overnight to freeze. Only then is it suitable for curlers.

Mr Pendreigh described curling in Inverness as "second to none" and said there was a high level of interest in the sport, with the 60-plus membership of Highland and Moray Junior Curling Club going from strength to strength.

Development officer Lynne Fraser encourages young people to take up the sport. She said one of the most important aspects was infrastructure, which she explained was in place locally and allowed participants to move through the sport to the top level. Local efforts are also supported by the sport's governing body, the Royal Caledonian Curling Club, and Coaching Highland.

She described Inverness ice centre as "hugely important" to the development of the sport in Scotland, adding there was plenty of inspiration locally.

There has also been a surge in the popularity of ice hockey and television shows like ITV's Dancing on Ice has impacted on ice skating.

* Inverness ice centre wants to create a legacy to the last 40 years and anyone with memorabilia including photographs are urged to get in touch. There are also gaps in the competition records dating from the early '80s to the present day and the board would like to hear from anyone with information about competitions, who took part and the winners.

h.paterson@inverness-courier.co.uk 

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