Ottawa's 6th Annual Kilt Skate and the 50th Opening of Rideau Canal Skateway

January temperatures can be unpredictable in Ottawa. Four years ago, an unseasonable warm spell forced the organizers of the Great Canadian Kilt Skate to change locations from the Rideau Canal Skateway to the refrigerated ice of Lansdowne Skating Court, where it hosted the 6th annual kilt skate on Saturday, January 18.

Although the thermometer has been above freezing for most of the past weeks, in recent days, winter has come back with a vengeance. The morning of the kilt skate dawned with temperatures of minus-25 with the wind chill, and a blizzard forecast for that evening. But none of this stopped the intrepid skaters, many of whom have been coming out year after year ever since Ottawa hosted its first kilt skate to celebrate the bicentennial of Sir John A. Macdonald in 2015.

Some were back sporting a “heritage” look.

Most of our returning skaters are content with a more contemporary Scottish garb, combined with good old fashioned Canadian winter-wear.

Among the regulars of the annual event are the pipers, John Hogg and Dave Johnston, who found that with the cold temperatures, “the pipes didn’t want to cooperate.”

This was Dave Johnston’s first year as a member of the Scottish Society of Ottawa’s Grand Committee in his capacity as Volunteer Coordinator. Once again, the enthusiastic support of SSO Volunteers helped establish a festive atmosphere at the event.

They were backed by the work of the organizing committee that makes the Great Canadian Kilt Skate an integral part of SSO’s Scottish Festival, the next event of which will be the Gala Burns Supper and Ceilidh on Saturday, January 25 (Rabbie Burns’ birthday).

The SSO is also responsible for helping organize a national kilt skate by distributing funding from the Scottish Government to kilt skates in partner cities across Canada. This year the Scottish Government’s theme is “Scotland is Now!” highlighting a dynamic, young and forward-thinking Scotland. The theme is included in the “picture frame” provided for skaters and other visitors. Here’s Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson posing in the frame.

Among the dignitaries who came this year was the local Member of Parliament, Hon. Catherine McKenna, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities.

Hon. Lisa MacLeod, provincial Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport, and local MPP Joel Harden were also invited to the event. Ottawa politicians had busy skating-related schedules this day. Not far away they were also on hand for the 50th opening of the Rideau Canal Skateway.

The section of the Skateway from Bank Street to Pretoria Bridge is now open to the public. In the coming weeks, as colder temperatures allow for the grooming and maintenance of other sections of the Rideau Canal, the full length of the Skateway will open. At 7.8 kilometers in length, it is the largest skating surface in the world, and part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

But meanwhile, at the Lansdowne Skating Court, the organizers of the Great Canadian Kilt Skate have no regrets about moving their event to the more predictable element of refrigerated ice. Elsewhere across Canada, many Scottish societies have made the decision to hold their kilt skates indoors, but in Ottawa, they take pride in their resilience and toughness.

The Scots have a word for it: thrawn! It means we’re both tough and we’re twisted. Happy kilt skate season!