Happy Birthday, Bobby the Seal®!
Bobby the Seal® and the history of ice skating.
It's official. We've got a full-fledged teenager on our hands. And as you might already know, if you give them an inch, they'll skate all over you! Still, we are very proud to celebrate the 15th birthday of Bobby the Seal® this year and nothing inspires a look back like these kinds of milestones.
These days, Bobby the Seal® is often imitated. Though, certainly never duplicated (the design ergonomics are patented). And in honor of this 15-year anniversary, we are going back to Bobby the Seal®'s roots. That is, to the beginning of ice skating history.
Key Notes
► Ice skating began as a form of transportation and required skating propulsion aids.
► As ice skate technology refined, skating aids became unnecessary and ice skating itself evolved.
► This evolution drew mass appeal and helped drive the conception of figure skating, speed skating, and ice hockey.
► The public demand and need for accessibility to the ice inspired the return of beginner skating equipment.
► Bobby the Seal® stands today as a peak representation of how skating aids complement and enrich patron participation, as well as retention.
From the Top
You see, the general consensus is that ice skating began some time between 3,000 to 5,000 years ago. Its origins remain inconclusive and will continue to be a topic of debate. However, evidence of its beginnings come to us in the form of primitive ice skates. Before skating became what it is today, it is believed to have sprung from necessity. For both people and goods, it was a means of transportation across vast frozen distances.
The discovery of crude blades fashioned from the shin bones of animals like elk, reindeer and oxen appears to support this. Unlike contemporary metal blades, bone blades outfitted footwear and transport apparatuses. The bone's flatness on ice gave a griplessness that facilitated easy gliding. Though, to move forward at the time, sticks and poles were required for propulsion.
In essence, these were the first “ice skating aids, “skate helper,” or “skating walker.”
Blade Sharpening: A Revolution
While the earliest known use of a metal blades dates back just over 2,000 years ago, it was not until the 13th century that ice skates got its edge.
The advent of metal blade sharpening by the Dutch was nothing short of revolutionary. For the first time, sharpened blades gave its user an edge—in more ways than one.
Sharpened blades strapped to the bottom of one's footwear enabled a new level of speed and control without the use of propulsion aids. It will not be the last time skating assistance devices make an appearance. However, as skaters gained the ability to leverage their edges against the ice to propel, sticks and poles became accessories.
In fact, as mastery of ice skating advanced, it even became weaponized. The Dutch, for instance, battled on ice skates over the frozen sea in Amsterdam against the cleated Spanish in 1572. You could say they had "the edge," figuratively and literally, in defeating their Spanish opponents.
From Transportation and Warfare to Recreation
Eventually, ice skating transitioned from a method of transportation to recreation and sport. From the Netherlands canals to the English frozen ponds of the 1700s, it became a pastime enjoyed by all. In the French courts, even the likes of Marie-Antoinette and Napoleon Bonaparte partook.
Meanwhile, the first skating club formed in 1744 in Edinburgh, Scotland and in 1772, British serviceman Robert Jones penned the first skating manual. This introduced two disciplines to ice skating: figure skating and speed skating. Then, as British servicemen introduced this pastime to North America, ice hockey found footing with its first recognized game recorded in Montreal, Canada in 1875. This game is attributed today for having established the foundations of modern ice hockey.
Naturally, as ice skating became widely known and formalized, it spurred attraction.
With greater mass appeal, skating aids began its comeback. Though, most importantly, not before...
The Beginning of Ice Skating Facilities
Innovation struck again in the late 1800s! It arrived this time in the form of refrigerated ice rinks. This development elevated ice skating from seasonal recreation to a year-round activity. Glaciarium, the first artificially frozen ice rink, opened in London in 1876. Then across the Atlantic, New York City hosted its own artificial ice rink in 1879 at Madison Square Garden.
Over the next century, year-round ice rink facilities began to crop up around the world even in the most unlikely tropical climates. And as artificial rink refrigeration advanced, so did portable rink technology. Real, skate-ready ice in as little as 24 hours? That's the 21st century (and Ice-America) for you!
Traveling productions like Disney On Ice and Cirque du Soleil relished having their cake and eating it, too—namely, the ability to have high-quality ice for their shows that could be temporary, semi-permanent or permanent.
For cities and towns?
Portable ice rinks were even more so appreciated, especially during the holidays. As ice skating became synonymous with other time-honored winter traditions, portable ice rinks made possible the previously impossible for many communities and municipalities without access or in hot climates.
As such, more and more people were exposed to ice skating and with that, an increasing pool of beginner skaters needing support and a helping... flipper.
A Brief History of Skating Aids
Recreation is defined by Merriam-Webster as a "refreshment of strength and spirits." It is within reason then that a recreational activity fulfills this basic tenet at least.
Also within reason is the parental desire to seek safer skating aids for children, in keeping with ensuring a refreshing rather than disheartening experience for the "spirits."
These reassurances in the time before refrigerated indoor rinks might look like wooden stools and kitchen chairs brought out as improvised learning aids onto local and backyard frozen ponds. Sometimes, even a bucket would do.
Inevitably, the 1940s saw a rise in formal skating facilities and in response, the first manufactured skating aids emerged. Often metal and heavy, these walkers weren't a far cry from conventional medical mobility walkers. They were prone to rust from moisture exposure and difficult to maneuver. Coupled with a tendency to tip, there was a lot of room for improvement.
Cue the next iteration of the 1970s—fiberglass skating aids! While this form improved on weight and was resistant to rust, it was top-heavy in design. This led again to difficulties in maneuverability and control, especially for small children. It was also costly to replace when damaged and generally cumbersome to store.
From the late 1990s onward, the industry turned to molded plastic. There are still some variations of metal skating aids available on the market, but the preference shifted. High-quality molded plastic aids are more durable and light, as well as easy to clean and wipe down.
It is low-maintenance and does not call for any eventual replacement of metal hardware or rubber handles.
When Bobby the Seal® was born, the utilitarian and industrial nature of those first manufactured skating aids were a thing of the past.
Bobby the Seal®'s Beginnings
Bobby the Seal® hit the ice in 2010 and added color, so to speak, to the skating experience for both new and seasoned skaters. As a skate aid, a new benchmark was set for just how enjoyable and inclusive the process of learning to skate can be.
Available in blue or orange, Bobby the Seal® ticked all the boxes as a learning tool and more. On the back end and to the delight of rink and events operators, Bobby the Seal® even stores conveniently!
✓ Durable molded plastic construction
✓ Non-rust
✓ Easy to clean and disinfect
✓ Lightweight
✓ Designed and tapered for balance
✓ Lower center of gravity for better stability
✓ A stackable skating aid that saves behind-the-counter space
Despite attempts by competitors to replicate Bobby the Seal®'s ergonomic functionality through reproductions of other—noticeably inspired and sometimes also aquatic—character skating aids, Bobby the Seal® remains the only engineered and patented skating aid for both performance and patron experience.
Bobby the Seal®'s Edge
This leads us to what has made Bobby the Seal® recognized around the world. This friendly face earned a global "seal" of approval for more than optimizing learning and skating safety.
Bobby the Seal® is dual-purpose (even tri-purpose if considered as ice rink rental equipment for revenue generation). For this reason, skaters of all abilities find value in taking Bobby the Seal® out onto the ice. Skaters can:
● Take their first steps on the rink more confidently,
● Ride while being pushed,
● And push with or without a seated rider.
Bobby the Seal® essentially assures a great time for everyone—novice or experienced—on any ice rink. What's more, Bobby the Seal® gives operators and event providers the opportunity to support patrons with a richer skating experience beyond just clinging to the dasher boards and perimeter walls for the entirety of a skate session.
Kids love it. Adults love it. Even skating instructors love it. So, for all the happiness delivered these last 15 years, have the happiest of birthdays, Bobby the Seal®!
Here's to many more adventures to come...
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