A return to the rink

After 40 years, you'd think it would be time to quit, but Summerland Arena's Zamboni has been brought out of retirement.

The Zamboni, which operator Erik Laflamme affectionately calls "Zelda", was brought back to the rink after the regular Zamboni was sent away for repairs.

"I don't know if it was a cracked head or a bad valve, but we had low compression in our other machine, and couldn't get her started, so she sadly got hauled away by a tow truck," Laflamme said. "We got the cobwebs and the rust off of Zelda, and here she is, still being used."

Zelda means "grey warrior" or "warrior princess" in German, according to Laflamme, who added that the Zamboni still fires up on the first try every time.

"I love this machine, it smells old, it smells like hockey," he said. "We abuse the heck out of her and I can't believe 40 years later the original zamboni for the Summerland Arena is still here and still in use when we need her.

"She's a real champion."

Laflamme, who is in his sixth year driving Zambonis, said driving a machine from the 1970s can get some getting used to for someone who is used to today's sleek-driving Zambonis.

"She's a beast, actually," he said. "She's really hard to drive and a lot of fun, she's slow and she does a great job. It takes some training and some getting used to for sure, but she does a really good job out there."

Under the hood, that beast is just a four-cylinder 1976 Volkswagen Beetle, according to Laflamme, which he says may be a rarity.

"I'd done a search on the internet and the only other working 1976 Volkswagen Zamboni is in Duluth, Minnesota, that's been fully restored," he said.