The Zamboni's Rink :
Iceland in Paramount is one of the best places to skate in southern California. It has a large ice surface that is 100 feet wide and 200 feet long. It was founded by Frank Zamboni, the inventor of the famous Zamboni ice resurfacing machine.
Year Opened:
Iceland in Paramount was founded in 1939, but the official opening day wasn't until 1940. The Zamboni family ran an ice manufacturing plant in the 1930's. When refrigerators came into being, they decided to build an ice skating rink to replace the loss of their ice business.
Pipe Organ:
What may be the only pipe organ currently playing regularly in any ice skating arena in the country is inside the arena. The pipe organ at Iceland was played for many years by Truman Welch who managed Iceland until he died in 1968.
Famous Skaters Skated at Iceland:
1976 Olympic Silver Medalist, Dianne DeLeeuw trained there.
Other famous skaters that trained there include Peggy Fleming and Jo Jo Starbuck and Kenneth Shelley. John Nicks, coach of Sasha Cohen, 2006 Olympic Silver Medalist, taught there for many years. During that time, the rink was full of figure skating activity since Mr. Nicks' presence drew skaters from everywhere to Iceland.
No Hockey for Many Years:
Iceland originally had low rails and no hockey lines because there was no hockey at the rink. In the 1980s, due to financial pressures, hockey did become a part of Iceland.
Instead, patch lines were imprinted in the arena. Skaters practiced figures for hours at Iceland using those patch lines.
Zamboni Machines on Display:
A couple of the original Zamboni machines are on display in the arena.
