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Waterloo‘s Bubble comes full circle Large selection Flyâ€"tying & instructional fishing supplhes courses Your ftshin‘ haadquartecs . ACCESSO[IES 10 Wyman Rd., Unit 4, Waterloo _ 746â€"2650 Greg Munroe, a member of the 1987â€"88 Sutherland Cup, team brought out his son Nicholas, two, to skate for the first time on a rink that held so many memories for his dad. By Bos VrBaNAC "When we won the Chronicle Staff championship, and even during the games, the fans TÂ¥ they came one last time _ were so close you could feel hey came one last time l to thaw out the memoâ€" ries built up over a half century of playing on Waterloo‘s first indoor ice And _ whether _ they remembered the old brick and mortar structure as the barn, or remembered it as its latest _ incarnation, â€" the Bubble, nothing could stop the flood of the familiar when they stepped on the Waterloo Memorial Arena‘s frozen surface for the last time Saturday and Sunday. N\NB‘ One skater who was taken back was Greg Munroe, who skated for the Waterloo Siskins from 1986 to 1990. He still remembers how close the fans were to the action, especially in the team‘s Sutherland Cup championship year of 1988. Looking for a new or / preâ€"owned BMW? â€"~â€" 527 King St. N. WATERLOO (519) 885â€"5090 Come visit our new home the energy and excitement from the crowd," said Munroe. "When we won the Sutherland Cup fans could reach out and touch the cup, put their fingers on it, and be a part of the celebration." Those same warm feelâ€" ings flooded back when Munroe took his son Nicholas, two, out on the ice for his first skating lesson. The fact that the father and son‘s hockey memories had come full circle wasn‘t lost on Munroe. "How appropriate that my son‘s first time on skates is my last time here at the Waterloo Memorial Arena," said Munroe. "He‘s still a litâ€" tle too young to know what‘s going on, but I‘ll be able to tell him he skated at the Waterloo Memorial Arena, something that‘s part of my own personal history. "I don‘t know if any buildâ€" ing will replace my memoâ€" ries of this place. There‘s just to much history and too much character." Eric Calder, another forâ€" mer Siskin who went on to play â€" for _ the NHLs Washington Capitals, also brought his two sons Tye, eight, and Keegan, six, out for the last time. Calder, who played a lot of his minor hockey in the old barn, had the privilege of watching his sons start their hockey memories on the same ice surface. "It‘s been nice watching them play minor hockey here," said Calder. "It‘s a great little facility, especially for kids this size. "I certainly have some good memories of the rink and it‘s sad to see it go. I remember the old arches and the grandstand in behind. That‘s still vivid." Tye Calder, whose minor hockey team, the Penguins, played out of the facility last year, said the old building, with its nooks and crannies, was a great place to play tag. "I really like it for the tunâ€" nel under the seats," said Tye. "There was always some place to hide." Siskins aflumni from the different eras took each other on in a special series of challenge matches featuring players who played for the dub from the 1940s onward. Opened in 1947 The Waterloo Memoarial SPORTS ? %.' f “\:; n * $ »\y ‘ g, a) / as P\ _ ~ 3 4) & ctvom Arena first opened in 1947, and commemorated sacriâ€" fices of the local lads who went off to war. The first indoor ice rink in Waterloo proved to be quite the novelty that first day as 2,400 local residents attendâ€" ed the dedication ceremony. Ed Ofterbein, 70, was still playing hockey back then. He remembers returning from a road trip to Fergus and seeing the men laying the refrigeration pipes in the new arena. Otterbein and a few of his teammates â€" from _ the Waterloo Kents decided to lend a hand. "It was 1 am. when we got off the bus," said Otterbein. "We came in and helped to grease the pipes, then went home afterwards and went to work at 5 a.m the next morning." Otterbein said he doesn‘t skate much anymore, but he laced them up for one last time to commemorate the Waterloo Memorial Arena‘s closing. He kicked off a night of hockey featuring players from the different decades stretching back to the 1940s with a ceremonial face off against â€" current _ Siskins coach and general manger Jerry Harrigan. _ Otterbein said with only one indoor ice surface back _ "We practised on the outâ€" door rinks before coming inside," he said. "The place was all lumber and metal They weren‘t built like they are today." In fact, the old barn was built on one of Waterloo‘s former garbage dumps, and Otterbein remembered picking through the trash as a kid to peel off labels of old garbage cans. 6 Howie Dietrich, who played for the Siskins in the 1950s, gets ready for his last shift at the Memorial Arena on Saturday. then it was always a treat to â€" would come to the game play in the arena. dressed in black and yellow "We practised on the outâ€" â€" tuxedo, the team‘s official door rinks before coming â€" colours. "It was always a hackey place even though it was a dump," laughed Otterbein. _ They would then mail those labels in to get crests of the old NHL hockey teams. Howie : Dietrich, â€" who knows a lot about the history of Waterioo‘s arenas because of his long service with the city, said the Waterloo city, said the Waterloo Memorial Arena â€" always brought out the characters. Dietrich, who skated for the Siskins in the 1950s, remembered one fan who 181 King St. S., Waterloo click here wR Monâ€"Fn 10â€"8; NeveT Ends 531 9.6; Sun 11â€"6 Dietrich said the name of the superfan escapes him but he remembers that he was the brotherâ€"inâ€"law of Waiter Tkachuk, an NHL hall of famer. "He used to come to the Siskins games in a limo, or he would get Walter‘s Cadillac and drive in," said Dietrich. "It didn‘t matter if the parking lot was closed or not, he would drive in anyâ€" _ "He‘d park it right in front of the front door. He was a little bit of a character." That wacky fan tradition was passed on to Lorrie Spry, who used to blow the trumâ€" pet at the Siskins games. _ That trumpet was blaring again Saturday night as the Siskins‘ â€" alumni _ shated around. Continued on page 21 7 DAYS A WEEK BEER STORE