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Skaters make most of frozen fields

Katy Prickett
BBC News, Cambridgeshire
PA Media Ugo Sassi from Cambridge skates on a frozen flooded field in Upware, Cambridgeshire.PA Media
Ugo Sassi from Cambridge skated on the frozen flooded field in Upware

Keen skaters have been making the most of the recent cold snap by taking to the ice after flooded fields in the Fens froze over.

Hundreds of people flocked to Upware, near Wicken, Cambridgeshire, over the weekend.

Fen skating takes place when a meadow floods and then freezes, meaning the ice is very shallow - unlike with frozen lakes or rivers.

David Smith, 57, who helps organise the activity, said: "It was wonderful to see so many people, from children under eight to people over 80, enjoying a day's skating."

PA Media A man and two children under 10 playing ice hockey on a frozen field at Upware, Cambridgeshire. One child is in front, wearing an orange top, shin pads, a black helmet with a face guard and is reaching towards a puck. A second child is behind, also in action, and behind them both is the man in orange ice hockey gear and to their right is a woman in a brown coat on white skatesPA Media
Not everyone was speed skating - this family enjoyed some ice hockey
PA Media A woman skating at speed on a frozen field at Upware, Cambridgeshire. She is wearing a brown bobble hat and leggings, an orange jumper and white padded gloves and ice skating boots. Behind her is the field edge and eyond it wintery treesPA Media
David Smith, from the Fen Centre organising committee, believes about 1,000 people took part in skating at Upware on Sunday

Mr Smith said Sunday was a particularly busy day and believed there were "at least 1,000 people on the ice" by the time he arrived at 09:30 GMT.

He is part of the Fen Centre, the organising committee for racing on the Fens and a sub-committee of British Ice Skating.

Skaters came from "a radius of up to 100 miles (160km) away, a few come from London", said Mr Smith, from Sutton.

"I met people from Bedford - the chance to skate on the Fens is a real magnet."

PA Media Dozens of people skating on a frozen field at Upware, Cambridgeshire. The blue ice is scored with white lines from the skates. In the middle distance is a field covered in frost and in the far distances are some wintery trees under pale blue skiesPA Media
The Fens of East Anglia, with its rivers, dykes and flooded meadows, makes ideal skating terrain - if the conditions are right

Roger Giles, 87, from Welney, Norfolk, who helped co-ordinate Fen skating for many decades, said: "You need at least 2in to 4in (6cm to 10cm) of ice to be able to skate."

But he predicted the icy conditions had "nearly come to an end".

Competitive skating began in the Fens in 1879, and since then speed skaters have vied for the world or Fenland title whenever a Fen has frozen long enough to allow the championships to be held.

"It was wonderful to see so many people come out and enjoy something I've been doing for 45 years," said Mr Smith.

"The ice came and it was perfect because it was on a Saturday and Sunday, when people are off work and children not at school."

PA Media An aerial shot of dozens of people skating on a frozen field at Upware, Cambridgeshire. The blue ice is scored with white lines from the skates. In the distance can be seen the edge of the field and trees beneath a pale blue skyPA Media
The ice is very shallow indeed, unlike with frozen lakes or rivers, making it far safer than other forms of outdoor skating

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