World Ice Art Championships in Fairbanks, Alaska
Ice Sculpture Competition Features International Pros and Amateurs
Jan 12, 2009
The Olympics have taken on a lot of non-traditional sports in recent years. Athletes have won Olympic medals in such pursuits as ping-pong, curling, and ice-sculpting.
The idea of standing outside in temperatures that might dip well below zero and taking a chain saw to a block of ice might not sound appealing to everyone. But for those up for a different sort of winter vacation, the World Ice Art Championships in Fairbanks in March offers amateurs the opportunity to see what they can do with a big block of ice and a bunch of tools that look like they belong in a mechanics shop.
Here's how it works: Heavy machinery (front end loaders and cranes) are used to haul blocks of ice the size of your basic pick-up truck out of a nearby lake. The blocks are then chopped into more manageable blocks, say, the size of a refrigerator. Block are distributed to competitors, who hail from places as unlikely as Monaco and Mexico, Mongolia and Malaysia, as well as to amateurs who are taking their first turn at the sport.
Single-Block Competition At World Ice Art Championships
In the single block competition, two-person teams have three days to turn a 7,800 pound block of ice into something else. In the realistic category, the sculptures are representational: animals, people, flowers, or fantasy figures. In the abstract competition, the category expands to include anything the sculptors can dream up.
The International Multi-Block Competition
Teams have six days to turn ten 4,400-pound ice blocks into sculptures ranging from a single massive piece to entire stage sets filled with multiple characters. As in the single block competition, there are two subdiivisions: realistic and fantasy.
Junior and Non-Competitive Events at the Fairbanks Ice Festival
There is also an event for juniors (high school students, who work in teams of two) and a non-competitive event for neophytes with a sense of adventure (and a lot of warm clothes). Participants in the non-competitive division complete a short course in ice-sculpting and safety. The class covers handling basic tools like chainsaws, irons, and chisels. Blocks of ice for this division weigh in at around 3,000 pounds. Carving anything that looks like anything other than, say, a box or a refrigerator takes time -- at least two or three days. Old pros advise beginners to start with something easy like a snow man or a head. It will take some time before a beginner is ready to turn a block of ice into the finely chiseled and fanciful sculptures of the pros.
The Ice Park: Fairbanks's Winter Wonderland
Visitors can watch the competitors as they work on their creations. The ice park itself is a four-acre playground made of ice, complete with ice slides, ice rides, an ice maze, an ice rink, and life-sized ice sculptures of favorite animals, popular characters and toys to touch and climb on.
The final night is the awards ceremony, which showcases the art by lighting the park and all the sculptures with colored lights. It is a true winter wonderland of ice-fueled imagination.
A final warning: It's cold in Faribanks in February! Be aware of signs of hypothermia, especially in children, and wear warm clothes, especially boots.
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