VIDEO: Ice Skating In Mississippi

TUPELO, Miss. (WCBI)- As Thanksgiving in Northeast Mississippi comes to an end, people in the area are preparing for the winter and Christmas season.

One of these ways is bringing in something that isn’t seen all to much in the south, ice skating.

The Bancorp South Arena in Tupelo hosts many events year round, and when the end of the year comes, it becomes home to this seasonal favorite.

“it’s very unique to be able to come and ice skate in Northeast Mississippi,” said ice rink manager Drew Lumsden.

It is very unique.

So how did the arena get this rink?

Lumsden said that in the late 1990’s, Tupelo was once home to a semi pro hockey team, the Tupelo T-Rex, and even though that franchise left the ice rink didn’t.

For the past eight years, people have been coming to Tupelo for an afternoon of skating.

The doors open at 1 and close at 6, with the price of admission at ten dollars per skater.

Employees want people to know that it’s kept cold inside the arena, so attendees should dress apporpriately

Since more and more people come to this every year, the arena has had to add a lot more dates… And a lot more skates.

Some may think it’s strange to have something like this in the area, but most seem to enjoy the rink and how it brings the community together.

“I get to come out here with my family and my friends. Just the ice, you can go really fast on it if you practice a lot, and it’s just fun watching an enjoying people going around here and having fun,” said Tupelo resident Connor Estess.

People are using the rink to it’s fullest potential, hosting birthdays and private parties, while also being the place that both Mississippi State and Ole Miss’s hockey team practice and compete.

People of all ages enjoy the rink when they go, and it’s an equal enjoyment for the employees coordinating this daily event.

“It’s one reason why I love my job, because you see from little kids to grandparents coming out here with smiles on their faces, so it’s fun. It’s a very rewarding part of this job,” said Lumsden.

This place will be full of those smiles until they pack things up at the end of January.