Ice Court vs Sport Court

[minutemen]

Just curious what people think is the better floor.

[hbgragintic68]

sport court is so much better

[DCbullets14]

In my experience I like slow floors like sport court. Alot of kids that grew up playing mainly ice hockey like the ice court feel because the puck moves faster like it would on ice. I dont really think one is better than the other its really up to the player.

[quick_dry]

they both suck :)

I find Orb Court the best of the plastic tile floors, and good concrete plus roll-on the best of all.

I find ice court chews your wheels more than sport court, but like sport court it has poor grip (and a very sharp drop-off from grip to 'holy crap its like standing on ice with your skate covers' through turns), slow to skate on, and is noisy.

Orb court seems to go from 'grip to slip' more smoothly, and because it isn't squares I don't think you notice the seams quite as much as on sport or ice court.

[DannyG]

I got the best deal from the Mateflex(tm) guys...after almost two years, I can recommend their product as first-rate...our local players have played in over fifty arenas from coast to coast, playing on almost everything, at every level, and not a single complaint with our local surface about traction, puck movement, anything...

From my perspective as an inline player for 21 years, I also feel the Sportcourt(tm) product is better than Ice Court(tm) or Ice Pro(tm) (better grip).

[MAmato]

We rented MatéFlex back in college to run a tournament and it was very good when dry but if you looked at it the wrong way when it was even slightly moist it got really. That'll happen when it's in a semi-indoor rink with no climate control!

The best surface I've played on in the northeast is probably Harrisburg, followed by Glastonbury. As an aside, if Harrisburg would put up some freakin lights it'd be one of the best rinks to play at but since I can't see the puck Glastonbury remains the rink of record in the northeast.

[teamcarramrod]

they both suck :)

I find Orb Court the best of the plastic tile floors, and good concrete plus roll-on the best of all.

I find ice court chews your wheels more than sport court, but like sport court it has poor grip (and a very sharp drop-off from grip to 'holy crap its like standing on ice with your skate covers' through turns), slow to skate on, and is noisy.

Orb court seems to go from 'grip to slip' more smoothly, and because it isn't squares I don't think you notice the seams quite as much as on sport or ice court.

you're crazy, roll on is terrible and is a thing of the past. you might as well get out the wood floor. sport court and ice court are the new era of flooring and if you look around at the best rinks of today, that is what they have.

[Drexel63]

I have always likes SportCourt, and for the best floors I've played on, Harrisburg, Feasterville, and Skater's Choice are my top three, with ZRink a close 4th, but I've only played there once...

Tri State Sports, although they will be closing (I believe that is still happening), just installed an IceCourt floor. I got a chance to test it out, and I just love it... The puck absolutely cruises on that surface, and makes the game alot of fun when you get a group of people together who can actually handle the puck speed and are quick-footed enough to keep up...

I know they have men's leagues starting up for at least one more season, and if you are in the Philly area and are looking for IceCourt to play on, that is your only option as far as I'm aware... email [email protected] for details on the men's league operations if you are interested...

[patb16]

I like Sport Court and MateFlex; however, the best floor in my opinion is Ice Court. It combines the best of all worlds, speed, grip, and the puck glides much better than anything else out there.

As far as wheels being chewed up too fast on Ice Court, try a harder wheel. The quality of grip is so good on Ice Court, there is no need to use a wheel as soft as the wheels used for Sport Court. Also using a harder wheel on Ice Court will provide even greater speed.

If I were starting a rink, Ice Court would be my floor of choice.

Just my opinion...

(SIDE NOTE: I feel that if Sport Court is taken care of the right way, it too is also a very good surface. For you're looking for an example of how to take care of a floor, check out the SportsPlex in Feasterville, PA. They have Sport Court and it's definitely one of the best maintained inline hockey surfaces on the East Coast.)

[quick_dry]

you're crazy, roll on is terrible and is a thing of the past. you might as well get out the wood floor. sport court and ice court are the new era of flooring and if you look around at the best rinks of today, that is what they have.
that doesn't tell you anything about which flooring is best, it tells you what different facilities felt matched up to their requirements - price, maintainability, performance(e.g. grip) and how it fits into their facility. A concrete slab that is smooth enough and seam-free for a large hockey rink is HUGELY expensive compared to concrete that can have seams wherever, and doesn't have to be super smooth and prepared the same way. (And if you have to close up shop one day, you can sell it or take it with you)

One of my local rinks used IceCourt, and it is what we used at FIRS worlds this year.

Never used MateFlex, would like to give it a try.

[DblJ44]

My favorite floor is sport court or an ice court product called skate court, It has a little more grip than ice court and the puck still moves about the same.

My #1 favorite floor is Choice inline formerly skater's choice. Tight and on a concrete slab that you could skate on tomorrow (glass smooth, level, and no joints).

[RichardGraham]

Hi Guys,

1. Sometimes it feels like you guys are really trying to scare away every one of my advertisers. Sheesh. ;)

2. You really have no right to complain about ANY kind of plastic flooring you play on, unless it's Saran Wrap. I played the lion's share of my inline hockey games on Santa Monica beach parking lots -- dodging cars, potholes, oil drippings, skateboard parasailers, homeless men, and arrogant cops rolling slowly through for no reason except to try and incite someone to say or do something stupid so they could shut us down. And, worst of all, having my attention drawn away from the game at hand by bikini-clad beauties on the boardwalk.

You guys have it easy!

[Drexel63]

Ah the parking lot days...

Consider yourself lucky... I grew up in a suburb of Philadelphia, there were no bikini clad women when we played 8 hours straight in 30 degree weather... Actually, considering my location, I'm actually kind of glad there were no bikini clad women... that would be kinda gross... and creepy...

Potholes...check
Cars...check
Oilspots...check
Homeless...check
Cops...check (and we were 13 years old)
Skateboarding Parasailers...interesting...we had to compete for space with aggressive inline skaters and skateboarders, but none were equipped with parasails...that would have been awesome...you win ;)

[minutemen]

Richard sorry I was the one that started the post. I may be opening a new rink and wanted to see what players thought. I really did not want a debate, just an answer of Sport Court or Ice Court.

[joisyan]

if you want speed on sport court just put less ply underneath it. kind of like richmond. but then the puck bounces alot. the ice court (like waldorf) already bounces alot. but if i had a choice i'd probably go sport court. it wears wheels down faster, but at least when it gets dirty, you can still have some grip. also because it's what i've always played on. (well after the parking lots and wooden skating rink) haha

[RichardGraham]

Hey Bill,

In addition to the parasailer on the skateboard, we had another local known as "Skateboard Grandma." We also had a bunch of angry homeowners complain to the city because of the sound of the ball slamming into the back of the metal trash can we used as goals, and the occasional beach-goer whose car was dented by a deflected shot.

On the bright side, in addition to the beach babes, Perry's was just a few skate strides away, serving pizza slices and Pepsis, as well as wheels and bearings. Guys like Luc Robitaille, Chris Chelios, Steve Duchesne and other NHL players showed up to play, along with movie stars like Mike "Austin Powers" Myers. Good times! You had a neglected childhood in comparison. ;)