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"Even though it's an Olympia, everyone knows it by Zamboni."  
-- David Meltzer, |
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Achieving a washboard effect on the ice is undesirable. Uneven cutting, a result of different driving techniques of each Zamboni operator, is counterbalanced by "grooming" the ice--working on it when nobody else is in the building. Much like wood, the ice is shaved and maintained by going against the "grain." Thus, the figure eight pattern is introduced to combat the ridges in the ice. Al Tyldesley says, "It's like brushing your hair yourself daily vs. going to the beauty salon once a week, spending two hours and having a makeover." Every hour or two the Zamboni resurfaces the ice for use, but a 2-4 hour weekly grooming and daily spot grooming starts at five o'clock in the morning to prepare the ice for the whole day/week. A lot of work goes on behind the scenes. Driving in a figure eight lengthwise and widthwise on the rink and creating concentric circles are the three alternate patterns used to care for the ice.
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