sport
BREAKING
THE ICE
Aled Singleton tries to
keep his cool as he picks
up a chainsaw and chisel
for ice sculpting master
classes with The Ice
Academy.
ICE carvings are increasingly popular additions to
events and couples have them as centre pieces at
wedding tables, but Laura told us more about why
she wanted to run workshops where people can try
it themselves:
“I first got into ice carving after being talentspotted from a doodle I did. It was seven years ago
and I was between animation jobs, working at a
petrol station, when a customer wanted to take me
on as part of a new venture”.
Laura got to travel far and wide until the business
founder decided to leave and go to Australia. “I
really missed the carving and thought why not start
my own business, but add a stronger experiential
element?”
The whole setup would impress even Breaking
Bad’s Walt: there are buckets for creating the
blocks of ice, a unit for storing the blocks and the
refrigerated workshop where you get to try to out
carving. We were given gloves, warm ski jackets,
trousers and boots to wear before getting a lesson
in the basics of ice carving.
Laura was really gentle in the way that she
introduced the different chisels and cutting devices
before she moved us onto the power tools such as
the router (which cuts straight in) and the ultimate
tool… the chainsaw!
Over two hours we worked steadily on our
individual pieces. It was really cold inside the box
so we stepped outside regularly to warm our hands
and get hot cups of tea and coffee. The experience
was very engrossing and – because we were inside
a refrigeration unit – it was hard to even tell what
time it was. Whilst I sculpted an urban puffin with
a mohican my accompanying friend Claire created
a large heart-shaped piece carved with the one
word she felt best represented the session – love!
She said that the ice sculpting had “been one of the
best experiences of my life.”
The crystals are addictive and I would recommend
anybody have a go. Sessions are suited for adults
and children over 10 as it does get pretty cold
inside, and you can easily ach ieve great things even
if you don’t feel confident with power tools. For the
rest of 2013 you can get a £99 voucher which gives
three people a three-hour session. Otherwise, they
also create virtually anything in ice and deliver far
and wide.
The Ice Academy, Llantarnam Industrial
Park, Cwmbran. Info: 01633 869207 /
www.theiceacademy.co.uk
RACE INTO THE NEW YEAR
If you’re fed up of fighting the crowds in the clubs on NYE,
and desperately trying to find someone to kiss at midnight,
give up and celebrate a running legend instead.
JOOLS Holland, dodgy fireworks, drunkenly
murdering Auld Lang Syne or trying to remember
why it is obligatory to have as much FUN as
possible on this evening every year. These are all
things that most of the country will be doing this
New Year’s Eve. Not in the town of Mountain Ash
though, where the people are clearly crafted of
sturdier stuff than us mere mortals.
Now in its 55th year, The Nos Galan Road Races
are a series of races along a 5km route around the
town, varying in difficulty so that athletes of all
ages and abilities are welcome to take part. The
races commemorate the local runner Guto Nyth
Bran, whose uncanny athletic exploits in the 18th
century have now passed on into legend; how he
could blow out a candle and get to his bed before
the light had faded, or how he once ran from his
home to Pontypridd and back, a distance of seven
BUZZ 60
miles, before his mother’s kettle had boiled (although
having been to Pontypridd, I think that’s a perfectly
reasonable amount of time to want to spend there).
Thousands of spectators turn up to see the races
that go on throughout the evening, which are then
followed up with a spectacular firework display.
The highlight of the night for many is the annual
appearance of the evening’s mystery runner, which
as per tradition is a famous sports personality.
Previous mystery runners have included Shane
Williams and Linford Christie OBE. They will first
place a wreath on Nyth Bran’s grave, before taking
part in a memorial service and then moving on down
to Rhos Square to light the beacon which signifies
the beginning of the adult events later on in the
evening after the children’s events have finished.
Whether you’re running or not, it sounds like a great
way to spend New Year’s Eve, but if you want to join
the race, apply now, as due to increasing demand
every year, the number of participants now has to
be capped at 1,200, and hundreds have already
applied. STEPHEN SPRINGATE
Nos Galan, Mountain Ash, Tue 31 Dec.
Entry: £3-£9. Info: www.nosgalan.co.uk