SkateCourt floor at Bear Creek Roller Rink - “We put it right on top of our old floor. It was put together almost like Legos, it just snaps," said Norman Malone, Owner. “It took six to eight hours to cover our 13,000 square foot floor!"

SkateCourt Debuts at Castle Family Fun Center in Chester - Besides doubling the size of the park, the 50,000-square-foot building will take The Castle from just summertime fun to a year-round amusement center.

Pee Dee Skateland Roller Skating Rink - Dee Skateland of Marion, SC is an indoor rink and open year round. The facility covered the crack cement floor with SkateCourt surface. The new surface brighten up the whole facility with the confitti colors and design.

SkateCourt News

By Diane Walker - Rinksider May-June 07

Norman Malone, Owner of Bear Creek Roller Rink, 5210 Highway 6 North, Houston, TX, used SkateCourt to cover his 13,000 square foot skating area. Malone has used most of the available types of flooring throughout his 50 years in roller rink business. “in the early 1970s, I was the first in Texas to use the particle board floor, but I have had maple and concrete too’’Malone said.

Bear Creek was on its second concrete floor when Malone, who took over the rink 14 years ago, decided it was time to make a change. The floor had a two-part epoxy on it. The epoxy was rolled on about every nine months and about two years ago, due to multiple coats, it was starting to come loose. Malone would sand the loose areas, but since there were about 30 coats on the floor the problem was not getting solved. Fixing the loose areas was just a temporay solution

Malone had seen a new type of flooring in various venues and it intrigued him. It was a floor that snapped together and came in many different colors. He talked with the flooring Company – IceCourt-, the maker of SkateCourt and took the next step on January 7, 2007.

New SkateCourt floor installation at Bear Creek was different. “ We put it right on top of our old floor. It was put together almost like Legos, it just snaps.’’ said Malone. “ It took six to eight hours to cover our 13,000 square foot floor! Skaters love the grip they get’’ Maintenance on the floor could not be easier. All Malone has to do is keep it clean; that’s it. The floor company offers a five year guarantee and Malone figures the floor will last about six to eight years. “When you think of the alternative – coatings, downtime, all the trouble – this floor is very worth it’’ he added.

It is harder for Malone to tell if the new floor will make a bottom line difference. The floor is quite new and more time will need to pass. What he does know is that the local hockey association is renting the rink from Malone and “the hockey players love it. I have also talked to other rink owners with this flooring that have competitive skaters and they feel the same way. They love it’’.

Malone agreed that your floor and your skates are the main part of the rink business. When it comes time to make a change to your floor, rink owners need to make sure that they do all of their homework to come up with the best solution for their busines.

Foreman Mark Deevy adjusting SkateCourt

By Raja Abdulrahim - Times Herald-Record, June 01, 2007

Chester — The arcade opened a month ago. The roller rink opens tonight. And over the next few weeks, the rest of the attractions at the monstrous addition at The Castle Fun Center will open one by one.

The race track in a week or two. Rock climbing, probably mid-June. Laser tag, sometime in July. And somewhere in that time, the Jesters restaurant, snack shop and bar will open.

"The only thing I put a date on is the roller rink, everything else will fall into place when it gets done," owner Brian Leentjes said.

Besides doubling the size of the park, the 50,000-square-foot building will take The Castle from just summertime fun to a year-round amusement center. The signature castle that overlooks Route 17 currently features 3.5 acres of outdoor miniature golf courses — the Knight's Revenge and the Dragon Slayer — go-kart tracks and a batting cage.

For as much as has been done in a short time on the estimated $2.5 million addition — pouring the foundation began last spring and the first piece of the metal frame wasn't erected until Dec. 4 — a quick tour of the building shows there's still much to be done.

Around the roller rink, which is slated to open tonight, a worker was smoothing down the wood in preparation of the carpet to be installed today.

Downstairs, the laser tag arena is still a shell of what it should become; boxes and wood are still lying around, and a new go-kart sits where the preparation area will be. In the bathrooms, there are toilets. The stalls should arrive today. In the restaurant and bar area, there are not yet tables, much less fried food.

The new building touches upon the current castle theme with the center offices decorated with spires and dragons painted on the walls of the arcade. More extensive castle-theme decor is on hold for now.

Leentjes wondered yesterday what he had gotten himself into by turning the once-seasonal center into year-round work.

One advantage is that he'll have an easier time retaining good employees since they won't have to work elsewhere in the winter. The Castle will now have a summer staff of 60, roughly double the current roster.

Worth it all?

"Yeah, it better be."