The frozen fountain of youth

Before getting on the ice, a large group gathered (most of them wearing skates) to pay Ginny Johnson their regular fees.

Many of them carried on conversations with old friends, chatting over the speakers playing organ music reminiscent of a hockey game. Some of the talk reverted back to problems with their hips.

This type of conversation didn't get them down. Many of them were excited to get back on the ice. In a way, the ice made them feel, and move, like they were young again.

The Monday Skaters (Ladies Recreational Skating Club), which consists mostly of seniors, skate every Monday from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. through the middle of March at the DECC.

The Monday Skaters began in 1935, Johnson said, who has been an organizer for the event since 1977.

Then, it was for ladies only. Over the years, however, the club changed.

"So many guys started to retire and they wanted to come. That's when we decided, 'OK we'll open it up,'" Johnson said. "No kids (are allowed to skate), even if there is no school."

The reason kids aren't allowed on the ice during the club's ice time is because of safety (for the seniors).

At the beginning of the season the club gets between 20 and 30 participants. Nearing Christmas they can get up to 50 people.

Many times the group grows because people see us skating while they are walking around the DECC, Johnson said. They get curious.

"There is a lot of them here that are 60-plus," Johnson said. "Looking right out there (as she points to the rink) I know there's 70-plus."

These skaters come to the rink for various reasons.

"Some come here for heart rehab," Johnson said. "They skate after hip replacement."

The club is not only for amateur skaters, but for people with a skating history.

"You just wanted to keep up with the exercise and the fun of skating after doing it for so many years, you're just not going to give it up," said Johnson, a former member of Duluth's Ice Follies. "I started skating at the old curling club (where Monday Skaters began). We literally lived down there during Ice Follies. When you put that much time in, you don't want to give it up."

The Ice Follies was an organized skating show. Some professionals would come in and instruct them on how to skate -- many times with the theme of a Broadway show.

Mark Sertich, another active skater in the club, is 86. He not only skates on Mondays, but he also participates in hockey games four times a week and competes in the North Shore Inline Marathon.

"We had four-on-four today (Monday) so there's no relief," Sertich said. "There was no day on the bench, so we got a good workout."

This past summer Sertich competed in Snoopy's Senior World Hockey Tournament in California.

Even at 86, Sertich can still be seen skating with the rhythm of the music played during the Monday Skaters' ice time.

"We try and get some music that has a tempo to it," Johnson said.

Kay Amundson, 65, a former professional skater, has been going to the Monday Skaters for around 10 years.

"I think it's wonderful," Amundson said, who was also in the Ice Follies. "It's a real good opportunity for seniors. We have a lot of people that love skating."

Johnson is one of those people. She recently had surgery on her hip, but that hasn't kept her spirits down.

When asked if it bothers her not to be out there skating, she answered with an emphatic "Yes!"

News to use

The Monday Skaters meet every Monday from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the DECC Arena. The cost is $3 per session and parking passes for the whole season can be purchased for $4. There will be no skating Dec. 24, 31, Jan. 21 or Feb. 11 or 18. For more, call 724-2285.