Zamboni: The Coolest Machines on Ice

by Eric Dregni

Until 1949, resurfacing an ice rink required a tractor-pulled shaver followed by three or four workers scooping away the shavings and then spraying and squeegeeing water. The process-including the refreezing-took more than an hour. That all changed when a tireless inventor by the name of Frank J. Zamboni, who also happened to own a 20,000-square-foot rink in Southern California, put his mind to creating a quality sheet of ice in a shorter time. The story of the machines he produced-now as beloved as ice skates and hockey pucks among winter sports enthusiasts-is fully told for the first time in this book, a fun-filled history of machine-age ingenuity and entrepreneurial spirit that forever changed the nature of sports on ice. Beginning with a prehistory of the machines, this fully illustrated book goes on to explore the early genesis of Zamboni ice-resurfacing machines, how a Zamboni works, tips from drivers, various models that have evolved through the years, colorful anecdotes from and about Zamboni drivers, and more. Entertaining sidebars examine such topics as Zamboni wipeouts, non-ice-resurfacing machines from the company, the Zamboni factories, Zamboni toys, and television ""roles."" Officially licensed, the book features a wealth of material from the Zamboni archives.

Genres: Hockey

128 pages, Hardcover

First published November 15, 2006

About the author

Eric Dregni has written nine books including Midwest Marvels, The Scooter Bible, Ads that Put America on Wheels, and Grazie a Dio non Sono Bolognese. As a 2004 Fulbright Fellow to the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, Eric researched Scandinavian culture and roots for a forthcoming book. His time is divided between Italy, Norway, and Minneapolis where he is the curator for El Dorado Conquistador Museum and guitarist for the mock-rock trio Vinnie & the Stardüsters.

Reviews

[ten thousand bees]

HELL FUCKING YEAH!!!! I LOVE HOCKEY!!!!!!!!(i got this for christmas)

[Claudia · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a lifelong skater, Zamboni ice resurfacers fascinate me. I have always wanted to drive one but have never had the opportunity.
I downloaded this as an ebook. Unfortunately, I don't think the book translated well to this format. The side bars and featured information seemed choppy and repetitive.
The book provided a very interesting, readable history of Zamboni, the company, and the machines. Great photos, useful appendices.

[Teebz Hbic · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review for Zamboni: The Coolest Machines on Ice can be found on Hockey Blog In Canada.

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ha! What's not to love. Everything you've ever wanted to know about a Zamboni but were afraid to ask... or didn't know whom to ask. 0-9 mph in just over 6 minutes! Studded tires, Peanuts cartoons and the connection with Charles Shultz, etc., etc.

"There are three things in life that people like to stare at: a flowing stream, a crackling fire, and a Zamboni clearing the ice," Charlie Brown famously pronounced." p.56.

Fun and quirky.