One of the coolest places in the region on Sunday was an ice skating rink in Maryland

The day before, when D.C. reached 100 degrees for the first time in nearly eight years, the family had spent most of the day swimming in pools or running through the sprinkler, said mom Kathy Cole. But she said they didn’t want to spend another day outside in the sweltering heat – plus a number of outdoor activities in the area were closed.

The National Weather Service issued a heat advisory for the Washington region for the second day in a row on Sunday, citing an expected heat index of up to 107 degrees. Parks and museums took precautions to protect visitors, with the National Gallery of Art posting on X that the Sculpture Garden would close early. Montgomery Parks closed some outdoor activities such as boating, archery lessons and the driving range, according to a news release, while Fairfax County Public Schools canceled all outdoor activities such as team practices.

The Cole family was inspired after watching “Inside Out 2,” the new Disney and Pixar film about a young hockey player. The film sparked Zofia and DJ’s interest in skating, a cool activity that both parents could get behind.

“We thought: you know what? It’s a way to stay cool; let’s put on our winter gear and try it out,” Kathy said.

The Cole family had never visited the Wheaton Ice Arena until the sweltering heat led them to look for new ways to stay cool.

“We live close to here and have passed here for so long; we’ve just never been in there,” Cole said. “We like to continually introduce the kids to new adventures, so since ‘Inside Out (2)’ was so hot, we thought this would be a lot of fun.”

For other skaters, the ice rink has offered a refuge from the heat for years. Brian Jarvis, 57, and his 9-year-old step-granddaughter, Elodie Howerton, went ice skating together for the first time last July. Jarvis, who said he skates several times a day in northern Canada, started teaching Elodie to skate as a way to spend time together. She quickly fell in love with the sport and now takes lessons at the ice rink.

“It’s something we can do together,” Jarvis said. “In the summer, when it’s so hot outside, we get this wonderfully large meat locker and it’s wonderful.”

Elodie celebrated her ninth birthday last week with a party at the Wheaton Ice Arena, where she introduced her friends to her favorite way to stay cool. She said she was surprised that only about 30 people attended the public skate Sunday, which rink officials said was one of the biggest turnouts of the summer so far.

“We wonder why there aren’t more people there because it’s so hot outside,” Elodie said.

Wheaton Ice Arena employee Andrew Cudd said the average winter crowd of at least 100 people per public skating session drops significantly in the summer. Elodie said summer is her favorite time of year to skate.

“I like skating in the summer because I don’t walk in already freezing and get even more cold,” Elodie said. “When it’s warm, you just feel that subtle breeze when you open the door and it goes, ‘Ahhh.'”

However, the cool atmosphere she described becomes difficult to maintain as temperatures rise, Cudd said.

“Because it’s so hot outside, it puts a lot more strain on the system,” says Cudd. “In a very short time, the ice temperature will rise significantly, and it will take much longer for that temperature to drop again.”

Last week, during a kids’ skating camp, Cudd was driving the ice mop when he noticed water collecting on the ice. The rink’s two compressors responsible for keeping the rink ice cold broke down after attempts to maintain temperatures in the mid-20s proved to be too much.

“Even the ice starts to sweat,” Cudd said.

The compressors are now operational, Cudd said. While many may associate skating with winter, Cudd says indoor rinks like Wheaton Ice Arena feel the same whether it’s snowing outside or approaching 100 degrees.

“The ice should always be the same temperature: 27 or 26 degrees,” Cudd said. “Skating feels the same all year round.”