Rideau Canal Skateway Made A Rap About Whether The Ice Is Ready & It's Hilariously Cringey

Now that winter is in full swing, many Ottawans have been asking the same question: “When will the Rideau Canal Skateway reopen?” In previous years, the world-renowned outdoor rink has been fully operational by January, leading locals to wonder what has gone wrong in 2020? Now, staff behind the frozen waterway have created a rap to explain what’s happening, and it’s so bad that it's brilliant!

Ottawa’s Rideau Canal Skateway is the world's largest outdoor ice rink, and this year it should be celebrating its 50th anniversary.

Usually, locals can start skating on the historic site from early January and can keep gliding into late February or early March. 

Sadly, however, the canal has been out-of-operation so far in 2020, thanks to unusually mild winter temperatures in the capital city.

Locals and tourists alike have been left disappointed by the lack of frozen surface in Ottawa so far this year, so staff at the National Capital Commission (NCC) have made a hilariously cheesy rap to explain exactly what is going on.

The video, which was originally posted on the NCC Twitter account, opens with the commission's CEO, rapping to the tune of Vanilla Ice's "Ice Ice Baby."

He explains, "Stop. Collaborate and Listen. The ice is back but it's not in position..."

The video goes on to explain that while staff are trying to flood the surface, there must be at least 30 centimetres (12 inches) of ice thickness before it is safe for skaters.

Meanwhile, fellow staff members chant, “ice, ice, maybe ... ” in the background.

The hilarious clip goes on to say that staff "don't know" when the ice will be operational, explaining, "To the extremes, we've got no consistent range ... it's why we've got to fight this climate change!"

Switching to French, staff then go on to rap that there's plenty of other local places to visit safely, including, "SJAM, Greenbelt and Gatineau Park."

The clip concludes by saying, "Thank you for your patience. The NCC will launch the skating season as soon as the ice conditions are safe!"

Within an hour of the clip being posted on Twitter, it had already received more than 160 likes and more than 70 shares, suggesting their message is coming across loud and clear to Ottawans.

While locals will have to wait a little longer until they can get out on their beloved canal again, at least this silly video might just cheer them up!

You can keep up-to-date with the operation status of the world's biggest skateway by clicking here.