Philadelphians enjoy spring-like Sunday

CENTER CITY (WPVI) -- Rotham Ice Rink employees took advantage of the empty ice just before opening on the last day of the season, saying goodbye to skating and hello to spring.

"We have to be out here wearing 15 jackets and three pairs of pants and we have to huddle for warmth," said Samantha Schleinkofer of Bensalem. "When it's nice out we can just go out and have fun."

Soon the rink in Dilworth Park was packed with skaters, more of them wearing sunglasses than heavy coats.

"I thought it was going to be really cold, but it's gorgeous. I had to shed my huge North Face for this," said Sonia Moreira of New York City.

"When I got on the ice I started to fall, and then I started to get the hang of it when someone helped me," said Taylor Williams of West Philadelphia.

Officials say on the last day of the season with this beautiful weather, they're hoping 600-700 skaters will come out to enjoy the rink. The general manager says this season business has been up 20 percent over last year.

"Valentine's Day we still had 240 people come out and it was 15 degrees. It was freezing," said Jeff Temple, Rothman Ice Rink General Manager. "Obviously a day like today it's just the opposite. People will come out just to be in the sun and do something."

Along the Schuylkill River we found pooches enjoying a game of fetch, a couple of anglers who dusted off the tackle box and, of course, runners.

"This is pretty ideal. No one likes to run in the cold or the heat, so this is great," said Emily Barton, Philadelphia University student.

On Kelly Drive, the Northeast Road Runners Club held its annual Winter 10K, a decades-old tradition.

"We've had ice, we've shortened the course a couple of times," said Tom Lyons of the Northeast Road Runners Club.

But not this year.

Runners we spoke with called the chilly, sunny weather ideal for racing.

"This is the beginning of the racing season. This is a chance for runners to check and see how well their winter training has been going," said Lyons.

Of course we managed to find at least one visitor who wouldn't mind if it was a smidge warmer.

"It's cold for us. Because in Mexico it's a lot warmer than this. But it's good," said Lissette Flores of Puebla, Mexico.