Cosplay Ice Skating 2012 took place in downtown Boston at the Frog Pond in the Boston Common on December 15, 2012. This cosplay meet up was organized via Facebook. Not only this event drew people in Boston proper, but there were a handful of out of towners who showed up for the ice skating event. I first heard of this event in 2008 when plans for “Valenti: East” were being developed via Cosplay.com. Communicating and advertising meet ups have certainly changed over the past few years. However, I did not attend the 2008 gathering because I ended up going to New York that weekend.

Frog Pond is a popular destination for tourists and locals. It’s right in the oldest park in the country and it is very easy to get to. Over 400 cosplayers RSVP’ed for the event. Though there was no official headcount, the presence of costumers was very much there. The event begun at 11AM. It was very easy to spot the Frog Pond – just follow the people in costume.

I test ran my new Yukiko (Persona 4) cosplay at the meet up. I did meet a few Persona cosplayers at this event. It was refreshing to meet people in the fandom. The majority of cosplayers were from Hetalia and Homestuck. However, it was also nice to see the first wave of Jack Frost cosplay and holiday variations of anime characters (ie: Sailor Moon, Persona, etc).

Ice skating cost about $15-ish. It depended on if you brought your own skates or wanted to rent a locker. I ended up renting a pair of skates. I was not a huge fan of the rental pair because it was too bulky and it was really hard to keep your balance on them. If you have a pair of skates, I highly recommend bringing them to Frog Pond. If you have to rent, go one size down.

Skating was a ton of fun. There were a ton of kids on the rink that zoomed in and out. While the cosplayers did not really take over the rink (Homestuckers were hanging out by the rink and some people wanted to chill on the grass), it was really nice to see characters on ice. Even one Sailor Moon cosplayer thought about doing Usagi’s skating outfit from season one.
I will also add that it was around 30 degrees at the ice skating meet up. It got cold really fast.

A friend and I decided to wander around the park. Cosplayers were singing carols at the top of the hill. A tour of high school students decided to join them for a Jingle Bell chorus. Hetalia cosplayers were hanging out at the gazebo for photoshoots. The nice thing about having a gathering at the Boston Commons is that there are plenty of restaurants for every budget.

We ended up going to Remington’s, a pub with decent food and the drinks are pretty strong.
Overall, it was a really fun gathering. I did not have many opportunities to ice skate, but this was really fun. It reminded me how much I enjoy ice skating. Thank you to everyone who organized. Thank you to Princess Becky and Abigail for the cupcake! Many thanks to friends - Ashley, Kai, PJ Usagi, Ashley Rose, and others.

Of course, the highlight of this gathering was when a little kid went up to cosplayers like he was in Disneyland. He was barking at Pikachu, Connors, and Jack Frost to attack his younger sister. “Hey Assassin’s Creed! I want you to kill my sister!”

Click Here to See Photos from Cosplay Ice Skating 2012

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