Peter Simkin works in an environment prone to some very unpleasant odours.
The retired ambulance paramedic operates the public skate rentals and sharpening services at Oceanside Place in Parksville. His work area is fairly small, so there's no escaping the smell of more than 500 skates stacked and shelved all around. They can challenge anyone's olfactory senses.
Simkin has been at doing this job for 20 years. He has endured the stench that comes with the job throughout the years and says with a laugh he stayed on because his sense of smell has become somewhat immune to the odours.
"I think immunity has a bit to do with it," said Simkin said with a smile. "You sort of put up with it. We have a bottle of disinfectant. It helps a little."
Simkin said he is not one to hold back when he encounters a bad-smelling situation. He tries to be honest about it but does it in a most diplomatic way.
"I give people heck." said Simkin. "Some of these are horrendous and there are people, I tell them, 'do not bring your skates back because they smell so bad.' You have to sort of be politically correct. I tell them, 'you know why your skates smell so bad, it's bacteria. I think you have foot problems.' I think you can say anything to anyone if you say it in the right tone and in the right manner. It's part of the game."
Simkin added he tells people to change the insoles of their skates every year and air them out. He also advised skate manufacturers when they sell a pair of skates they should include an extra pair of insoles.
Simkin detailed how he started sharpening skates and why he's stayed with it for so long.
"When I retired as an ambulance paramedic after 30 years here in British Columbia, I got involved with a local hockey team and that led to skate sharpening," said Simkin, who ended up learning about the trade on his own. "It's one of those things, there's no Skate Sharpening 101 anywhere. They don't talk a lot about it on YouTube or online. I used to have a sawmill business so I sort of understood the concept of sharpening things. So I took that idea. It's more self-taught than anything. So I figured it out."
Simkin then has become more knowledgeable with skate sharpening and has been the go-to-guy for many hockey players in District 69 as well as figure skaters in the region. He said having the right edge can help athletes excel.
"I get a lot of people thinking they want very little edge because it makes them go faster," said Simkin. "They don't realize that they're also losing control. So, it's a balance thing. From kids learning to skate to adults. If you're talking hockey. It's huge. No matter how good a shooter you are or how smart you are at hockey, unless you're quick in your skates, like Connor McDavid. He is Connor McDavid because he can skate so well. The number one thing in hockey is being a good skater. In figure skating, it's everything."
Simkin also added acquiring the best skates is also important.
"I tell people to buy the best skates you can afford," said Simkin. "There are lots of advantages to a better pair of skates. Better steel in the blade, better comfort in the boots, better stability and they're constructed under stricter guidelines."
The public skating season in Parksville Qualicum Beach has just started and Simkin has the task of keeping the rental skates sharpened as well as refreshed for the next user.
"There's 40 or 50 pairs of skates every week that need sharpening," said Simkin, who added he has hired staff to help him out to limit the amount of time he works at the shop.
"I try to keep 12 to 15 hours a week, that's all I want. That's enough. After that the smells gets too much," he said with a chuckle.
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