Running the rink

Susie MacGregor is the consummate den mother.

What else would you call a woman who oversees nearly 900 kids on a

weekly basis?

That “den” is Coast 2 Coast Inline Hockey Center in Huntington Beach,

where MacGregor serves as operations administrator. In essence, she

commands the front desk where just about everything that happens in the

center -- save for the action on the rinks -- involves

MacGregor.MacGregor takes registration, compiles all statistics and

schedules on the center’s voice mail and Web site and handles all other

pertinent information for the four seasons of play.

On average, 900 kids and close to 1,000 adults sign up and play roller

hockey at the center.

“The numbers vary each season, but that’s what we have lined up this

season,” MacGregor said of the center’s participating roller hockey

enthusiasts. “It’s a very busy place to work, so I’m never bored.”

MacGregor has been with Coast 2 Coast since it opened its doors in

February of 1997 and has had two of her own children Michael, now 18 and

Andrea, 15, play there. In fact, she likens the center to a

family-oriented business, owned and operated by Ken and Naomi Gibo.

“I enjoy the people that I get to meet here,” she said. “There are

some really nice people and families from this community who come through

these doors. It’s a fun environment because the kids are here to have fun

and play a game that they love.”

And play they do.

Coast 2 Coast, a clean, well-run facility stocked with a friendly,

knowledgeable staff, is home to 14 divisions of play for the nearly 900

children: eight recreation divisions include Smythe, Adams, Campbell,

Norris, Howe, Wales, Patrick and Lemieux, and the six club divisions are

Bantam, Atom, Mite, Squirt, Pee Wee and, a recent addition, Middle

School.

For the large adult clientele, there are 10 coed and four women’s

divisions.

“The people who use Coast 2 Coast are very considerate of our

facility,” MacGregor said. “We really have a lot to offer here. There are

divisions for kids just starting out, all the way up to those divisions

for the more seasoned players.

“I’d have to say that if there’s one stressful part of the job, it’s

the beginning of the season. We tend to have a lot of first-time players

who are new to the program, so they need to be shown just about

everything.”

Coast 2 Coast’s new season begins Sept. 17.

MacGregor, who says she has never really been much of a sports fan,

sings with her church’s band on the side. She said that the family

atmosphere at Coast 2 Coast is what makes her work enjoyable.

“I get to see a lot of these kids grow up,” she added. “A lot of them

come here at a young age and I get to watch them move up in the ranks.

That’s a big perk of this job -- that, and the fact that I get to wear

casual clothes.”