The Olympics proved that ice skating is about both beauty and brawn. While figure skater Johnny Weir fox-furred us into a frenzy, Team USA's Zach Parise clocked in a game-tying goal with seconds left in the third to turn a great gold-medal hockey game into a legendary one. In the Twin Cities, where ice is a birthright, the Lake of the Isles skating rink provides an opportunity to imitate either end of the ice-skating spectrum. On one section of the lake, burly hockey men play pickup games in whatever gear they pulled from the backseats of their trucks. Nearby, families and first dates make their way around a large oval. And in the center of it all, figure skaters twirl and launch double toe loops. Those without gear can pick through an ample amount of skates to rent for free in the seasonal trailer/warming house.