Carvers coax art from a block of ice

The scream of chainsaws and power drills echoed through the streets of Manayunk on Saturday afternoon for the second annual Manayunk on Ice Festival. Some of the competition's best ice carvers entertained the crowds with their precision cuts and detailed displays.

Main Street was lined with the tents of 15 participants who came from across the region and as far away as Pittsburgh, Long Island, and Chicago to compete for a $2,000 first-place prize.

Competitors were graded on a long list of categories from technical skill and finished appearance to first impression and attention to detail. In the end, judges from the National Ice Carving Association decided Dan Rebholz of Chicago deserved the top spot for his Cupid-themed carving, "Caught in the Crossfire."

Jane Lipton, executive director of the Manayunk Development Corp., estimated 750 people attended Friday night's bonfire, part of the weekend's opening ceremonies. The number was a threefold improvement over the event's debut last year; Saturday's competition drew an improved crowd as well.

"The coolest thing about this is that it doesn't matter if you're 3 and it doesn't matter if you're 80," said Lipton. "You're going to see all different kinds and shapes and ages of people."

Virginia Vivino of Bryn Mawr attended the event for the first time this year and was amazed at the sculptures and sculptors alike. "There's so many local artists," she said. "I didn't even realize they did this."

Richard Bubin of Pittsburgh has been carving ice for 30 years. His passion has taken him around the world.

"I was team captain for the U.S. Olympic Ice Carving team in Salt Lake City in 2002," he said.

Bubin and other competitors help boost business in Manayunk. Friday night's event drew a crowd big enough to cause a 31/2-hour wait at Cooper's, a restaurant in the heart of the community.

The weekend could bring in about $300,000 to $500,000 to the district, Lipton said. The grand prize helps to draw the ice sculptors to the competition, but she says it's not all about the money.

"Ice men love to cut ice," she said. "These guys love to do this. They live for this."

The Master Ice Sculptor Exhibition is to resume at noon Sunday and includes seven competitors vying for the public's vote rather than the judge's.