Family-owned business on a roll for 50 years
Durnye family opened rink in 1958 in South Amboy
BY JACQUELINE DURETT Correspondent

PHOTOS BY CHRIS KELLY staff Clockwise from top left: Michael and Sarah Durnye of Connecticut look through photo albums at the South Amboy Arena Monday night, when the family celebrated the rink's 50th anniversary. Colleen, Craig and Zack Chrobocinski holds hands while making their way around the rink. Original rink owner John Durnye, 83, speaks with visitors to the celebration.

SOUTH AMBOY — Jean Durnye may owe her very existence to roller-skating.

"My parents met roller-skating in Perth Amboy," said Durnye, who is now the general manager of the South Amboy Arena roller-skating rink. "My father would save his pennies and nickels to go skating."

The Perth Amboy rink closed in 1949, Durnye said, a year after her parents wed. In 1958, Durnye's father, John, and his father in-law, William Fisler, decided to build a rink just like the Perth Amboy one that held so many happy memories for the family. The South Amboy Arena now stands at North Stevens Avenue and Sixth Street.

"I remember being 3 years old, skating around with the rink half done," said Jean Durnye, now 53. But the rink would be something more than a place to work and hang out for her and her siblings. Jean, her sister, Veronica, and brother, Michael, all went on to extensive skating careers. Michael, who was a speed skater, even went on to coach others in the sport, while the girls both competed in figure and freestyle skating. "I, Jeannie, was even crowned New Jersey Skate Queen in 1972," Durnye wrote in a history of the rink, posted on the South Amboy Arena's Web site.

And on Monday night, the Durnyes and skaters alike traded stories during a 50th anniversary celebration at the rink. Those memories include everything from birthday parties to national competitions.

"We had the last of the championships held in a roller rink," Durnye said of the 1971 national competition. "After that, they went to coliseums."

Durnye has worked hard to celebrate the rink's presence in the city. A 40th anniversary celebration 10 years ago was an invitation only event. This year's event, however, was open to the public, and attendees were welcome to refreshments and reminiscing. Durnye even created collages of the past 50 years to illustrate for attendees the evolution of the rink, which now includes a miniature bowling section.

The evening also featured some special guests. Durnye in advance of the celebration, reached out to members of the skating community past and present to mark the occasion, including the Jersey Shore Roller Girls, a roller derby team that practices at the Jackson Skating Center in Jackson, and the National Museum of Roller Skating in Lincoln, Neb.

"We have donated to them in the past," Durnye said of the museum. The Roller Girls and others gave exhibition performances at the anniversary celebration, and the museum had an information table set up.

The night also featured music that spanned the decades and a large screen TV that played muted clips from the roller-skating flick "Roll Bounce." Good music is es- sential to the skating experience, Durnye said, adding that tracks like Shakira's "Hips Don't Lie" always gets skaters on the floor.

CHRIS KELLY staff Nicholas DeCarlo, 9, of South Amboy, tries some fancy skating Monday night.

Durnye said she strives to keep the rink a family-friendly place, which can be a challenge at a hangout popular with teens.

"It's hard to draw the line, but we like to keep it fun," she said.

The rink, Durnye said, has been an institution for children, teens and adults throughout the area, drawing local skaters as well as those from neighboring towns such as Sayreville, South River, Aberdeen and even Staten Island.

"They come from all over," Durnye said. And in South Amboy, the rink has a strong relationship with the city's schools, including Durnye's alma mater St. Mary's, and is frequently a venue for special events.

However, the Durnyes' passion for skating extends throughout the region, as the family, under the Rollermagic name, owns the Jackson Skating Center in Ocean County as well as two rinks in New York and one in Connecticut.

To learn more about the South Amboy Arena or any of the Rollermagic rinks, visit www.sk8rollermagic.com.