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Frank Zamboni, whose claim to fame was creating the machine that resurfaces ice for skating and hockey rinks, is being honored by Google with a Doodle game that allows you to drive a Zamboni machine.
Zamboni, who died in 1988, would have been 112 today. His inspiration to build a resurfacing machine spawned from the family business. Zamboni and a brother owned electrical supply and ice-making businesses before turning their attention to operating an ice rink in Paramount.
Zamboni received a patent in 1953 for his machine, which today resurfaces the ice in a rink in a few minutes. Before the Zamboni machine, it would take a crew more than an hour to patch up and smooth the ice.
GALLERY: Google Doodles of 2012
The premise of the Google Doodle game is simple. You steer the Zamboni machine over the ice to remove the scrapings and skate marks. If you're good enough, you earn credits for gas and keep advancing levels.
It even comes with old-school sounds for those not in an office setting.
The Zamboni company continues to produce the machines to this day. The company, which is owned and operated by Zamboni's son and grandson, delivered its 10,000th machine to the Montreal Canadiens last spring.
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