Re-opening rinks with social distancing

[sk8pics]

Well, I don’t get the texts, my husband, the sound sleeper, does, so I need to borrow his phone since he, er, doesn’t feel it’s necessary. Problem is? He deletes them first thing in the morning so I can’t mute the number. We don’t do do not disturb in case a call comes in from a parent with an emergency from a non standard number, but muting the text number would be a great solution. But since it only bothers me... lol

I think you can set a do not disturb and then allow certain calls to go through...

 

[Sarah]

I think you can set a do not disturb and then allow certain calls to go through...

You can. But knowing my in-laws, if there was an emergency, they’d call from a never before used number. My MIL tends to have a new cell number every month as she lets her pay as you go expire so... it’s one of those things. They’d find the last existing pay phone to call on rather than a cell in an emergency. It’s happened before. Or they’d borrow a phone. Bringing a cell phone (or charging it) requires planning.

 

[GarrAargHrumph]

One of my rinks is having a bit of a Covid breakout in figure skaters and coaches. I think I will avoid that rink for some time for now.

 

[spinZZ]

One of my rinks is having a bit of a ********* breakout in figure skaters and coaches. I think I will avoid that rink for some time for now.

Did anyone at the rink, or health dept contact tracers, reach out to you?

 

[bladesofgorey]

One of my rinks is having a bit of a ********* breakout in figure skaters and coaches. I think I will avoid that rink for some time for now.

Is it in NJ and if so could you share which one since we have a couple NJ people in this thread?

 

[GarrAargHrumph]

Is it in NJ and if so could you share which one since we have a couple NJ people in this thread?

Floyd Hall

 

[bladesofgorey]

That's awful. Since it's on a college campus I wonder if that had anything to do with it (we are getting huge outbreaks at most colleges in NJ, to the surprise of absolutely nobody).

 

[GarrAargHrumph]

The positivity rate at MSU is lower than that for the state of NJ as a whole.

 

[Willin]

My rink closed in February and still hasn't reopened. It's a huge bummer. I hadn't been skating too much before that, but now I'm having a huge itch for it and it's not available. Some rinks in LA have freestyle-only, though I won't try that since I'm not in that kind of shap. Crazy to think I might have been off the ice for a year+ before my rink reopens. It's owned by the city so I'm not optimistic that they'll open earlier for money reasons.

 

[Yazmeen]

My rink closed in February and still hasn't reopened. It's a huge bummer. I hadn't been skating too much before that, but now I'm having a huge itch for it and it's not available. Some rinks in LA have freestyle-only, though I won't try that since I'm not in that kind of shap. Crazy to think I might have been off the ice for a year+ before my rink reopens. It's owned by the city so I'm not optimistic that they'll open earlier for money reasons.

I hear you - my last skate was March 11th, and I'll be lucky if I'm back before next March 11th the way things are going.

 

[Debbie S]

If it helps at all, I was off the ice for 8 months (by choice) and then went to a skating fundraiser (for cancer org) that a local adult skater puts on annually (well, not this year ). I was worried, remembering how...uncoordinated...I was after 6 months off when I broke my leg. But this time, after a couple minutes, I was fine. I remembered how to stop - yay! - and could do crossovers and all the turns I knew how to do before. Just take it slowly at first, but you'll be fine.

 

[Yazmeen]

For folks in Southern NJ - The Mercer County Park seasonal rink is open, although not this weekend because of the holiday. This rink is essentially open on 2 sides, but roofed and has a warm room and cafe and locker rooms inside. There is Thursday freestyle from 3:30 to 6:00. Saturdays start at 7:30 AM before limited group lessons, and Sunday at 8:45 AM before the same. I'm still staying away with my age and higher health risk, but I wanted folks to know because this is a rink with a better airflow situation since it's not fully enclosed. That said, it can be colder, so dress appropriately, including masks.

 

[GarrAargHrumph]

Likewise, the rink at Bear Mountain in the Hudson Valley of NY is open. It's fully outdoors. There are no freestyle sessions, and weekend and school holiday public sessions can be busy, but weekday publics midday tend to be all right. For those who desperately want some ice. The real advantage - admission is $4, although it's I think $8 for parking if you don't have an Empire pass. There used to be a skating club here that offered freestyle/club ice on Saturday and Sunday mornings, but I'm not sure they still exist.

Similarly, the rink at the Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz is open. It's $$, and again, no freestyle ice. It's busy on school holidays and weekends, but otherwise tends to be pretty empty. You can go on as a day visitor, you don't have to stay at the resort to skate. It's open sides, with a roof.

 

[GarrAargHrumph]

The governor of NJ just announced a shut down of all indoor youth and adult sports from December 5 through January 2. Waiting to confirm, but I believe this will shut down NJ ice rinks during that time period.

 

[Yazmeen]

The governor of NJ just announced a shut down of all indoor youth and adult sports from December 5 through January 2. Waiting to confirm, but I believe this will shut down NJ ice rinks during that time period.

That will be interesting for Mercer - the rink is open on two sides, but the rest of the center is fully enclosed. Checking in with the skating staff about this.

 

[bladesofgorey]

As expected ProTec Ponds and Mennen in NJ will be stopping all programming until January 2. Not sure about other NJ rinks since they haven't updated their pages yet to take youth games off the schedule.

 

[spinZZ]

As expected ProTec Ponds and Mennen in NJ will be stopping all programming until January 2. Not sure about other NJ rinks since they haven't updated their pages yet to take youth games off the schedule.

Thanks for the update. Gov. Murphy's latest Executive Order 204 (11/30/2020) is now available online (https://nj.gov/infobank/eo/056murphy/). It's really vague. Earlier Executive Orders that led to rink closures and re-openings addressed specific businesses and facilities. This latest one addresses sports activities, and is silent on closing facilities per se:

1. Practices and competitions for organized, group, and/or
competitive sports defined as “Low Risk”, “Medium Risk”, and “High
Risk” by DOH’s “Guidance for Sports Activities” are prohibited in
indoor settings. Executive Order Nos. 168 and 187 (2020) are hereby
superseded to the extent inconsistent with this paragraph.

2. It is hereby restated that Executive Order No. 194 (2020)
prohibits facilities within the State from hosting indoor youth sports
competitions between two or more out-of-state teams, regardless of
whether a New Jersey team is participating in the competition.

3. Paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Order shall not apply to
collegiate and professional sports activities, which are permitted
to continue operations subject to compliance with all applicable
laws, regulations, and Executive Orders, including restrictions on
recreational and entertainment businesses in Paragraph 7 of Executive
Order No. 157 (2020) and restrictions on gatherings in place at the
time the sporting activities occur.

ETA: A local reporter asked Gov. Murphy for clarification. He said that individual training would still be allowed. The example he gave was that an individual practicing in a batting cage would be OK. But as we discussed above, perhaps it's not financially viable for rinks to stay open for limited activities.

 

[Yazmeen]

From what I've been told, the Mercer rink will be allowed to stay open but no more than 25 skaters/personnel on the ice (it's considered an outdoor venue).

 

[overedge]

An adult hockey team in my province thought it was a good idea to go and play some games in another province. Today the provincial health officer said that "dozens of people" in their home community have been infected as a result Also, there might be more restrictions put in place on "adult indoor team sports".

 

[Yazmeen]

An adult hockey team in my province thought it was a good idea to go and play some games in another province. Today the provincial health officer said that "dozens of people" in their home community have been infected as a result Also, there might be more restrictions put in place on "adult indoor team sports".

I am beginning to LOATHE adult hockey players - they are causing so many of the problems and spread of cases around here, too.

 

[bladesofgorey]

Yup. My husband has played Adult hockey forever and he hasn't played or even practiced since this all started because he doesn't trust his fellow players to use or follow even the most basic safety guidelines. Parents too are the worst. I showed up early for a 10:00 am skate on Thanksgiving and there were 12 youth hockey parents huddled tightly together maskless in a light rain drinking beer in the parking lot when I pulled in. And yeah this was at a rink that's now suspending all programs.

 

[Yazmeen]

Yup. My husband has played Adult hockey forever and he hasn't played or even practiced since this all started because he doesn't trust his fellow players to use or follow even the most basic safety guidelines. Parents too are the worst. I showed up early for a 10:00 am skate on Thanksgiving and there were 12 youth hockey parents huddled tightly together maskless in a light rain drinking beer in the parking lot when I pulled in. And yeah this was at a rink that's now suspending all programs.

MOTHER OF GOD.

How effing clueless can people be????????

 

[GarrAargHrumph]

I thought the most recent executive order in NJ shut down all indoor youth and adult sports. But it looks like freestyle sessions and lessons are continuing? How is that possible? Does the exec order allow for individual practices in indoor spaces?

 

[Debbie S]

I thought the most recent executive order in NJ shut down all indoor youth and adult sports. But it looks like freestyle sessions and lessons are continuing? How is that possible? Does the exec order allow for individual practices in indoor spaces?

Does the order specifically say "team sports" or "games/competitions"? Figure skating could be excepted since it is individual/non-contact and only practice.

 

[GarrAargHrumph]

It looks like they're using the "private lessons" exemption listed here.

 

[jeffisjeff]

I showed up early for a 10:00 am skate on Thanksgiving and there were 12 youth hockey parents huddled tightly together maskless in a light rain drinking beer in the parking lot when I pulled in.

Sounds like the softball moms for my daughter's team. Except they drink mimosas, not beer.

 

[spinZZ]

Does the order specifically say "team sports" or "games/competitions"? Figure skating could be excepted since it is individual/non-contact and only practice.

I posted the specific wording of Gov. Murphy's Executive Order in my Post #617 above.

 

[overedge]

Our provincial health officer just banned indoor sports, fitness, and dance classes for adults. I'm not sure how this will affect skating, because many clubs around here have joint adult-teen sessions. And frankly the people at our sessions who pay the least amount of attention to the guidelines are the teens' parents....

 

[spinZZ]

Our provincial health officer just banned indoor sports, fitness, and dance classes for adults. I'm not sure how this will affect skating, because many clubs around here have joint adult-teen sessions. And frankly the people at our sessions who pay the least amount of attention to the guidelines are the teens' parents....

Just to clarify: Such activities are banned for adults, but not for teens and younger kids?

 

[made_in_canada]

Just to clarify: Such activities are banned for adults, but not for teens and younger kids?

Yes. Adult team sports aren’t allowed right now. Kids/teens can practice but no games right now I think. Adult activities have been more of a problem as far as transmission here. Adult skating is allowed though! I just registered and start tomorrow.