Inexperienced skaters and children under 10 have been told by the city to wear helmets in indoor rinks.
While Sidney Crosby and Chris Pronger add to the NHL concussion list and skater safety falls into spotlight, parents may be relieved to know the City of Ottawa has a new program to keep young skaters safe this year.
As of Jan.1, children under the age of 10 and “inexperienced skaters” are being required to wear helmets during public skating sessions in indoor rinks, said Bay Ward Coun. Mark Taylor, chair of the city’s community protective services.
“Obviously, this is the time of year when people are (skating) recreationally,” Taylor says. “This was a perfect time to introduce the policy.”
According to Taylor, the initiative began last year, when the department of public health worked closely with the department of parks and recreation to identify most residents’ injuries
There are an estimated 5,700 children with head injuries per year, Taylor says, with 400 of those hospitalized.
It would be terrific if the policy was mandatory for everyone, but the departments wanted to introduce a “minimally oppressive” program, Taylor explained.
“We don’t want to keep people away from a healthy and active lifestyle,” he says. “We’re just starting with the kids…targeting the group that is most susceptible to being injured.”
The policy requires young children and those who appear to be less confident in their skating abilities to wear helmets. Otherwise, they will not be permitted on the ice and their admission charge will be refunded.
The city will also be providing coupons at all city rinks, Taylor says, to be redeemed at Play It Again Sports for a helmet approved by the Canadian Standards Association at a lower price.
Jamie Wilson, Play It Again Sports store manager, says the traffic in helmets sales has definitely increased this month, in both children and adult sizes
“When it comes to safety, people seem to be going along with [the rules] without too much fuss,” he says. “There’s just such buzz about safety in sports now, from football to hockey.”
However, the new helmet policy applies only to indoor City of Ottawa rinks, not to outdoor skating rinks or public skating along the Rideau Canal, which is outside city jurisdiction, Taylor says.
“That begs the question: Is this really about population safety, or is the City worried about liability?” Wilson asked.
Taylor says the policy does not affect outdoor skating rinks because they are mainly unsupervised.
“We wouldn’t have staff to make sure people adhere to the policy. I’m not a fan of unenforceable policies.”
He also doesn’t anticipate the policy will change to enforce that all skaters require helmets.
“I wouldn’t encourage it, actually,” he says. “I’m hoping it’ll just become public behaviour and rather than bringing in all these policies, we can coach the children about their responsibilities.”
Brendan Connor, frequent skater at McNabb Arena, says the policy seems reasonable, but lacks proper guidelines and has loopholes.
Having skated for more than 18 years, Connor says he was in control by the age of seven. During public skating sessions he wouldn’t need a helmet.
“What is deemed as inexperienced?” Connor asks. “You can have someone who says they’ve skated for two years, but still are awful on the ice.”
Taylor agreed the use of age as the divide was tricky, but the added stipulation that anyone unsure on skates wears a helmet makes this new policy very reasonable.
“Honestly, I’d encourage that everyone should voluntarily get a helmet, even those who don’t play hockey.”
For the initiative, it was ultimately important to begin with the kids, he explained. By encouraging a safe, active lifestyle early, they’ll carry the idea of wearing a helmet into adulthood.