Rink Rules, a Different Take

[Skatervideoguy]

Hi All,

Here's another part of a Section of my Rink Manual. This is about Rink Rules.

My experience suggests that positve language works better than the usual "Thou Shalt Nots", and "You'd Better or else", type of Rule giving.

Here are my Recommendations on how Rink Rules might be better stated, for better understanding and compliance.

All Rink Rules must be posted, both outside and inside the Rink, in conspicuous places, and in large enough Print to be easily read.

Your's for the taking. Challenges and comments welcome.


Rink Safety Rules - Please Read Carefully:

This Rink promotes positive behavior and family enjoyment, our Rink Rules are for everyone's safety - this means You!

Your violation of these Rules, can result in injuries to yourself and/or others.

This Rink uses Video Surveillance both inside and outside the Building for everyone's Safety.

No Tobacco, Alcohol, or Gum may be used inside this Rink.

1) Do - Obey all warnings & directions given by the DJ, Floor Guards, and Management;

2) Do - Skate carefully, and stay in control of your speed and direction;

3) Do - Watch out for other Skaters, to avoid colliding, and keep moving along the Skate Floor Edge;

4) Do - Watch out for objects on the Skate Floor, to avoid tripping or falling;

5) Do - Wear your socks when wearing Rental Skates;

5) Do - Keep all Hats, Electronic Devices, Combs, and any other loose objects - OFF the Skate Floor;

6) Do - Always Skate the direction of normal Skating Traffic, and outside of the Center Oval;

7) Do – Keep all Freestyle, Jamming, Rexing, & Figure Skating within the Center Oval;

8) Do - Keep all Food and Drinks within the Concession Area;

9) Do Not - Trip, Push, Shove, Play Tag, Race, Chase, Cut in and out sharply (cut off) close around other Skaters, or Fight other Skaters;

10) Do Not - Carry small children Anywhere in Rink while wearing Skates;

11) Do Not - Cut through the Center Oval, or just simply stand around in the Oval;

12) Do Not - Flash Gang Signs, Wear Recognized Gang Colors or Apparel, (Do Rags, Low Riding Pants, Etc.)


Sanctions, including expulsion from this Rink, can result from your non-compliance.


If your Rink has any Short Walls along any Skate Floor edges, then add the Rule – "Do Not sit on the Walls around the Skate Floor".


The Rink's Safety Rules must be read over the Sound system towards the start of each session (say 10 mins in), and sometimes toward the middle of a Session also. This is best done by Recording, for consistency of message.


General Rink Rules - Please Read Carefully:


1) Be courteous to other Patrons and the Rink Staff.

2) This Rink does not allow “In and Out” privileges.

3) Report any problems and Accidents to a Floor Guard, a DJ, or the Rink Management;

4) Those appearing to be Drug/Alcohol impaired will not be admitted into this Rink.

5) We reserve the right to refuse admission to anyone not meeting standards of good taste in Dress or Behavior.

6) Please tuck your skate shoe laces inside your Rental Skates, and return them to the Skate Counter when you've finished using them.

7) For your Security, please use the Lockers provided for your valuables, this Rink accepts no responsibility for your possessions that may lost or stolen.

8) We reserve the right to expel any person not following the Rules and Polices of this Rink.

9) Gang related activities will not be tolerated in this Rink, or on Rink property.



If you have a significant population of Spanish Speaking patrons – who are not bilingual, then it is beneficial for everyone, to have all the Rink's Rules also posted in Spanish. (This could also apply to other non-English Speaking Language populations of significant numbers) This also applies to reading the Rink Safety Rules over the Sound system, if you have either a Staff person or a Volunteer who speaks Spanish. (or whatever Language is needed)



Harold

[MANY_SkatingDave]

Hi Harold,

A Very Nice list and it seems properly organized with
DO's at the Top
Don't at the Bottom

I would probably add something between 1 and 2 so that people would talk to the Skate Guards or Managment when concerns occur.

2>DO - Talk to the Management, etc

Hey Harold I break "12 - DO NOT" all the time, yet I haven't had ANY complaints and have had some little kids and their parents get excited. Of course it might work since I am older and slower.

In thinking about all those signs from Wayne, IN I wonder how we could incorporate your ideas with those old stodgy signs.

AnyWay SkateVideo Guy, Thanks for Posting your Work.

Yours in Skating, MA/NY Skating Dave

[diagetus]

Those are all good rules. Well, the no in/out rule I have mixed feelings about. Some of the rinks do stamps, bracelets, and receipts. No stamp- no Entry. All these are fine with me. Of course this can be abused, but limits can be placed on the exits. Some of the rinks add an age limit to that rule, which seems a better fit to me. The main motivation for no in/out appears to be preventing children from wandering outside the rink and getting into trouble.

Unfortunately, many of the rules listed in the post are broken. Rules 3, 10, and 14 come to mind immediately. Many times the DJ's wash their hands of collisions by saying "Slower skaters to the inside, faster skaters to the outside." - a rule I have never completely reconciled with. This really leaves a lot of the responsibility on the skate guard. If the skate guards are good, they really make a session run smoothly.

One rule that I think rinks should add is: "Try to prevent excess body perspiration from falling on the floor in order to avoid slick spots that endanger others". I don't know how many times I've seen multiple falls in one spot due to sweat. It can also lead to pile ups because people keep falling.

[Cruze]

Originally Posted by Skatervideoguy

Hi All,

Here's another part of a Section of my Rink Manual. This is about Rink Rules.
My experience suggests that positve language works better than the usual "Thou Shalt Nots", and "You'd Better or else", type of Rule giving.

So here's my take on how Rink Rules might be better stated, for better understanding and compliance.

Your's for the taking. Challenges and comments welcome. Harold

Rink Safety Rules - Please Read Carefully:

This Rink promotes positive behavior and family enjoyment.

Rink Rules are for everyone's safety - this means You! Your violation of these Rules, can result in injuries to yourself or others, and Sanctions, including expulsion, can result.


1) Do - Obey all warnings & directions given by a DJ, Floor Guards, and Management;

2) Do - Wear your socks when wearing Rental Skates;

3) Do - Skate slowly, carefully, and keep in control of your speed and direction;

4) Do - Watch out for other Skaters, to avoid colliding,

5) Do - Watch out for objects on the Skate Floor, to avoid tripping;

6) Do - Keep all hats, Cell Phones, PDA's, combs, and other loose objects off the Floor;

7) Do - Skate outside of the Floor Center Oval, and keep moving along the Skate Floor;

8) Do - Skate all Freestyle, Jamming, Rexing, & Figure Skating within the Center Oval;

9) Do - Keep all food and drink within the Concession Area;

10) Do Not - Fight, Trip, Push, Shove, Play Tag, Race, Chase, or Cut Off other Skaters;

11) Do Not - Cut through the Center Oval, or just simply stand around in the Oval;

12) Do Not - Cut in and out sharply around other Skaters;

13) Do Not - Skate against the direction of normal Skating Traffic;

14) Do Not - Smoke, Use Alcohol, Chew gum or tobacco inside the Rink;

15) Do Not - Carry small children on the Skate Floor; or while wearing Skates;

16) Do Not - Flash Gang Signs, Wear Recognized Gang Colors or Apparel, (Do Rags, Low Riding Pants, Etc.)

General Rink Rules - Please Read Carefully:

1) Be courteous to other Patrons and Rink Staff, treat them like you want to be treated.

2) Inconsiderate behavior will not be tolerated towards other Patrons or Rink Staff.

3) Report problems and Accidents to a Floor Guard, a DJ, or Rink Management;

4) No one that appears to be Drug/Alcohol impaired will be admitted to this Rink, and will be required to leave Rink property.

5) This Rink does not allow “In and Out” privileges.

6) For your Security, please use the Lockers provided for your valuables, this Rink accepts no responsibility for your lost or stolen items.

7) Please tuck your skate shoe laces inside your Rental Skates, and return them to the Skate Counter when you've finished using them.

8) We reserve the right to refuse admission to anyone not meeting standards of good taste.

9) We reserve the right to expel any person not following the Rules and polices of this Rink.

10) Gang related activities will not be tolerated in this Rink, or on Rink property.

Nice Rules SVG, I was wondering if you had a rules/guide for your skate guards to follow as well?

[Elysarian]

I've thought of one additional rule that I'd consider important:

"No outdoor shoes on the skate floor"

If I think of anythin else I'll post again

[Skatervideoguy]

Hi All,

Thanks for all your Comments.

I forgot to say anything specific about Posting the Rules.

I believe that they need to Posted on nice "large printed", easy to read Posters X2 on the outside of the Rink - close to the Entrance, then X1 in the Lobby, and then X2 inside the Rink in places most likely to be seen.

Then, as proffered in my post about "Skate Session Programing", the Rules should be read over by the Sound Booth Opperator - towards the start of a session, and again at mid-session to capture the folks coming in later.

diagetus, good points made on the "no in/out rule", and I've seen those too - and are part of my full section on the Rules issue.
Aside from the "children wandering" issue you mention, concerns over young adults going & returning also had to do with Drugs and Weapons being retrieved.
The issues about Rules 3,10, & 14, are Safety concerns that Rink Staff ignore at everone's peril. It means that both the DJ and Floor Guards are failing to exersize their Responsibilities (not doing their J-O-B).

Ron, Yes, I have a Responibility List for each Rink Staff person. Still working to update all the sections of my Manual that I plan to throw up on SkateLog.

Elysarian, The "shoes" issue is part of my full section on the Rules issue, but could easily be added to the Main Rules List. It has not been an issue in most of the Rinks I've attended.

Harold

[Cruze]

Originally Posted by Skatervideoguy

Hi All,

Thanks for all your Comments.

I forgot to say anything specific about Posting the Rules.

I believe that they need to Posted on nice "large printed", easy to read Posters X2 on the outside of the Rink - close to the Entrance, then X1 in the Lobby, and then X2 inside the Rink in places most likely to be seen.

Then, as proffered in my post about "Skate Session Programing", the Rules should be read over by the Sound Booth Opperator - towards the start of a session, and again at mid-session to capture the folks coming in later.

diagetus, good points made on the "no in/out rule", and I've seen those too - and are part of my full section on the Rules issue.
Aside from the "children wandering" issue you mention, concerns over young adults going & returning also had to do with Drugs and Weapons being retrieved.
The issues about Rules 3,10, & 14, are Safety concerns that Rink Staff ignore at everone's peril. It means that both the DJ and Floor Guards are failing to exersize their Responsibilities (not doing their J-O-B).

Ron, Yes, I have a Responibility List for each Rink Staff person. Still working to update all the sections of my Manual that I plan to throw up on SkateLog.

Elysarian, The "shoes" issue is part of my full section on the Rules issue, but could easily be added to the Main Rules List. It has not been an issue in most of the Rinks I've attended.

Harold

Great SVG. I'd love to see it.

[Dennis Lauer]

Many rinks have standardized sets of rules posted in their buildings that have some similariities to yours. However your rules list is better. The idea of rules for rink guards to follow is also good. I developed a small book similar to the one you are making available to skatelogforum. In my book I have job duty listings for all of the people that would be needed to run a rink. Also I have a listing of rules pertaining to how management treats the customer and the employees. Often rinks have good rules that are not enforced by management. The floor guards try to enforce the rules only to have management fail to discipline the skaters that are brought to them for persistent and major rules violations. Management must back all of their employees whenever they bring bad behavior on the part of skaters to managements attention.

Dennis Lauer

[Skatervideoguy]

Hi Dennis,

In my book I have job duty listings for all of the people that would be needed to run a rink. Also I have a listing of rules pertaining to how managewment treats the customer and the employees. Often rinks have good rules that are not enforced by management. The floor guards try to enforce the rules only to have management fail to discipline the skaters that are brought to them for persistent and major rules violations. Management must back all of their employees whenever they bring bad behavior on the part of skaters to managements attention.

That's also what I've got, and I fully agree with the second part of your statement. That has been my experience in many Rinks - although I've not found many Floor Guards to be that savy or well trained. Yet, another Management issue.

Harold

[Holiday Guy]

Nice rules SVG I also see many rinks display "SKATE AT YOUR OWN RISK" right next to it in the lobby.

[cliff]

I strongly agree with these rules. As far as the DJ announcing them:

- The DJ should speak slowly and clearly, emphasizing important rules. It should not sound like a distorted blur or words.

- Since there are over two dozen rules, maybe the DJ should announce five or six at a time.

- Announce the most important safety rules at the beginning, like no carrying of small children or traveling against the flow.

- Announce further batches every half hour in the session. That would make 5 rules announcements throughout a 2.5-hour session.

- If the DJ observes particular types of rules being broken, he/she can focus on those for the next announcement.

[MANY_SkatingDave]

Hi Cliff, Harold,

I agree they should be short.

DJ's in my experience screw up rink rules even if they have the sheet in front of them. SO I would much rather them play a CD or a Computer video file that keeps it peppy, short, complete.

Referring to the signs as part of the message, I have never heard done yet it would be a good part to add to the short message.

The biggest problem is for the DJ, Management, Guards to reasonably enforce the rules. Reasonable means you allow for violations as long as general good order is maintained. Good Order is subjective.

Remember Skating is a Sport that means fall downs, contact with other skaters, and a little to a lot of mayhem. If you are not prepared to take these risks under guidance laces off please and come to our ??? session.

Yours in Skating, MA/NY Skating Dave