Glacier Ice Rink has developed the following policies and procedures to ensure the safety of our patrons and staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. These policies were originally developed under directives from the Missoula City-County Health Department and general guidance from the Montana Amateur Hockey Association and the U.S. Ice Rink Association. They have been revised following the Missoula City-County Health Department’s Board of Health Mitigation Requirements adopted on February 18, 2021.

General Practices

• Anyone exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms may not enter the facility. Symptoms include fever, shortness of breath, chills, cough, sore throat, unexplained muscle pain, vomiting, diarrhea, and loss of taste or smell.

• No more than 50 people are allowed on the indoor ice sheet or 100 people on the outdoor ice sheet at one time.

• Everyone ages five and older must wear face coverings in all off-ice areas of the indoor and outdoor facilities including locker rooms and bathrooms.

• Face coverings are not required on the ice during hockey events or other strenuous physical activities that make wearing a face covering impractical. Face coverings are required for all public skating sessions, except when indicated on the event registration description.

• The indoor and outdoor sheets are operated as two separate facilities and access is blocked between the two areas.

• A maximum of 300 spectators is allowed during events on the indoor rink and up to 100 spectators during events on the outdoor rink. Spectators must sit or stand in designated areas of the building and maintain a six-foot distance from other spectators outside their pod. Spectators must wear face coverings for the duration of the event and may not consume food while in the facility.

• Participants are asked to minimize their time in the building by entering no more than 30 minutes prior to their ice session and exiting within 30 minutes after the session.

• Patrons are asked to practice physical distancing and maintain a six-foot distance from others while in the lobby, locker rooms, bathrooms or other off-ice areas.

• Floor markings, stanchions and directional signage will be used as necessary to maintain appropriate physical distancing among patrons while in the facility. Entries and exits are clearly marked.

• Certain areas of the building are closed to minimize cleaning and maintain physical distancing among patrons.

• Staff disinfects high-touch areas (player benches, door handles, seating areas, etc.) and locker rooms throughout the day with EPA-registered disinfectant. Hand sanitizer stations are placed throughout facility, including at rink entrances and skate shop.

• The indoor drinking fountain is closed but the touchless water bottle filler is operational. An outdoor water station is in the bathroom vestibule.

Locker Rooms

• Locker rooms #1, 2, 3 and 4 are for outdoor rink use and locker rooms #5, 6, 7 and 8 are for indoor rink use. Participants must wear face masks while in locker rooms. Additional open spaces may be converted into locker rooms to accommodate gender separation. Locker room showers are not operational.

• To minimize the number of people in locker rooms, participants are encouraged to put on gear at home or in the parking lot and put on/remove skates in the rink.

• The lobby area and outside seating areas may be used for changing. Patrons who change in these areas must wear base layers and store their personal belongings out of the way of foot traffic areas.

Rest Rooms

• Bathrooms are for indoor rink use only. Two porta-potties are located along the outside rink and the outside door to the bathrooms is locked.

• Staff will disinfect high-touch areas and stock soap/toilet paper as needed. The bathrooms are professionally cleaned twice a week.

Concessions

• The concession stand is closed for the season, and vending machines are unplugged.

• The concession seating area is closed, and birthday parties are not scheduled during public sessions.
  

Skate Shop

• The skate shop is open during public sessions only.

• Skates may be dropped off for sharpening and will be sharpened as staff availability allows. If sharpening is needed by a specific time, patrons are encouraged to use Hockeywolf for this service.

• The skate shop will not loan out helmets, hockey equipment or pucks. A limited number of pucks will be provided for pick-up hockey and rentals, upon request. Renters are encouraged to bring their own pucks.

• Patrons may purchase merchandise (tape, laces, etc.) by requesting assistance from staff.

Benches

• Spitting on the bench or ice will not be tolerated. Anyone found spitting during activities will be asked to leave and may be banned from further participation.

• Participants (especially children) should have their own water bottle with names clearly written on the bottle to avoid sharing of water bottles or mistaken use of similar-style water bottles.

• Participants are encouraged to maintain space from others while sitting on the bench.

• No one may walk behind the benches or use the scorebox/sound system without permission from staff.

Public Programs

• All public program sessions are one hour in length and participation in each session is capped as follows:
• Public Skate – 40 skaters on the indoor rink and 50 skaters on the outdoor rink. Some programs (Parent/Tot Skate, etc.) may further limit attendance.
• Stick & Puck – 30 players
• Pick-up Hockey – 20 players plus 2 goalies
• Open Figure Skate – 20 skaters

• Online pre-registration and payment is required for all public programs. Registration opens on Sunday for the week prior and closes one hour before the session. Cancellations within one hour of program or no shows will not receive refunds.

• Walk-up registrations may be accepted within 10 minutes of the program start time if there is available space. Credit card payment is preferred for walk-up registration. Receipt signatures will not be required.

• All participants must check in at front desk upon arrival. If participants exhibit any COVID-19 symptoms, they are not allowed in the building and will receive a refund of fees.

• All participants are required to sign a waiver, whether through online registration or walk-up.

• Rental skates are available for public skating sessions, private rentals and “Learn to” events only. The inside and outside of skates will be thoroughly sprayed with disinfectant after each use. Helmets are not available for public use.

• Due to limitations with the online reservation system, punch cards from prior years are not honored for this season.

• If Glacier Ice Rink cancels or reschedules public programs, participants will receive a full refund of their registration fee.

Hockey Programs

• All hockey games are limited to a maximum of 50 players. Spectators are allowed based on the capacity limits above.

• Glacier Ice Rink has installed LiveBarn, a subscription viewing service. Subscribers may view all rink events, except Missoula Jr. Bruins games, from a computer or cell phone. Families are encouraged to subscribe to this service to limit time in the building.

• Coaches will wear masks while coaching from the bench but are not required to wear masks while engaged in physical activity while coaching. Coaches will maintain social distancing while running practices as much as possible.

• Teams should use separate doors when entering and exiting the ice to maintain separation between groups.

• If youth hockey or adult hockey programs are cancelled before the 3/4 point in the season, participants will receive a pro-rated refund, less a $25 administration fee. If programs are cancelled more than 3/4 in the season, participants do not receive a refund.

Ice Rentals/User Groups

• Private rentals that will have more than 50 people indoors or 100 people outdoors must submit a proposed event plan to the Missoula City-County Health Department and send the approved plan to Glacier Ice Rink prior to their event.

• Renter is responsible for conducting health assessments of participants and assumes responsibility and liability for rink usage, including the enforcement of rink policies among participants.

• User groups (Missoula Jr. Bruins, Missoula Figure Skating Club, Missoula Curling Club and the Women’s Hockey Association of Missoula) may have their own COVID-19 policies and procedures in addition to Glacier Ice Rink’s policies.

These policies may change at any time based on directives from the State or health department. Glacier Ice Rink has the right to remove or ban anyone from the building who is not following the stated protocols and therefore, may endanger the health and safety of other patrons.