Are Helmets Required on All Ships with a Rink now?

[MikeNJ1109]

The rationale behind mandatory helmets is the same behind the rationale behind mandatory auto insurance laws --- liability. Regardless of any waiver you might sign, there will always be the threat of litigation, and no waiver in the world will protect RCCL from a lawsuit filed by the victim.

 

Disagree to your hearts content ... you don't wanna wear a helmet, fine, but don't expect to skate. It's as simple as that.

 

Michael

[Scubaprogirl]

The rationale behind mandatory helmets is the same behind the rationale behind mandatory auto insurance laws --- liability. Regardless of any waiver you might sign, there will always be the threat of litigation, and no waiver in the world will protect RCCL from a lawsuit filed by the victim.

 

Disagree to your hearts content ... you don't wanna wear a helmet, fine, but don't expect to skate. It's as simple as that.

 

Michael

 

 

Ok...then what about liability for swimming pool????

 

And as I found out, it is not mandatory to all ice rink on the RCCL cruiseship

[Maryscooking]

And as I found out, it is not mandatory to all ice rink on the RCCL cruiseship

 

My guess is that either they are rolling it out ship by ship (as they tend to do) or that is is in a trial period. I'd bet that eventually it will be required on all ships.

[Maryscooking]

And if you do apply your way of thinking about the helmets...so why not asking the people in the swimming pool to wear a lifejacket? Drowning can be as dangerous even if you are a good swimmer.....You could have bad cramps for the first time of your life in your calves and not being able to swim up! Would you like going swimming with a life vest all the time if you already know how to swim?

 

I think the difference is that the life jacket substantially interferes with/impedes the activity of swimming.

 

The same can't be said for helmets/most any activity.

 

I really have no problem if you don't want to wear one, just trying to understand the rationale behind it.

[Star_Luna]

As a young adult cyclist who always wears a helmet, I agree with the helmet rule. Anything can happen which can lead to a serious injury. Doesn't matter whether it's a child, adult, experience or non, accidents can happen. From what I've read, there are many people who don't like this. Best advice I can give is either don't skate, or just suck it up. Yes, they can be a bit uncomfortable at first, but after a while, you may forget all about it. I can't recall the number of times I've walked into a store with my helmet still on.

 

As for the whole wearing life vests while in a pool. Maybe RCCL will make it required xP.

But seriously, how deep are the pools on the ship? Besides I doubt that people who can't swim or are afraid of drowning won't be in the pool, unlike people who don't know how to skate would probably give it a try. Also, in my mind, there seems to be a huge difference in going under in the pool and cracking your head open on solid ice. If someone does start to drown, there'll be alot of people nearby who'll most likely help get the drowner out of the water. Unless it's serious, the person would mostly likely be okay.

While for the ice rink, when someone without a helmet falls and hits their head they can be prone to concussion(my mom had one once and lost nearly half of her memory), brain trauma and whatever else can occur(me don't no much about brain injuries xP).

 

That was longer than I intended, but oh well. Maybe someone would come by and explain it better than I did. So since I'm fine with the mandatory helmet rule, I'm more curious as to how it suddenly came about. Was it a major accident? Or is it just about liability?

[Scubaprogirl]

It is very unfortunate that my tone of voice doesn't match my writings...

 

I am very sensitive of the well being of my own children but I do not want to over do it!

[Sugar*Magnolia]

It is very unfortunate that my tone of voice doesn't match my writings...

 

I am very sensitive of the well being of my own children but I do not want to over do it!

 

Im still over protective and my kids are 22 and 18. :D But I also draw the line!

[zaffydad]

A severe head injury can occur with a seemingly small bump.Minutes later or hours later horrific results can be manifested. It is not always a concussion.. one can have a dissection of a vessel and die within minutes. I have had to, sadly , witness this several times...the worst was a small child who fell off a Big Wheels....

 

As for experienced skaters...I am one and I have been run down on the small rinks by less experienced folks...or a tot that takes you out at the knees as you have no where to turn.

 

If this is NOT fleetwide, I do not understand. Kind of silly to have different standards.

 

But I can totally see the point of RCI.

[sag1804]

Merylene! Everyone loves you! Your tone doesn't come off the wrong way! Now write me back its been 2 years since I have seen you!!:(

[negc]

It may be my failing but I still don't fully understand why the helmet requirement is viewed by some as such an imposition, such a terrible intrusion on their freedom or so much of an inconvenience that they would rather not skate than wear one. :confused:

[NanHorner]

Helmets would certainly interfere with professional and advanced skating--in order to do jumps and spins and intricate footwork you need full freedom of movement, absolute centering of the body and nothing flipping and flopping around. Weight gain of even 2 pounds can cause problems. Moving the blade 1/8 of an inch can be devastating. I was a professional skater and wore some, er....um, "interesting" costumes...each one posed difficulties and caused movement limitations, so there is a necessity (and joy) to having unencumbered freedom to skate.

 

For someone who is merely going round and round, a helmet is probably not an issue. I think that the disconnect here is between recreational skaters and experienced skaters--each with a different skill set and different limitations.

 

And, although I jest, perhaps some of those bar stools on the ship should have a seat belt and helmet! My mom calls the ships "floating liquor lockers" (with last day ship charge invoicess the thickness of a small phonebook) and I have seen more injuries (and even death by falling overboard) due to alcohol use/abuse than accidents from the sports activities onboard!

[FreshOffTheBoat]

And how is the cruiseline to know just how many years of ice skating experience the guest has? Better safe than sorry seems to be a good motto and other than some philosophical objection to anything being mandated by authorities, I fail to see what problem making skaters wear helmets creates. If a four year old of mine had fallen on the ice, even if he or she wasn't hurt in that particular instance, I think I would be a staunch advocate of helmets to protect him or her in the event of a subsequent incident when the results might not be as auspicious.

 

lol, the point is people should be able to make their own decision. If you know you can skate well their is no point in wearing a helmet (I know I wouldn't want to wear a helmet). If your not a good skater then you should know that and make the smart decision to wear the helmet. Its annoying when other people start telling you what you need to do. Also if your going to argue their are a lot of stupid people out there, well then they just need to learn things the hard way, sorry.

[negc]

It seems to me that RCI added skating rinks to its ships to provide an additional recreational opportunity for its guests, the majority of whom are not skilled or experienced skaters who would be doing "jumps and spins and intricate footwork". For the average passenger the helmets seem to be a reasonable safety measure and I certainly wouldn't expect to see anyone doing "jumps and spins" during a general skating session. To do so would seem to endanger those less experienced skaters who would be on the ice. Perhaps skilled and experienced skaters could arrange for special ice time to practice those maneuvers and perhaps they could register their complaints about the requirement so that it might be relaxed or eliminated during those sessions. To remove the requirement for everyone just because a distinct minority find it to be intrusive just doesn't make sense.

[dla55]

No helmets on Freedom last week.......

[Atticus0130]

This new rule is obviously due to an injury that resulted in a civil suit. Royal Caribbean is trying to be responsible and prevent further injury and reduce payouts for due to preventable injuries. Ice is hard, the boards are hard, your head usually doesn't do so well against them. I have been playing hockey since I can remember, so I see no need to wear a helmet to skate in a small square using my skates... However, factor in inexperienced, intoxicated passengers skating + the motion of the ocean + dull blades on poor quality skates... I would rather put on a helmet to skate than pay a higher rate for my next cruise because too many people have filed suit against Royal.:D

[J and J]

lol, the point is people should be able to make their own decision. If you know you can skate well their is no point in wearing a helmet (I know I wouldn't want to wear a helmet). If your not a good skater then you should know that and make the smart decision to wear the helmet. Its annoying when other people start telling you what you need to do. Also if your going to argue their are a lot of stupid people out there, well then they just need to learn things the hard way, sorry.

 

 

I fully agee with your statement. For my 7 year old daughter if a helmet is offered, yes, it'll be on her head. For me, I spent my youth on the ice in competitive ice skating and have whapped my head many of times doing "jumps". Will I being doing that next week on the Oasis...no...just holding my daughter up, so I see no need for the helmet on my head. A choice is great, requirement is not.

 

If they provide anything, a butt pad would be great because that's where your gonna land the majority of the time when you fall. ; )

[FreshOffTheBoat]

I fully agee with your statement. For my 7 year old daughter if a helmet is offered, yes, it'll be on her head. For me, I spent my youth on the ice in competitive ice skating and have whapped my head many of times doing "jumps". Will I being doing that next week on the Oasis...no...just holding my daughter up, so I see no need for the helmet on my head. A choice is great, requirement is not.

 

If they provide anything, a butt pad would be great because that's where your gonna land the majority of the time when you fall. ; )

 

exacly.

[chef_christoph]

This has been an interesting topic to read.

 

I find myself agreeing with arguments made by people on both sides of this issue but I truly believe RCI has made the correct decision to protect themselves.

 

It doesn't take much to cause a catastrophic brain injury. Simply falling from a standing position and hitting your head can be enough to do it.

 

I can understand and, to a point, agree with those who feel it should be a matter of choice. However, how many times have we heard of people wanting to blame anyone but themselves for a decision they made, especially after that decision has caused a problem?

 

We see it on these boards on a regular basis. People who made a decision that eventually led to a negative impact on their vacation and all they want to do is blame Royal Caribbean, or their TA, or anyone else but themselves.

 

Personal choice is a wonderful thing but with it should come an equal amount of personal responsibility.

 

Unfortunately, far too many people want to have a choice but not have to accept responsibility for the possible negative consequences.

 

It is my opinion that it's those people we can thank (or blame) for Royal Caribbean having to establish this new rule.

[Sugar*Magnolia]

It is up to the decision of the on board sports director at the time of the sail as to if helmets are mandatory or not. I do not understand this at all, but this is what I was told by multiple Royal Caribbean personnel. It is not fleetwide on ships with rinks.

 

Now, why would it be mandatory on one and not another? :confused:

[J and J]

Maybe it depends on how the seas are. When we were on the Mariner in 2004, some people said it was the roughest seas they had been on. It's the one and only time I was ever seasick. I did skate w/out a helmet and survived. But on some of the days, I didn't skate because I felt unbalanced even walking. So maybe it's better to have the helmets on the rough seas.

 

Will let you know what happens when we are on the Oasis next week.

[donaldsc]

Sharing helmets is just another way that germs (and worse ) can get transmitted from person to person. Even if they spray it now you've got to put that on your hair? Yuck !

 

Just another reason why ice rinks don't belong on ships in the first place IMHO.

 

Can I assume that you have never ever gone snorkeling on a cruise?

 

DON

[Sugar*Magnolia]

Maybe it depends on how the seas are. When we were on the Mariner in 2004, some people said it was the roughest seas they had been on. It's the one and only time I was ever seasick. I did skate w/out a helmet and survived. But on some of the days, I didn't skate because I felt unbalanced even walking. So maybe it's better to have the helmets on the rough seas.

 

Will let you know what happens when we are on the Oasis next week.

 

 

The ice rinks on board are always closed when the sea is rough, always.

 

Skate times are fairly limited to begin with, or seem so. Many open skate times are when the ship is in port, well, so are we! :) Somewhere on the boards I posted the daily skate schedule from our explorer cruise this past summer- the majority of open skate times are times we're (personally) busy doing something else more exciting.

 

~~~~~

 

Factor in that the professional skaters who skate in the fab shows need skate time for rehearsals.

[J and J]

The ice rinks on board are always closed when the sea is rough, always.

 

Skate times are fairly limited to begin with, or seem so. Many open skate times are when the ship is in port, well, so are we! :) Somewhere on the boards I posted the daily skate schedule from our explorer cruise this past summer- the majority of open skate times are times we're (personally) busy doing something else more exciting.

 

~~~~~

 

Factor in that the professional skaters who skate in the fab shows need skate time for rehearsals.

 

 

There was plenty of time to skate when were on the Mariner in `04, though it wasn't an activity that you regulary could do, there are small windows of time. There were days the rink was open, that I thought we were a bit rocky, but then it doesn't take much for me. The night we saw the show it was pretty rocky and were amazed they did the show and with no errors whatsoever. Very Cool. I'll have to hunt down your posting for times, assume would be smilar on the Oasis. Want to make sure we can squeeze it in somewhere

[tropiclvrs]

We don't have a choice to not wear a helment when rock climbing or ziplining, yet I don't see anyone complaining about that. :rolleyes:

 

Regardless of your skillset, it's for safety reasons and there is nothing wrong with RCCL wanting passengers to wear these helmets. If you don't like it, then don't skate :p

[Sugar*Magnolia]

tropiclvrs...this is true. Most that dont like the idea......dont skate, lol.

 

It still is an odd policy that it is not mandatory on all ships and can be the decision of the specific sports director.