You want to contract ice at the club but are not sure if it’s right for you.  Let’s go over exactly what contracting is, what advantages it provides us, as well as who contracting may be best for.

Contracting ice is a written agreement between the skater and the club around what sessions and days the skater plans to skate.  The skater is “committing” to skating the same sessions and number of sessions per day, and in turn the club offers a discounted rate for you making that commitment. There are no refunds for contracted ice, so if a skater decides for any reason not to attend sessions anymore, the family is still responsible to pay for the ice until the end of the contract season.  We recommend both looking at the website as well as talking with front desk staff for more specifics on how this works.

Contracting ice time at the club provides the best overall value for parents of skaters who can maintain a consistent training schedule.  Over the course of the year, contracting ice time can save you money. Let’s compare prices as of 2018 for ice time at The Skating Club of Boston.

• Walk-on fee for non members is $23/50min session.
• Walk-on fee for member is $18.50/50min session.
• Contract ice fee for members is $15.50/50min session.

As you can see, there are two great options to save money on ice fees.  First, and most importantly is to become a member. Although becoming a member requires paying yearly dues and other fees, across the course of a year it almost always pays for itself.  Additionally, being a member allows you access to all sessions, including after school hours and special free sessions offered to club members only.

Secondly, you can see how additional savings are offered when you contract sessions for a season at the club.  By making that commitment you save yourself money throughout the year.

The third advantage is the skater gets priority to skate on sessions. The club restricts the number of skaters allowed on the ice for safety and to ensure a quality training environment.  By contacting the ice, you save your child a spot on the ice. It is not unusual for club sessions to fill all the way up and for skaters to not be allowed on the ice.

Below are some rules and notes about contracting ice for you to review:

• The 2018-2019 Club season will begin on August 26, 2018 and will end on June 24, 2019.
• Please note that this contract is binding for the entirety of the season and there will be no refunds or reductions in cost for any reason whatsoever, including but not limited to skaters who retire, relocate, become ill or suffer injury preventing them from using any contracted ice sessions. The signatory of this application agrees to pay all contracted ice costs for the entire season and is responsible for any costs incurred by the Club in collecting any delinquent amounts, as well as the payment of late fees and interest charges.
• Ice will be assigned in order of the following priorities:
  1. Club membership seniority
  2. Member of the Club’s High Performance program
  3. Highest U.S. Figure Skating Free Skating test passed (as of Friday, July 29, 2018)
  4. Date of application receipt
• Applications not received by the Friday, July 29, 2018 priority deadline will be processed in the order they are received and will not be granted the priorities outlined above.
• Applications submitted without the signature of the applicant (or, for minority-age participants, that of a parent or guardian) will not be processed and will be returned.
• Pairs must submit separate applications and clearly indicate which sessions they wish to contract for the purpose of skating as a pair.
• Sessions may be dropped, outright, until Friday, September 16, 2016. Skaters will not be permitted to drop sessions after that date and the contract will be remain in force through occurrences of retirement, relocation or injury.
• Skaters will still be responsible for sessions dropped during the add/drop period for the month of September.
• All test requirements must be satisfied by the Friday, July 29, 2018 priority deadline.

• • The level designations for Free Skate sessions refer to the last test passed
  • The Ice Committee reserves the right to adjust a skater’s schedule for reasons of improper test level
  • Skaters passing a test that is beyond the designation of a session are strongly encouraged to move to an appropriate session if possible
• Permanent Wait-Lists will be established for those sessions that are oversubscribed and skaters on the list will be granted an ordered priority above any walk-on skaters.
• The Ice Committee reserves the right to modify the schedule at its discretion.
• Please note that:
  • Subletting applications are available upon request in the Club Office
  • Same-day switches from one session to another (of equal or lesser value) will be permitted if space is available. Sessions may be exchanged, within the same day, between family members
• Skaters will be notified, in writing, of their assignments as soon as possible.