(Image Credit: ID 23453586 | Canada © Janks | Dreamstime.com)

By Ian Gustafson

ODR Atlas

New outdoor rink map gives central Albertans options amidst skating season

Jan 22, 2026 | 4:51 PM

Brothers from Calgary have introduced an online tool that makes it easier for members of the public to access outdoor rinks.

What started as a passion project for Nick Flanigan and his brother has flourished into a unique resource with approximately 5,000 users.

ODR Atlas was launched in 2025, which is an online map that outlines the locations of outdoor rinks across Canada.

Flanigan said it was created to outline and share the top outdoor rinks in the country.

“Growing up in Alberta, I always loved going for an outdoor skate, but it’s a classic dilemma, especially with the chinooks and wild weather we get throughout the prairies, of has it melted over the last few days and is it worth the 20-minute drive to the rink,” he said.

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They started out by finding the rinks on Google Maps and also adding in amenities, such as whether the rink has a Zamboni or a warming shack, through local insight, on platforms such as Reddit.

Most recently, Flanigan implemented a new algorithm called “skate score” to help families decide if the local rink is frozen or slushy.

He said the algorithm uses live weather data to determine what the ice conditions could be like. The score is presented through the set algorithm that tracks the temperature, wind, snow, and the quality of the ice.

Preferably, the best score would be a temperature between -5 C and -15 C with little to no wind, and no snow. If there is snow, the score will be lower because you’ll spend more time shovelling than skating. Another factor is the “shell ice factor,” which is that if the ice melted the day before but froze the next day, it will be bumpy.

However, if there’s a Zamboni on location and a heated dressing room, the score will receive a bump up.

“I think that ODRs are such an important place in the community space. It’s where you see young ones trying out moves all the way up to adults and older teenagers playing on a Friday or Saturday night,” he said. “The reason we built this is to get more people out exercising, skating, and hanging out at their local rink at the end of the day.”

The atlas started with just mapping out Alberta outdoor rinks, but in the span of its existence, Flannigan has expanded from coast to coast with plans of expanding into the northern U.S. and Europe.

“We have 850 rinks as of today through 400 different communities from Whistler on the west coast all the way to St. John’s on the east coast,” he said, including 41 rinks in Red Deer.

He explained the insight from community members has been heartwarming, referencing a message he received from a parent that said she was considering whether to take her kid skating, and found value in the website.

He said it encourages him to keep it going.

“We’re seeing more and more returning users, especially from the prairies more than anywhere else,” he said. “The ODR culture runs really deep in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba.”

To check out the website, visit ODRatlas.com.