Athletic conditioning resumes after 6 month hiatus

Governor Newsom allows VUSD to start sports conditioning, Redwood starts “practices” with limits in October

By: Krissy Hetherington

Visalia Unified School District announced in a community alert on Sept. 25 that athletic conditioning can resume. This press release gives the okay from Governor Gavin Newsom, the Tulare County Public Health Department, and the school district to allow sporting practices to resume on October 1st.

These “practices” are limited to conditioning only, without a ball or in the pool and several guidelines have now been set in place.

As VUSD has entered the first phase of sports resuming in full swing, many changes must take place to ensure it is done in the smartest and safest way possible. At any point, these new set plans are subject to change as the coronavirus numbers fluctuate.

Along with the anticipation of sports, Visalia Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Tamara Ravalin shares that the district is planning on moving into the next phase of in-person instruction for school by allowing a few students back on campus in a staggered approach.

“We’re going to start with cohorts returning to school but I’m sure we’re going to learn a lot and have to adjust along the way…the students are really going to have to work hard to follow social distancing and safety guidelines even though it’s not easy,” says Ravalin.

But for now,  according to the CIF schedule created in July, the fall high school sports  on track to begin competition in December and January  will be back in action for the first time since March.

Redwood Athletic Director, Mr. Wright, said initially, sports were planned to resume on October 12th then once it was moved to October 1st, he was “ecstatic to tell his coaches.”

VUSD planning

At first, sports were looking to make an early comeback during the summer and early August but the plan was shut down before a single organized practice took place due to a surge of COVID-19 cases in the Central Valley.

Ravalin, says that the plan for all sports and the phases overall depends on the Tulare County Public Health Office. She also adds that as the number of COVID-19 cases rise and fall, the officials will continue to suggest and add new protocols and adjustments to ensure safety for all.

“The numbers are doing much better at this time, with the proper hygiene and sanitation requirements in place, we will be able to start now in October,” said Ravalin.

“We want to make sure that with everything we do, ultimately we are being careful, we are trying to move slowly and make sure we do it right.”

Visalia Unified Superintendent, Dr. Ravalin

The purpose of these conditioning practices, according to Ravalin, is to prepare athletes for the athletic competitions scheduled for the Winter.

“We don’t want those competitions to be their first day on the field or all together as a team and we don’t want anyone to get hurt from taking so much time off, therefore we have to start several months ahead,” she said.

All the high school athletic directors within the West Yosemite League have set the schedules for the fall sports season but the district has not yet considered what the competitions will look like with crowds and fans. The main goal right now is to get the kids playing but in a close-to-normal and careful way.

On behalf of the scheduling process, Wright says, “The coaches have been doing a fantastic job planning and adjusting their normal routines to make this work for everyone…It is not easy but the coaches have really been cooperative and creative in planning for this.”

Since this is Wright’s first year at Redwood, overall he is just really anxious to meet athletes and finally interact with the coaches.

New health protocols

To ensure the utmost safety and care for the athletes and coaches, new guidelines have been required for each conditioning practice.

Pods will be formed, no larger than 16 students, and are required to social distance throughout the entire practice.

Coaches and their staff were required to take specific training on cleaning equipment and providing daily COVID checks for each participant. The Athletic Director and Trainer at each school site will facilitate each practice to make sure coaches are enforcing all the necessary guidelines.

At this point, no locker rooms will be available, masks will be required when students enter and exit for the conditioning, and everything is done outside. Pools and weight rooms will remain closed. 

“We’re not at the point yet where we can really start practicing each sport specifically, but rather general conditioning, building up strength and endurance to get in shape,” said Ravalin.

Mr. Wright also described a new athletic clearance policy that he has implemented this year to keep track of students. 

“When an athlete is cleared to play sports, meaning they have a current physical, FamilyID updated, and a COVID waiver we will issue them a blue clearance card which they will give to the coach signifying they are cleared to play” Wright said. “At the end of the season and after all uniforms and gear have been tuned in, the coach will sign the card stating the athlete is cleared to move onto the next season. This will enhance our clearance system and ensure we are collecting gear and uniforms before athletes move to other sports.”

Team bonding and chemistry

Now that teams are expected to practice in pods no larger than 16, it makes team chemistry a little harder to build early in the season. The seasons are a lot shorter than usual, making it harder for teams to get the hang of things. 

Right now, teams aren’t even practicing altogether so getting on the same page may take a lot longer and then incorporating a ball into the mix will take even more time.

“I think people will be excited but since they haven’t been at school all together to build that comradery, especially those freshman who have never been in high school are now expected to condition with students who have been together for years,” said Ravalin.

“We’ve all been going through a lot no matter who you are and we’re going to need to be there for each other just as human beings to reconnect and share what we’re going through.”

Visalia Unified Superintendent, Dr. Ravalin

“Health of students is the most important, keep working out, use any resources you can from home, keep your spirits uplifted, you have a long life ahead of you to look forward to. Think about what you can do right now, not what you can’t do,” said Ravalin as a final word of encouragement to students.

Wright says, “I do think it will affect team bonding and chemistry a little bit but this is a huge step to returning to normalcy so we just need to get through this by following all the directives and show that we can return safely.  I think once we show we can do this safely things will slowly return and we will be back to normal.”

Arising challenges

Some sports will have an easier time returning as they already require limited contact,  such as singles tennis, cross country, and golf. But other physical contact sports, over a long period time, might be more of challenge to resume, if at all.

California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) has also yet to decide whether winter sports will be pushed back further. Some potential scenarios are putting all three sport seasons in the spring or cut all together, as they were earlier this year but nothing is confirmed yet. 

Another potential problem is the conflict of overcrowding and sharing facilities for conditioning. Since all teams will have to share the same fields and the Mineral King Bowl, the use of middle school facilities has been suggested.

But as far as competitions in the future, the athletic directors have been working together to plan where and when each event will take place so there is no problem with “sharing fields” since there are only 2 football bowls in Visalia at Redwood and at Golden West’s campuses.

An outside factor that will continue to affect sports seasons is the air quality due to surrounding fires in California. Every time it starts to clear up again, making it safe to work out outside, the ash settles again in the Central Valley and it is highly encouraged to stay inside or refrain from outdoor physical activity.

The first two days that all sports conditioning was allowed to start were cancelled due to poor air quality but Wednesday was the first official day the team were able to start.

Make sure to follow @redwoodathletics on Instagram and Twitter for more updates directly from Mr. Wright. 

Tags: covid-19