July 3, 2020 at 10:53 a.m.
SDR to reopen outdoor facilities to coaches and athletes, with limitations
SDR to reopen outdoor facilities to coaches and athletes, with limitations
After the district's pandemic response team shot down a plan to have spring sports teams play a handful of games this month after their 2020 campaign was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, members of the team created a 3 1/2-page document to gradually reopen facilities. District administration approved the plan Thursday and it was presented to coaches later that evening. Gatherings were scheduled to be allowed starting Monday.
All student-athlete participation this month is voluntary.
Under the plan, a copy of which was obtained by the River News, no indoor facilities at RHS will be open through July 31, including locker rooms, the Aspirus Fitness Center and the Jim Miazga Community Gymnasium.
The only possible exception to the moratorium on indoor facility use, according to the district's document, is if a particular sport is unable to conduct alternative outdoor activities. A sport would be allowed indoors only if a separate, sport-specific plan is developed and approved by the district and its pandemic response team.
Select weight room equipment has been moved from the fitness center to several outdoor locations scattered across the Rhinelander High School campus and will serve as a temporary home for athletes to train for their upcoming seasons.
"The spread (of the virus) we know, outdoors, is less likely," RHS activities director Brian Paulson said. "We want to ease into this slowly and want to get the behavioral changes down - such as being six feet (apart), sanitizing, things like that."
Currently, athletes are allowed to gather for individualized conditioning and non-contact sport-specific drills. The athletes, and the coaches who will oversee their training, must maintain a minimum of 6 feet of social distancing. They must all self-screen for COVID-19 symptoms at home before participating in any activities at district facilities, must wear masks or cloth face coverings when arriving on site, in all common areas, and in instances where maintaining 6 feet of social distancing in not feasible (the use of facial coverings by athletes while actively participating in physical activity is optional). Athletes can be grouped into pods of up to 10 individuals, so long as there is no cross-contact between the pods.
According to the plan, the district is providing hand sanitation stations and materials for use. Athletes and students are expected to sanitize their hands immediately before and after using any weight room or sport-specific equipment, and equipment between each usage. Coaches must maintain accurate attendance records.
"We will follow the 3 Ws: Wear a mask, Wash your hands, Watch your distance," the district's plan states.
The document says it was drafted by the district pandemic team, "developed in conjunction with the guidelines set forth by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) and the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA)."
The goal, according to the document, is to "allow athletic participation in the evolving pandemic environment, develop and educate coaches and athletes on best practices, and broaden athletic processes to meet NFHS and WIAA guidelines by the tentative start date of the fall season."
To that end, the district is following a four-phase approach, going from the most restrictive Phase 1 now in hopes of advancing to the least-restrictive Phase 4 by Aug. 10, which will allow unrestricted contact and full-sided competitions, following NFHS/WIAA best practices. The document cautions that advancement through the phases, "could be delayed by local pandemic surge data and failure of coaches and athletes conforming to these recommendations."
The document says plans to open the Aspirus Fitness Center and locker rooms inside district facilities will be developed ahead of the scheduled advancement to Phase 3 on Monday, Aug. 3, which coincides with football equipment handout day. Football practice is scheduled to begin Aug. 4. Girls' tennis and girls' swimming practice are slated to start Aug. 11. Boys' soccer, cross country and volleyball are slated to start Aug. 17.
Paulson said the idea behind the plan is to get athletes and coaches accustomed to the new norms of social distancing, PPE usage and frequent sanitation prior to moving activities indoors.
"If we can control the behavior changes now, before we get indoors, because the likelihood of it (spreading) indoors jumps dramatically, according to our medical professionals," he said.
Phase 2, scheduled to begin July 20 according to the document, is very similar to Phase 1 aside from athletes and coaches being allowed to used shared equipment, with proper sanitation. In Phase 3, teams would be able to gather in groups of up to 50, while maintaining individual pods of no more than 10 people. Contact drills would be allowed to begin in Phase 3.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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