County guidelines give hint at sports return
The San Joaquin County Public Health Services Department released guidelines for non-contact sports practices on Thursday, signaling the first of many steps to sports’ return in Lodi.
The release closely follows guidelines put out by the California Department of Public Health, which confirmed on Thursday that non-contact drills with physical distancing are now allowed “in counties that have a variance and have allowed gyms and other fitness facilities to open.”
“My first reaction is: Finally! Let’s get things going! I can’t wait to have kids out there doing something,” said Lodi High Athletic Director Robert Winterhalter. “I immediately sent something to all of our coaches saying good news is on the horizon.”
All the athletic directors in Lodi Unified School District will have a video conference today with district officials, and both Winterhalter and Tokay High Athletic Director Michael Holst hope to leave the meeting with some idea of a timeline for when practice can start.
“I mean, it’s great, a step in the right direction. Obviously there’s some work we still have to do to get going,” Holst said. “We have a meeting tomorrow, and they’ll have guidelines. I don’t know if we’ll have more specific guidelines to see what we need to do to begin.”
The county’s guidelines fleshed out the state guidelines to specify what constitutes non-contact and social distancing, with a long list of stipulations: all participants must remain at least 6 feet apart at all times, groups must be limited to no more than 12 participants (including coaches), participants cannot transfer between groups, coaches must cover their nose and mouth, no spectators are permitted, participants must bring their own equipment and water, shared equipment and surfaces must be disinfected, outdoor activities are preferable, participants must be screened for symptoms, hand sanitizer must be available, and participants should limit themselves to one sport.
For the time being, only drills and conditioning are allowed, no scrimmaging or competitive play are allowed.
Holst said the big thing now is to get athletes cleared with physicals and registration.
“Normally that’s pretty much taken care of, but there hasn’t been a lot of places open to even get a physical,” Holst said. “The section outlined a waiver form for physicals, but we felt that was important. We wanted to make sure the kids that are out there are
healthy enough to be out there, not even considering COVID.”
Both Holst and Winterhalter said once student-athletes are back on the field, coaches will have to ease them back into the practice routine.
“The big thing I was stressing with (the coaches) was that this is not the time to be testing these kids to see who’s been working out,” Winterhalter said. “This is a time to celebrate, not a time to make kids throw up. These kids haven’t done anything since March.”
Holst said that sentiment has been echoed by other ADs in the district.
“As much as we hope kids have been doing something, it’s not the same, so we want to take it slow and get back in the swing of things,” Holst said. “And in a small group, the social interaction is new. It’s integrating them back into that and teaching them that. You’re not going to go win a section title on the first day back.”