Back to the bleachers

Locked out, but too excited to sit at home, families were parking outside Maui Interscholastic League venues while games were played earlier this season.

Faces lit by phone screens, some watched livestream feeds of the action. Others paced the asphalt, straining to hear distant public address announcers or to listen to the call on the radio. The MIL permitted no fans the first week of play and only home team parents on the second week. Last week, each participating student-athlete was allowed four guests.

This week, the phased-in approach has been expanded to include a limited number of students, staff and general public to attend games. All spectators must be vaccinated and follow mask and social distancing guidelines.

This lessening of COVID-19 restrictions has brought sighs of relief around Maui County, especially from parents who started the season locked out. Attending an activity that inspires and challenges a child is one of the joys of parenting. Whether a student’s interests lead them to competitive sports, band, spelling bees, science fairs or soul surfing 60-foot waves at Peahi, being present is a way to share in and nurture those interests.

As their first coaches, chauffeurs and nutritionists, parents are understandably anxious to be close. Now the question is, will their kids invite them as guests? It is fun to imagine MIL athletes suddenly finding themselves deluged like Super Bowl players with family and friends coming out of the woodwork seeking tickets. For those with big families or divided households, the law of supply and demand says it could happen. Valuable lessons may be learned while deciding how the four seats are doled out.

Let’s hope conditions allow this phased-in approach to continue to expand so even more students, family and community members can safely attend. While capacity limits will force restrictions in smaller gyms, larger venues like our stadiums and cross country courses seem big enough to permit larger crowds.

Getting students back in the stands is an important step. Sports provide a great platform to build school pride and fellowship throughout a campus and an entire community.

At some point, this pandemic is going to be behind us, even if that means society has merely learned to roll with its punches. It will be interesting to see what high school sports look like when things progress to whatever the new normal becomes. Will bleachers be packed for high school games or will fans have fallen out of the habit? How many will elect to watch livestream at home?

One thing is for sure. As long as there are parents, there will be dedicated fans rooting for their favorite athletes. Even if that means standing outside a locked stadium trying to visualize what is going on inside.