Alachua County schools open for summer workouts and practices

With fall sports season still in question, Alachua County high schools have decided to allow voluntary practices, conditioning, and any other team exercises starting June 8. Alachua County Curriculum Supervisor and Athletic Director Charley Wise, spoke with Steve Russell on Sportscene regarding summer athletics.

Alachua Athletics

Wise revealed that schools in the county were informed that they could open gyms and fields for summer practices. All practices are voluntary per FSHAA rules.

“I call it the Goldie Locks dilemma. You don’t want to be hard but you don’t want to be too easy for obvious reasons, ” – Charley Wise.

Another part of this decision included the notion that all exercises and practices will be supervised by a certified staff member or coach. Additionally, every students’ temperature will be taken. All equipment will be sanitized. And all athletes will be instructed and monitored while washing their hands.

Decisions still up in the air

While there is still hope for  a fall football season, nothing is guaranteed. All schools want to be able to play, but the safety of everyone comes first. The start day for the five fall sports to begin practice is July 27 which is approaching.

The question remains if you allow fans in the stands, how many is too many? Wise discussed the fact that he thought maybe they could fit a little under 1,000 fans into the bleachers to watch.

But with each decision comes another question. What happens if classes are still virtual? Is it safe to be playing contact sports? And the narrative of the pandemic changes everyday. Wise did provide insight into his thoughts on what sports could look like if school is still online. He thinks there are still ways to allow sports to play out while making safety a top priority. Classrooms are packed with 30 plus kids and teachers. On an athletic field, you have more control and more space as well.