The cross country season start in just 4 weeks!!!
While this is a post about the Cross Country season, track families can glean some sense of what the upcoming track season might look like, too.
As promised, we are releasing information about the upcoming seasons to help our families plan. Please understand that the information below is subject to change. The plans below follow existing guidelines. While we sincerely hope that the climate improves, these plans fit the current reality.
We should all expect that “certainty” is not a luxury that we will enjoy. This will be a season with unique challenges. Our individual and collective patience will be tested. As a program, we will continue to ask for a high level of commitment of those who choose to participate but we do so with an eye on the situational challenges. Families will be asked to do the same.
Here is a list of some of the plans that await:
The cross country season will begin on February 22 and will last for 7 weeks (see detail below).
Practice times remain undetermined. The expectation is that these will last anywhere from 1 to 2 hours, depending on the date and group (see below), and happen inside a 3-hour window starting as early as 3:00pm on weekdays.
Masks will be worn at all times, including races, and social distancing will be prioritized. Masks must be provided by the athlete.
There will be a mandatory check-in and check-out procedure for each day of practice and each competition. (Note: The exact details are still being built and we will have more on this as we get closer to the start of our season.)
In accordance with Oregon Health Authority (OHA) and the Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA) guidelines, groups must be limited to 50. This number includes coaches and athletes. As such, we are making plans to have wholly separated training groups this spring:
A training group of primarily “varsity-level” athletes will be limited to approximately 20 boys and 20 girls. These athletes can expect to have 4-6 days of in-person cross country for all 7 weeks (except, potentially, spring break), including competitions. Competitions will include both home races and away meets.
The next group of athletes will be limited to roughly 40 runners. This group can expect to potentially have 3-4 days of in-person cross country for 6-7 weeks (except, potentially, spring break). The 7th “OSAA week” remains unclear for this group. At this time we do not know what competitions will look like for this group. It is possible they may primarily be intrasquad and would be held exclusively on our campus.
Should participation levels exceed 80 athletes additional groups will potentially be formed. These group may be limited in the number of days they participate (2-3 days) and last 6-7 weeks to comply with OHA and OSAA guidelines.
Practices will only be open to athletes & coaches, closed to all others in order to follow OHA and OSAA guidelines. Potentially, based upon current COVID-19 protocols, the chances are good that spectators will not be allowed to attend our meets this year. Parents can likely expect specific drop-off, pick-up, and waiting zones. Hopefully some courses will allow for some from-the-front-seats car spectating! As the season progresses, hopefully the guidelines in place will allow for spectators.
There are still details that remain undetermined, including meeting locations, spring break schedules, and racing schedules.
In the meantime, any interested families should initiate the registration process AS SOON AS POSSIBLE and all interested athletes should begin getting in shape for the upcoming season. We will begin publishing suggested workouts to a Canvas course this week to help get fit for the season. Athletes who are already running and are fully registered can join our off-season program. Please reach out to Coach Neeway for details.
Best regards,
Coach Neeway
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