Ten days before the scheduled start of practice for Ohio’s high school fall athletics, the fate of boys and girls cross country is currently in the hands of the state’s Lt. Governor, Jon Husted, along with that of other fall sports.
Dale Gabor, the administrator for the sports of cross country and track and field for the Ohio High School Athletic Association, said his list of regulations pertaining to cross country has been approved by the association’s board of directors, and was forwarded to Husted last Friday.
“The document was geared at meets involving more than three schools, with the understanding that dual meets or tri-meets could adapt accordingly,” Gabor said. “The guidelines outlined some pre-meet considerations, meet considerations, and post-meet considerations. At the moment, we are waiting for a response from Mr. Husted, or the governor's office.”
Because it is an entirely outdoor sport with its competing runners covering the standard 5,000-meter (3.1-mile) course distance through typically grassy and sometimes wooded areas, usually in parks, cross country would seem to be a relatively safe endeavor for participants during the coronavirus pandemic. Especially when compared to contact sports, such as football and soccer.
But, cross country meets, particularly larger races that have eight or more teams competing, are not without inherent risks of virus transmission. At least under past meet protocols.
Although most of a race would typically find social distancing easy to maintain — with runners of various speeds spread out throughout the course’s path — the beginnings and endings of races are cause for concern.
In past years, the starting line for cross country races would have up to seven runners from each competing team wedged into designated lanes, putting a large number of the athletes in tight proximity.
As the race unfolds, and the stronger runners gain ground, lengthier gaps develop between most runners, basically ensuring social distancing.
But, at the finish line — again under past practices — runners are often crammed together in roped-off lanes called chutes, as race officials determine the proper order of finish. This order establishes the points assigned to each team and their place in the meet.
Under current pandemic conditions, the question of whether masks are necessary, or when they are and are not necessary, is also up for discussion and decision.
“The issue of masks is addressed pre-meet, during the meet, and afterwards,” Gabor said of the OHSAA guidelines he prepared. “Masks are required at all times, except for the runners, although they too are required [to wear them] following competition.
“The social distancing issue is being addressed by having 10-foot starting boxes with a minimum of a 6-foot box in between. In other words, boxes 1, 3, 5 and 7, etc. are 10 feet [wide], while boxes 2, 4, 6 and 8, etc., are a minimum of six feet.
“The finish line is addressed by having the back of the finish line fanning out to allow four corrals for the competitors. In this manner, if, for example, you had 100 runners, only 25 would be in each corral.”
Whether or not these proactive adjustments will be considered adequately safe by the governor’s office remains to be seen.
Some Toledo-area coaches, who had not seen the items in the OHSAA’s proposed guidelines, had some ideas of their own, and offered their opinions on whether their athletes will be allowed to have a fall season.
“I have spoken with other coaches and other officiating buddies, and some of the things they brought up were that maybe the athletes could wear masks at their team camps, and wear masks when they report to the starting line,” said Perrysburg boys coach Keith Madaras, who has also been a race official for 24 years. “Then, just prior to the gun going off, you take your mask off.”
Madaras said although he had heard nothing yet from the OHSAA, he remains optimistic.
“We’re still learning so much about transmission of the coronavirus,” he said, “Whether it be that some believe that little kids are less apt to catch it or spread it, and where the standard for social distance has been six feet for younger kids they’re saying maybe three feet is adequate.
“With all of that in mind, it’s going to be very challenging for the OHSAA, or any state, to come up with a hard fast policy this year, simply because we don’t yet know a lot about the virus. We’re learning daily.”
The procedures in place at businesses and other places where large groups of people gather should be expected in any athletic guidelines for high school sports.
“I’m assuming that they’re going to do temperature checks prior to races and use a lot of the protocols that we have in place as coaches,” said Whitmer boys coach Jeremy Elliott, “like coaches wearing masks, and spectators wearing masks. As far as the kids that are competing, they aren’t required to wear a mask while exercising or practicing.
“But they would wear them on the bus and up to the point where they’re active, and then get them back on when they’re finished and cooling down.”
How does Elliott see a safer racing environment at the beginning of a race?
“I guess you’d look at the venues and pick an area where you can have a bigger area to spread out the starting line,” he said. “You’re only allowed seven runners in a varsity race as it is. I’d hate to see them limit that.
“Maybe staggering the [starting] boxes and go every other box, but you’re still going to have your seven kids packed in a box. After the starting gun, once it spreads out a little bit, it’s pretty [socially] distanced.”
Coaches pretty much agree solutions can be found to sufficiently reduce the risk of transmission.
“The issues are at the start and finish lines, and those are things that can easily be fixed,” said Perrysburg girls coach Jon Monheim, who has been a prep head coach for 24 years. “The starting line is a little more problematic, but there have been some ideas that have been tossed around by coaches that would make that possible.
“Most invitationals these days use [computer] chip timing, so you could start teams at different times. Maybe four or five teams at a time spread across a wide area, and maybe 30 seconds later you start another group of teams.
“It kind of takes away the racing of cross country, and competing against certain people, but because it is chip-timed the race could still be scored much like it’s done now. It wouldn’t be my favorite choice, but it’s been talked about.”
Chip timing also allows for a more socially-distanced finish line.
“When the kids run across that line their times are recorded,” Madaras said of chip timing. “You don’t need a chute. Once you’re across that finish line, you’re free to go.
“I know a lot of schools aren’t going to want to invest in chip timing because it’s an added expense. And, the companies that provide chip timing are going to be super busy. So, there’s going to be a limitation to what’s available out there. But that is definitely an option. A lot of the bigger meets already use chip timing.”
The area coaches also agree in their opinion that cross country should be evaluated on its own merit regarding safety, and should not be lumped in with contact sports in any across-the-board cancellation of fall sports.
“I hope that – even if they don’t allow the contact sports to happen in the fall – sports like cross country, that have natural social distancing will be allowed to compete,” Elliott said. “We lost our track season, and these guys are itching to get out and compete.”
Added Monheim: “We’ve been running all summer in a safe manner with fairly large groups, and I just don’t know why that couldn’t be emulated early on.
“Then, if things [with the pandemic] get crazy and the [outbreak] numbers get higher, you’d have to rethink all of that and re-evaluate. But, I would like to see them give the kids an opportunity.”
First Published July 21, 2020, 9:00 p.m.
