Coaches share concern for athletes’ well being

UPDATE 8/24/18: Smoke from the Ranch Fire and other Northern California and Oregon fires caused the yellow haze in the air on Friday, Aug. 24. Smoke is expected to stay over the weekend and a health caution will remain in effect, according to the Fresno Bee. 

Coaches push sports practices and P.E. classes inside as winds force smoke from 15 California state fires into the Central Valley. Students and  athletes are advised to stay inside for practices as the air quality remains unhealthy to breathe in fills the county air.

From the fall to the end of the spring sports season, Fresno Christian and other CIF schools closely observe the CIF guidelines which help schools make the best choices for their students concerning air quality.

P.E. coach and athletic director, Jon Penberthy has been involved in making air quality safety decisions for the past five years. Using resources like Valley Air, Penberthy and coaches are able to make the safest decisions for students and athletes.

“Safety of our students is our main priority,” Penberthy said. “The last thing we want is for the air quality to be so harmful that it could potentially cause a student to not get the oxygen needed. The information given out to CIF schools provides a guide as to how often players should be taking breaks, and at what point we need to either cancel the games and practices or try to move them indoors.”

Doug Garifo has worked as a fire captain for the Fresno City Fire Department for 12 years. He deploys commanders, specialists, and fire engines to assist those fighting the flames around the state.

“As a department we send different types of help to the fires,” Garifo said. “Numbers vary day to day of those being evacuated. With all the people we send out it creates a shortage of workers here in the city. Thus creating overtime and the need for more people here.”

According to the Fresno Bee, the air drifting into the valley causes more risk of heart attack and stroke. People are advised to where masks when outside and stay in air conditioning as often as possible.

Though the air causes problems for many, some student athletes enjoy practicing inside. Volleyball player and P.E. student, Hannah VanNoy, ‘21, prefers P.E. in the gym and likes participating in activities inside.

“Yes, the heat is hard to handle sometimes,” VanNoy said. “I live on an almond farm and we try to do all of our Saturday chores in the morning so we are done by noon. The bad air does not affect our farm, but the ash from the fires does. The ash is very good fertilizer and is very good for our almonds.”

Entering his last football season, Kyle Friesen, ‘19, sees the poor air quality as a challenge, but works to overcome the obstacle every practice to improve his skill. Though pushed to practice inside, Friesen takes every opportunity to train for games.

“I like playing outside better because open spaces compliment the game (football),” Friesen said. “The fires make playing outside difficult. They (the fires) are a very weird occurrence that seems to get worse every year. It’s very unfortunate that people get hurt and die every year trying to protect people and their property.”

For more articles, read Convocation kicks off 2018-’19 school year or EDITORIAL: Standardized testing hinders college applicants.

Addison Schultz can be reached via email and via Twitter @SchultzAddison.