Inclement Weather

With a snowstorm hitting across the eastern US brings up the issue of practicing when school is  closed.  Standard practice at many schools is to hold practice, even though the school has deemed it too dangerous for students and staff to travel.  Of course, the athletic trainer must now be there to cover the activity.  Other situations arise when a school closes early and the athletic practices continue on normal schedule.  This flies in the face of common sense.  


If a educational institution has deemed it too dangerous to have students and staff traveling because of weather conditions why are athletes somehow exempt from those dangers.  While some students may live on campus, and be able to walk to athletic facilities, many do not.  While it may be nice for the coach to say attendance is contingent upon an athlete being able to safely travel, the reality is usually different.  Many athletes will first make the effort to travel to determine if the conditions are safe enough.  There is also the pressure from the coach.  If they can make it into the facility then why can't the athlete.


Along with the athletes you have many support people that are needed.  This will include student coaches, managers, equipment people, and of course the athletic trainer.  Athletic Trainers best approach to this dilemma is to look at it from a student safety issue.  Do we really want to put the athlete in this potentially dangerous situation.  The person on campus that will be an ally is the school's legal counsel.  If you put the question to them regarding the best policy I am sure they will be on your side.  Set up the policy in advance so that all parties are well aware the guidelines and there are no complaints when school is cancelled. This is a situation that in the middle of summer does not seem all that important until it is upon you and there is no time establish meaningful guidelines.