Vista Jr. Eagle Safety Protocols and Tips

The safety and protection of our athletes, coaches, volunteers, and parents is a TOP priority for the Vista Jr. Eagles. As a Board, we are constantly striving to provide an environment that keeps all participants safe. All football and cheer coaches and assistant coaches are required to take national certifications each season for their respective sports that includes safety protocols. They are also concussion protocol certified through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In addition, all sideline Board personnel are CDC protocol and we have a Safety Officer on our Board that advices our program on safety protocols and reviews all safety issues. The following questions provide insight in to VJE's safety protocols and tips to help keep your athlete safe during practice and games.

What if my athlete gets hurt?

All VJE facilities are equipped with safety equipment and first aid supplies to handle any minor injury that occurs at practice. We also have safety rules and reporting mechanisms available for coaches and staff. In addition, coaches and team personnel have immediate access to emergency parent contact information. If a significant injury occurs, coaches and team staff are instructed to contact the President, the VP, and/or the Safety Officer. In emergency situations, 911 will be called immediately.  The VJE program also travels to every competition with a full first aid and medical supply kit that remains on the field for easy access by both football and cheer. Our Board personnel also coordinate with EMT at each game and competition if any injury occurs.

NOTE: There are times during a game or competition when an athlete may sit down or take a break. This is particularly true for the younger football teams. Please be assured that our Coaches and Board representatives will call you to the sideline if they feel the athlete needs attention. 

What if there is extreme heat?

At certain times during the football and cheer seasons, our athletes are exercising intensely and profusely sweating for over two hours in high heat conditions. For outdoor practices, we monitor temperatures and heat indexes and adjust practices accordingly including moving the times of practices, limiting activities and drills, and increasing the length and frequency of water breaks. We also provide shade and on site iced water refill stations. For outdoor games and competitions, we work with our fellow SAC programs to ensure athletes have access to shade and increased water breaks. For VJE, this means we place additional staff on the sidelines responsible for working with the coaching staff and volunteers to keep athletes hydrated and cooled on the sidelines.

It is important to remember that our athletes need to hydrate before, during, and after their practices and games... and by before, we don't mean on the way to practice but the day and night before. Here are some tips for activities in extreme heat:

  •  Athletes should arrive to practices/games having consumed enough fluids (preferably water) that they’ve recently urinated lightly straw-colored urine. 
  • Some sports drinks have a lot of sugar. They should not replace water and food before exercise. But they are entirely appropriate during and after practices and games. 
  • Some people find that they don’t feel like eating for an hour or more after prolonged/intense exercise. This is where sports drinks can also be beneficial. 
  • Salting food is also OK (both before and after practices and games).         
The basic first aid for heat injuries is generally always the same:
  • Remove the affected individual from direct sunlight or other sources of heat. 
  • Loosen or remove excessive clothing. In our case, remove the helmet and shoulder pads. 
  • Cool the individual with some combination of fanning, cool misting water, cool cloths or ice packs to the back of neck, armpits, or groin. 
  • Have the individual sip water or preferably a sports drink, but do not “chug” it. 
  • They should continue to drink and remain under observation until their symptoms have stopped and they need to urinate.  
  • They should not return to the game and should avoid any strenuous exercise for a few hours (for cramps) or longer for other symptoms.  
  • If at any point their symptoms return or if they do not improve in a reasonable amount of time, they need to go to the hospital. 
  • If the affected individual initially vomited but can now drink fluids without further vomiting then continue to have them drink slowly. If they continue to vomit, they need to go to the hospital for IV fluids. They cannot rehydrate if they keep throwing the fluids back up.   
The following should be considered medical emergencies, call 911. 
  • Any person who is altered or confused needs to get to the emergency room immediately. This includes slurring words, inability to answer or inappropriate responses to basic questions, confusion, abnormally long time needed for them to respond to questions, irritability.
  • Anyone having difficulty breathing, chest pain or chest palpitations. Anyone who is unconscious and/or having a seizure (hopefully this one is obvious).

What if the air quality is poor?

All programs in the Sierra Athletic Conference (VJE's league) follow the same air quality standards approved by the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF).  The following is an excerpt from SAC rules regarding the Air Quality Index Policy.

CIF RULE
An air quality of less than 151 must be registered, at the beginning of the contest, for all outdoor athletic events hosted by Sierra Athletic Conference (SAC) member organizations during Preseason, league, and championship events, SAC member schools may not host outdoor contests when the AQI is equal to or greater than 151. 

SAC RULE
a. In cases of practice, an air quality index under 135 allows teams to practice without modification. 
b. An air quality of 135-150 requires teams to conduct walk-thru practice or move indoors. 
c. An air quality of 151 or above requires teams to cancel all outdoor practices or move indoors. 

0-134 Full practice | 135-150 Walk-Thru or indoors | 151 or higher, cancel or move indoors 

NOTE: Host organization determines AQI using an app or website information. The SAC Rules committee mandates the use of the website www.airnow.gov unless the host organization is practicing or playing at a site that has its own air quality meter that has been properly installed, maintained, and serviced.