Although school starts in August, Summer is still in full gear, and in Evanston, it can play a huge factor at practice for our ETHS athletes. Although every sport has different workouts, practices, and games, they work tirelessly under the beating sun for hours at a time. When you play a fall sport at Evanston, you learn how to deal with the heat and pass on that knowledge to the younger players.
For Boys Cross Country captain, Lucas Linder, it’s less about what you do during practice and more about consistency during school.
“To ensure my teammates and I can withstand the heat during hard workouts, we make sure to prioritize hydration before and after running. I drink electrolytes throughout the day so I am ready for the workout after school,” stated Linder
In cross country, hydration is important, but if you drink too much right before running, you risk the possibility of an upset stomach and cramps. Linder ensures he and his teammates carry a water bottle in school and stay hydrated all throughout the day so they can worry less about being dehydrated and more about running hard.
For sports that are less about raw endurance and more about skills and techniques, this opens up opportunities for breaks in between practices or lifts where they can hydrate and rest.
Stella Lux, a Sophomore Field Hockey player said, “We sit down and do team stretches, or we drink water. What doesn’t help us is that they make us practice on Robert Crown.”
She brings up a good point about location. Sports like soccer, tennis, and football have the convenience of being near the school, which is a helpful tool for tired athletes. Air conditioning, water fountains, and personal trainers make it the perfect oasis for an exhausted athlete who can practice next to the school.
Athletes who have to play somewhere else suffer because of this. The boys’ golf team obviously can’t play on ETHS grounds, and because of this, they can’t access water fountains and air conditioning during their rounds.
“It’s hard as the round goes on to keep playing your best when it is really sunny out and you have to carry the bag on your back,” noted Sophomore golfer Brian Leddon
This is multiplied by the fact that the tournaments they play in are in the middle of the day, when the sun is at its highest and the temperature is at its peak.
The one recurring fix is hydration and rest, which is as obvious as it is important. Even though the practices of these various sports look different, the effort that all student athletes put in is easily distinguishable, and because of this, they all have their ways of beating the heat, so they can, in turn, beat their opponents.
