RegattaCentral

VASRA Coronavirus Policy Announcement

The VASRA is monitoring all official announcements regarding the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) and subsequent restrictions to travel, public gatherings and schools in the United States and in particular the areas of our membership in Northern Virginia and the District of Columbia, as well as that of our Associate Members throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia.  

Any regatta cancellation by VASRA would be based on:

• CDC/Virginia Department of Health/Fairfax County directions to cease public gatherings. Links for CDC coronavirus.gov  /VDH www.vdh.virginia.gov/coronavirus. 
• Cancellation of VASRA’s permit/s to hold regattas at Sandy Run Regional Park by NOVA Parks Authority.
• The closure of Fairfax County Public Schools or suspension of all tournaments, mass gathering and sports practices in that jurisdiction.
• The closure of the majority of VASRA member schools or the suspension of sports competitions and practices. 

Team exclusion policy:

Any team, whose home area has restrictions on public gatherings or whose school system has such restrictions or closures, will not be eligible to enter VASRA events.

In the event of such a cancellation all teams registered for VASRA regattas will be notified.

In the interest of public health and safety VASRA encourages you to follow the recommendations of the CDC and other official bodies responsible for public health. We urge you to follow the following recommendations as advanced by USRowing and adapted by VASRA:

• If you are sick or feeling unwell, please do not attend an event or practice.
• If you become sick or unwell during an event, please self-isolate and contact the event’s medical contact or event manager.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom, before eating, and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
• Cover your coughs and sneezes with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash. If you don’t have a tissue, cough or sneeze into your upper sleeve, not your hands.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
• Use an alcohol-based sanitizer.
• Clean or disinfect all areas of your training area after every use.

The following are additional general recommendations in training/practice/regatta environments:

1. Every person should adopt the same preventive measures used against the transmission of virus influenza, as Covid-19 follows classical dissemination over airways and is spread by contaminated surfaces.
2. Hands should be regularly washed with soap and water (30 seconds), then disinfected with an alcoholic disinfectant. This is especially important before meals and snacks.
3. Athletes, coaches, staff, etc., should attend practice, travel and meetings with clean and dry clothing. Rooms in the boathouse should be ventilated regularly.
4. Daily cleaning of all facilities and maintaining hygiene is extremely important. Washrooms, toilets and door handles should be disinfected daily. Clothes should be washed after workouts.
5. It is recommended that individuals carry small bottles of alcoholic disinfectant.
6. A varied, vitamin-rich diet with sufficient vegetables and fruit helps prevent infections. Fruit containing vitamin C, such as oranges or grapefruits, are particularly important. Athletes also should drink enough to keep mucous membranes moist.
7. Flu vaccines are recommended.

1. If an athlete, coach or staff member has symptoms such as coughing, fever or general malaise, they should contact their physician. Do not attend practice or regattas and take precaution to self-isolate until evaluated by medical personnel.
2. Sandy Run Regional Park does not have hand washing stations available. Individuals and teams should bring anti bacterial wipes and hand sanitizer. 

1. Eligibility

   1. All competitors in a boat must attend the same high school. Composite crews are not allowed.

   2. Rowers may enter in only one championship event or championship. Rowers competing in a championship event may not row in a non-championship event (3rd boat or below).

   3. Rowers may be permitted to double row in two non-championship events.

   4. Coxswains may cox in two events or cox in one event and row in one event.

   5. Athletic eligibility begins with a student’s initial enrollment in the 9th grade. After eight consecutive semesters, a student will have completed his/her athletic eligibility and may no longer participate in VASRA regattas.

   6. Competitors who have reached the age of 19 on or before August 1 of that school year are no longer eligible to participate in VASRA regattas.

   7. Junior events are restricted to competitors in the 11th grade (junior year) or lower. Juniors, including coxswains, must not have attained the age of 18 years prior to September 1 of that academic year.

   8. A team must enter a first eight in order to enter a second eight. Boats must be the same type and gender. A team may not skip events, i.e., teams not entering a 1st boat may not enter a 2nd or 3rd boat.

   9. No “B” boats are permitted in all sweep, eight and four oared, events. Single and double sculls events do permit multiple entries per team. Additional entries should designate themselves lightweight or junior, if applicable.

   10. All Rowers must have passed a swim test of at least 100 meters (any stroke, no time limit) or treading water for 2 minutes

2. Waivers

   1. All Rowers must have a USRowing waiver completed and submitted online to the USRowing Website (Paper waivers are not acceptable).  

   2. Teams must be an organizational Member of U.S. Rowing

3. Lightweights

   1. Athletes rowing lightweight shall follow the USRowing Junior Lightweight Compliance Program Protocol : https://usrowing.org/sports/2019/10/18/usrowing-junior-lightweight-compliance-program-protocol.aspx  USRowing is responsible for the administration and implementation of this program. All dates, deadlines and submission requirements are set by USRowing. The deadline for 2020 submissions is 15 March. No athlete who is not certified on the Portal as Lightweight will eligible to row in a lightweight event. Lightweight weight for men is 150 lbs. Lightweight weight for women is 130 lbs.

   2. VASRA requires all teams with lightweight athletes to submit a lightweight roster, accompanied by a copy of the verification email sent to each athlete by USRowing, to the regatta director. This submission is to be sent NLT the entry date for the regatta for which they are rowing lightweight. The verified list will be available to the Commission Control for weigh ins. Only those persons on the list will be eligible for weigh in. 

   3. Weigh-ins - 2 hours before the scheduled first race, in the far end of the erg room above the upper boathouse. At "Block Schedule" regattas (No 8s in the morning and all 8s in the afternoon or reverse), VASRA will, based on Referee availability, have a 2nd weigh-in period prior to the afternoon break.  The time of the 2nd weigh-in, if offered, will be printed on the official regatta schedule. 

4. Pre Regatta Meetings

   1. Coaches Meeting - It is mandatory that at least one coach from each team attend this meeting - 2 hours before the scheduled first race

   2. Coxswains Meeting - It is mandatory for all coxswains or bows in sculling boats to attend this meeting - 90 minutes before the scheduled first race.

   3. Both the Coaches and Coxswains’ Meetings are held in the erg room located above the upper boat house (boathouse 3 on the park map)

5. Visiting Crews

   1. A crew by registering for this regatta agrees to abide by the Rules of the Regatta as stated on the Regatta Central web site for that regatta.

   2. A crew by registering for this regatta agrees to abide by the VASRA supplement to the USRowing  Rules of Rowing and any other documents pertaining to the conduct of the regattas posted on the VASRA Web site, Representative’s Handbook

   3. A Visiting Crew must be a scholastic team with all of its members from one school, register via Regatta Central and pay applicable fees.

   4. Visiting Schools must provide a Master Eligibility List (MEL) signed by the School’s Principal, Athletic Director or equivalent listing all rowers and certifying that the rowers are in good standing with the school.  More information on the Master Eligibility List can be found in the Executive Summary on the Representative’s Handbook.  A sample MEL, used by the Virginia High School League, is also included in the Representative’s Handbook. The MEL or equivalent document must be submitted to [email protected] no later than Thursday prior to the regatta.