How would you deal with track lockout? Help out Steve Morris

M65 vaulter and 2011 world champion Steve Morris writes: “For the past 30 years in early June when school lets out for the summer, I like to spend a few days with my family in the Palm Desert area. I enjoy escaping June Gloom that hangs around my city, chilling by a swimming pool and going out to eat at many excellent area restaurants. I also like to get up early (before it gets too hot) and work out at the local high school. However, this year was different. Please read the letter I sent to The Desert Sun, the local newspaper.” How do you deal with these issues in your town? Jump the fence and fuhgettaboutit?

Steve displays his pique on a plate outside track where's locked out.

Visiting Steve displays his pique on a plate outside track where he’s locked out.

Here’s what Steve sent:

DON’T LOCK US OUT!
Coachella Valley Beacon/Letter to the Editor

With obesity reaching epidemic levels, especially among our youth and seniors, I find it puzzling that Palm Desert High School would discourage the general public from using their running track during non-school hours.

I’m a Senior Olympic track and field athlete age 67 who was vacationing in the area and was looking to work out in the early

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morning hours on a local running track. Office staff at Palm Desert High School told me that any individual wanting to use the track on the spur of the moment should first find the district’s Risk Management Department, apply for a facility usage permit and then wait 2 weeks to find out if the activity is permitted.

If given the OK, the district would charge $65.00 per hour plus custodial fees to use the track. When expressing my displeasure about this policy to principal Robert Hicks, he said it all had to do with liability and blamed the legal community for forcing the school to lock the athletic field gates.

In my community, Santa Barbara, the running tracks at all 3 high schools plus SBCC and UCSB are open to the public during non-school hours. I ended up driving 30 minutes to Palm Springs High School where two joggers told me that the running track is always open during non-school hours.

Educational institutions should never forget that a sound body equals a sound mind.

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July 13, 2016

23 Responses

  1. Thomas Sputo - July 13, 2016

    These lockdowns are a national epidemic. Driven by “risk management” people (I use “” for a reason) who believe that the only way to manage risk is to completely eliminate any chance of risk. It takes a strong governing body to tell their risk management dodos and low intelligence level lawyers to be quiet and just figure out a good system of warning signs to alert users to potential hazards by just living. Another issue is damage and wear-and-tear on the facility and equipment, and I understand that. But to pay $65 per hour to someone to watch you to run around a track that was paid for with public tax funds is beyond reasonable.

  2. Scott Bickham - July 13, 2016

    They do have a point about liability, especially in this day and age. I organize weekly track workouts under the umbrella of a local USATF club, and we were able to get access to a locked track when we communicated that we have General Liability insurance through the USATF.

    When I workout on my own, I have to be more creative.

    Scott

  3. who would be your daddy - July 13, 2016

    I’ve seen this problem in Florida; upon vacationing. However;I’m also aware of a situation in which the locals sued the school district and won; because via their TAXES paid; they actually OWN the facility !!

    Hopefully; someone with a legal background will see Ken’s post and comment.

  4. tb - July 13, 2016

    You wouldn’t be much of an administrator if you just let people do stuff. Especially on public property!

    Coming soon: towns not allowing jogging on their streets because of ‘liability’.

  5. Matt McCubbins - July 13, 2016

    I think this is just the world live in now. I had to jump through a bunch of hoops to get clearance to use the high jump equipment I practice on, including signing a liability waiver.

    Just throw it on the pile of obstacles we masters athletes have to overcome :-).

  6. Eugene Anton - July 13, 2016

    When you’re traveling it is a total gamble on track access. When locked out I jump the fence during very early or late hours. Practicing on my local track I volunteer a couple of days a week with the high school or college track team. This gives me access to the track, hurdles and athletes to train with. When organizing group workouts, I follow Scott’s example and us the USATF Club insurance – it not only protects the facility but you as well.

  7. Mae Ruth - July 13, 2016

    Could the real reason that the Palm Desert HS athletic field gates are locked is that their football coach wants to protect his “turf” for the upcoming football season?

  8. Marcus O'Sullivan - July 13, 2016

    Track availability in general can be a real challenge for masters athletes. I think we probably all have had to deal with dogs, strollers etc when you are trying sprint. Offseason is ok, but during soccer, football, and track season, the high school and middle school tracks in my town are not open. Many times, that leaves very early or late in the day. I have also been “chased” off a track once when I was traveling in a foreign country!

  9. Jim Patterson - July 13, 2016

    I recently spent a week in the San Diego area on vacation. I naively thought I’d bring a 6K shot with me and get some practice in at a nearby HS while the family was at the zoo. Fat chance! I couldn’t find an open facility to practice at within thirty miles. I toted my equipment around for nothing. I get the liability issue especially with throwing events but If I couldn’t practice at my local high school I wouldn’t bother. Sadly, recent court cases in Oregon will likely result in locked facilities here as well.

  10. Randy Harris - July 13, 2016

    I go to a local college and use their High Jump pit. Last year some blowhard from the college told me I could not use the college equipment. Funny that they have a track, tennis courts, bleachers, and baseball fields that EVERBODY uses, but I can’t high jump. In fact there were people running up and down the bleachers, and playing tennis at the time he told me to scoot. Anyway, I now go there on the weekends early in the morning and train. If he catches me again, so be it. I will ask him why everyone else can use all the other facilities , and I can’t high jump. Can’t be a liability issue.

  11. ed rose - July 13, 2016

    I have the same issue trying to find a pit to long jump and triple. Junior College, Mira Costa is open most days, but has irregular locking. High school access is more difficult. Many tracks have covered pits or just lock you out. I have even been locked in when staff did not bother to tell us they were closing down the facility. Seems that with all the tax dollars we pay there should be some regular access after school hours.

  12. EM - July 13, 2016

    I’ve jumped the fence, and sometimes asked to leave, sometimes not.

  13. Ed Oleata - July 13, 2016

    Steve, I’m 79. Between 40 and 51 I competed in as many meets as I could because the meets were the only place I could vault. When I retired at 60 I became a vault coach for 12 years so I could use the pits during track season. Right after the last meet they were stored away so that window only lasted 4 months a year. I got sick for two years and had to stop coaching. Now, I haven’t touched a pole in 6 years.
    I promoted three USATF National Masters Decathlon championships, At UCSD, SDSU and Point Loma Nazarene. I knew the coaches and they co-sponsored the meet so I got the track Free. I wanted to do another National Championship about 5 years ago and It would cost me $5,000 to use the track. That’s the way it is now. Americans are quick to sue, even when they are at fault and social issues have bankrupted California. Jump the fence Steve and hope you don’t get jailed, or take up another event. Former vaulter Ed Oleata

  14. Jeff Davison - July 13, 2016

    I was told by one track coach that if we could not use their computer lab why would should they allow us to use their track either.

    We pay their taxes?

    OK … off to find a different track ..

  15. Steve Morris - July 13, 2016

    I had no intentions on pole vaulting at the school. All I wanted to do was jog, sprint and stretch on their running track as I have been allowed to do in the past. I coach the vaulters at Dos Pueblos HS in Santa Barbara. When I practice vaulting I “jump” in with the kids.

  16. Rick McCantz - July 13, 2016

    Donate to the program. Many high schools has to raise the funds to purchase the equipment. When people use it there is wear and tear to it. At our school we are told to raise $12k for a pole vault pit. That doesn’t come from tax dollars, it comes from fundraising, so you must see it from the point of the school coach when they see someone using it and didn’t help get it. I have seen many masters athletes in San Diego bring their dogs with them to train and don’t pick up after them. Not everyone does that but it only takes one. We pay taxes but we still have pot holes so don’t use that argument!

  17. Tom Tinsman - July 13, 2016

    I guess living in the sticks in western pa has its advantages. No problem around here, all of the local high schools and even local colleges are open to the public. Never had a problem using any of the pits or hurdles.

  18. Michael D Walker - July 13, 2016

    Lack of access to track facilities is a common issue but it is not confined to Masters athletes. I hear the same issues from open runners and even the elite athletes often have problems finding access to suitable facilities which may explain the decline of our Olympic athletes especially in the technical events. Good quality track equipment is expensive so I understand the liability concerns but hope that the situation can be improved for all athletes.

  19. R. Walters - July 14, 2016

    Here in the Detroit area I have run into few problems and generally have been able to contact the athletic director and get in to the track. However, in the Birmingham, Alabama area this spring, I was understandably told I could not use the track as the city was having a recreation department event; but I was also told that I could not even step on their “astro turf” football field let alone run on it. The coach told me absolutely NOBODY can step on the football field! The do love their football in ‘Bama! For competition give this a try….run in a NCAA Division III track meet; most coaches are fairly receptive and will gladly take your entry fee and put you in an appropriate heat. Also, the kids and the parents in attendance are appreciative of your efforts.

  20. Marcus O'Sullivan - July 14, 2016

    Track availability in general can be a real challenge for masters athletes. I think we probably all have had to deal with dogs, strollers etc when you are trying sprint. Offseason is ok, but during soccer, football, and track season, the high school and middle school tracks in my town are not open. Many times, that leaves very early or late in the day. I have also been “chased” off a track once when I was traveling in a foreign country!

  21. Jason Purcell - July 15, 2016

    The City of Chicago Park District just recently put a Mondo Track at one of the parks on Lakeshore Drive. It’s open to the public. No fences, no signs. So I’m curious about the liability claims from high schools.They must be insured.

  22. Andrew Hecker - July 17, 2016

    As new tracks are built, new fences come with them, it has been a trend for decades now. Its only getting worse.

    I have proposed, to deaf ears, that USATF use their power as an organization to take a blanket liability policy to cover the practice efforts of their members as a means to open the gates. Obviously that would require the people practicing would have to be USATF members. That would be a member benefit that could greatly increase USATF membership. And the known commodities in USATF members using such facilities, waiving their intent to sue for using the facilities (as we all do already in our waivers to compete in meets and team practices) should make the hard insurance cost spread across a lot of individuals rather reasonable . . . that is assuming the insurance industry actually uses thought in establishing their rates.

    Its going to take a lot more voices than just me to make something like this happen.

    By the way, in theory I’m the Masters representative to the USATF Facilities Committee unless I was replaced somewhere along the line. However the Facilities Committee hasn’t had a meeting in about a decade. If it existed, I think that would be a place to start some action.

  23. Steve Morris - July 17, 2016

    There have been questions from the general public regarding the true savings to schools that install artificial tracks and artificial turf fields. Is it really worth the 1 million + that they have just spent with tax-payers’ $$$ just to “keep up with the Jones’?”

    A small minority of schools choose to LOCK their new “state of the art”athletic field gates to delay the inevitable costs of refurbishing these $$$ fields. When the public complains they hide behind liability issues and refuse to find answers.

    The majority of these schools who have chosen to upgrade their athletic fields, have opened up their gates to the general public knowing that when it is time to replace their athletic fields the general public will open up their “pocket-books”because it is also THEIR ATHLETIC FIELD.

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