LUTHERAN QUILTERS – Members of the Quilts for Comfort Group stand between pews draped with some of the 205 quilts they made, in the Sitka Lutheran Church Tuesday. The group made the quilts for five local non-profits and one in Anchorage. The remaining quilts are sent to Lutheran World Relief which distributes them to places around the world in need, such as Ukraine, as part of Personal Care Kits. Pictured are, from left, Helen Cunningham, Kathleen Brandt,Vicki Swanson, Paulla Hardy, Kim Hunter, Linda Swanson and Sue Fleming. (Sentinel Photo by James Poulson)
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Daily Sitka Sentinel
Barracudas Back in Water after Hiatus
By GARLAND KENNEDY
Sentinel Staff Writer
After months on dry land, the Baranof Barracudas have returned to the pool, but challenges remain, coach Kevin Knox says.
“We are back in the water in limited numbers. We’re keeping each practice to about 12 swimmers,” Knox said.
Prior to the spread of COVID-19, a standard Barracudas practice would have involved about 30 swimmers in a six-lane pool. The Barracudas’ first day back in the water at Blatchley pool was Monday. The ongoing pandemic had forced the team to stay away from the pool for about three months.
The Barracudas practice Tuesday. (Photo provided by Kevin Knox)
The current arrangement allows for two swimmers per lane, one starting in the deep end and the other in the shallow end, Knox said. This means that the two come close to each other only at the center of the pool.
Knox conceded how difficult it is to maintain a safe, six-foot distance between people swimming in a lane that’s six feet wide.
“The exposure risk is there but we are mitigating it as best we can,” Knox said. “But we obviously can’t be six feet apart when you’re in a six-foot lane.”
But the Barracudas do their best to stay apart and keep items clean where possible.
“We try to maintain distancing when they come into the building,” Knox said. “We have a rotational flow on the pool deck, we’re always walking clockwise. I sanitize all the gear between sessions.”
Knox noted that in the water itself, chlorine kills the virus quickly.
“The CDC looked at how COVID reacts to chlorine and normal chlorine levels in the pool, the contact time is really short,” he said.
Knox added that while the state allows the pool to reach full capacity again, he doesn’t want to do that.
“One of the things that they (the state) look at is the capacity of the pool, and Blatchley has an 80-person capacity. For a little while, when the state first came out with guidelines, they said 50 percent capacity, and I think now they’re saying 100 percent. But we don’t want to have that many people in the water,” Knox said.
He added that even without the virus, coaching staff would not be able to safely manage a full pool. With only a dozen swimming at once, Knox is the only coach still on the swim club’s payroll.
For the moment, the low turnout has compounded another problem. What about income?
Knox said that BBSC raises about $40,000 annually from community events, from the Open Water Swim to the Julie Hughes Triathlon. The pandemic has cut that figure in half. Club dues also provide a significant sum of revenue, but those have fallen too.
“From a financial standpoint, organizational fiscal health is going to be really tough. We will either have to look at ways of increasing our dues or our fundraising capacity, which has been really impacted by all of this as well,” Knox said.
Some individuals have chosen not to return to the pool on their own.
“People made their own decisions on whether or not they wanted to come back,” Knox said.
In addition to swimmers being reluctant to return, larger events have been canceled.
Last month’s Julie Hughes Triathlon was informal and free to participate in, another result of virus worries.
Knox added that the Open Water Swim, scheduled for August, is called off, too.
“I don’t know where things are going as far as numbers, but the prospect of bringing a bunch of people from out of town… I don’t feel entirely comfortable with that.”
He noted that in a typical year, more than half of the roughly 50 to 60 participants come from out of town.
While the Barracudas face difficulties due to the pandemic, Knox said, the swimmers were happy to be back in the pool.
“In all the sessions, everybody was pretty exhausted. There is no other substitute for exercise than swimming, so with them coming back in the water they were pretty exhausted but they were smiling,” he said.
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20 YEARS AGO
March 2004
Advertisement: Tea-Licious Tea House & Bakery 315 Lincoln Street Grand Opening! Freshly Baked Scones, Cakes & Pastries Innovative Salads, Soups & Sandwiches Harney & Sons Tea. Lunch * Afternoon Tea * Supper.
50 YEARS AGO
March 1974
Photo caption: National Republican Chairman George Bush takes a drink of water offered by Jan Craddick, Sitka delegate, during the Republican convention held here. Mrs. Craddick explained to Bush that the water was from Indian River, which means, according to local legend, that he will return.