Coaches applaud new steroids bill, By: David Ball
August 17, 2007
Oregon has joined the nationwide quest to level the high school playing field, passing legislation during the summer to take precautions against steroid-use by its prep programs.
The Oregon House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 517 (see sidebar) by a 50-9 vote, putting in place a law that prohibits coaches and adult volunteers from selling or endorsing the use of performance-enhancing supplements. While the law stops short of the steroid-testing bills that have been approved in Texas and New Jersey, Oregon’s new guidelines throw out a bigger net by including various supplements such as creatine, which is found in many over-the-counter nutrition powders.
“The OSAA saw enough activity going on to be alarmed and they asked that a bill be proposed,” Oregon Senate President Peter Courtney said. “We’re trying to get ahead of it in Oregon. We have to counter this thing, because the health effects are horrible.”
Local politicians and members of the Oregon Schools Activities Association (OSAA) took notice of the problem in 2003 when South Eugene football coach Chris Miller was found to be selling creatine to his players. The local school district took quick action, prohibiting the sale of further supplements only a week after finding out about the operation. Miller no longer coaches football for the Axemen.
“That was just wrong, and we knew we needed to take steps not to allow it in the future,” said Brad Garrett, assistant executive director of the OSAA. “Our coaches should have nothing to do with giving out supplements.”
“There is no place for coaches to be selling that stuff or even promoting it,” Barlow football coach Terry Summerfield said. “Not a lot is known about those supplements.”
While steroids are illegal, the debate continues about the safety of creatine and similar supplements. These legal mixtures are readily available in nutrition stores and over the internet, but their contents are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration.
“Kids enquire about it openly, and we tell them that there’s a better way to go about it,” Summerfield said. “There are a lot of things you can do without creatine to make yourself bigger, stronger and faster.”
Barlow coaches encourage their players to eat six or seven meals a day and to burn that extra energy in the weight room. The school’s trainers also educate athletes on the nutritional value of various foods, while the football team gets plenty of support from its parent club, which puts together pre-game meals on Friday afternoons.
Most high school coaches teach the ideals of a healthy diet and consistent workouts as the best way to achieve success on the athletic field. Still, the curiosity of a short-cut in a tub grabs many teenage minds.
“I hear about it more in my weight-training classes when kids get hung up on the body building,” Gresham track coach Chris Koenig said. “For us, the education starts early. We talk about supplements in our sophomore health class. We talk about things you can do by drinking water and eating the right diet, and we point out the risks you face if you go down that other road.”
Most sports fans are well aware of the steroid problem at the pro level of sports, whether it’s a cyclist in a yellow jersey coming up dirty or a football player in shoulder pads getting suspended. But the problem starts in the earlier stages of sports when a high school player is tempted to try a quick fix to gain a roster spot or catch the eye of a college scout.
Summerfield played four seasons at Portland State University in the mid-1980s and went on to camp with the Seattle Seahawks. He’s seen first-hand what some players resort to when they become desperate for playing time or to sign that pro contract.
“I’ve been around that atmosphere and there are things that stand out,” Summerfield said. “You see certain behaviors or hear a kid is lifting at some club — there are things that tip you off. The most important thing is that coaches are aware of it. You need to pay attention to how kids are growing, and if you see a problem you need to address it.”
A government study by ‘Monitoring the Future’ conducted in 2006 found that 2.7 percent of high school seniors admitted to using steroids at least once. That percentage does not include athletes, who are ingesting the more available creatine products.
“The landscape has changed dramatically,” said Centennial football coach Chris Knudsen, who has been on the sidelines for more than 30 seasons. “We had none of that early in my career, but it’s exploded recently. You hear about it going on at the pro level, and that’s just not a good message to be sending.”
Most high school coaches frown upon these unregulated supplements, and the passage of Senate Bill 517 will only help their quest for fair and safe play in prep sports.
“The football team is like family to me, and I wouldn’t want any of my kids putting (creatine) into their system,” Summerfield said.
