Nordic practices go online
Captains find virtual ways to bring team together
Used with permission from Claire Bargman.
December 4, 2020
Due to new COVID-19 regulations put in place by Gov. Tim Walz that started Nov. 21 and a rise of cases in the state, Nordic has made the decision to move its captains practices online.
According to junior captain Danny Shope, online practices are a difficult adjustment but a positive way to keep the team feeling like a community.
“We do a Zoom call three times a week. It’s a core workout and we do different types of workouts. We all get together as a team,” Shope said. “It’s mostly for team bonding and feeling connected as a team while also getting to work out and prepare for the season.”
Senior captain Danny Walsh said the team is making an effort to work hard despite the new medium for practices.
“In general, everyone on the team really wants to be putting in the work right now because we’d be in the middle of the season if it weren’t for COVID-19. We’ve been having a great turn out,” Walsh said.
According to freshman Jersey Miller, the captains practices have been really successful considering the odd format. It’s mostly for team bonding and feeling connected as a team while also getting to work out and prepare for the season. — Danny Shope
“We’ve had a lot of people show up to them. They’re short, but it’s quality work,” Miller said.
Shope said there are major obstacles that come into play due to COVID-19, especially now that the team can’t meet in person.
“It’s obviously not good for our season in a lot of ways. It’s hard to stay motivated to do stuff when you’re not physically at practice,” Shope said.
Walsh said having a schedule for meetings has been helping the team stay connected and in shape.
“To have some severance of structure is really good in my opinion, just to keep some accountability and keep everyone motivated,” Walsh said.
According to Miller, Nordic has stayed friendly and connected by dedicating an hour a week to play games online as a team.
“We play games over Zoom. So that’s like ‘Spyfall,’ ‘Among Us’ and then ‘Charades,’ just all kinds of things. A lot of people have showed up to that which has been really fun,” Miller said.
