Athletes take the field despite extreme heat

WHITEFISH BAY -- It was a hot one Monday, July 16th -- especially for athletes, who had to look for ways to stay cool while on the field during southeastern Wisconsin's heat advisory.

For Whitefish Bay football coach Jim Tietjen, hot days are just fine to have 60 youngsters working on their skills on the field during a two-hour camp, as long as there was plenty of water handy!

"What I do is I carry the bottles around with ice water, kind of feed them like little birds. Head back, tip it, mouth, face, cool them all down. Seems to work really well," Tietjen said.

Tietjen said he's been coaching for 36 years, and knows how important hydration is to ensure the kids' safety.

"I carry four bottles. Between each eight-minute period I make one loop and every kid gets soaked down and then we have bottles at each station that the kids pick up, so there`s Gatorade and then ice water," Tietjen said.

Along with soaking them with water and keeping them hydrated, Tietjen finds other ways to keep the kids cool as well.

"Of course the school`s good enough to put a sprinkler out and that water coming out of the lake is nice and cold," Tietjen said.

Emily Brennan says her son appreciates anything to help beat the extreme heat.

"I`ve never known my son to turn down a sprinkler. That, I`m sure, kept his core temperature a little lower and kept him coming back on the football field," Brennan said.

In West Allis, older kids played their second of two baseball games in the sweltering heat.

"The last few weeks have been brutal. Just absolutely brutal, and today is just another one of those days," player Brad Schulte said.

Oak Creek High's baseball coach Scott Holler got a nice Gatorade shower Monday, while his players did even more to beat the heat.

"We went indoors for a couple hours in between games today," Schulte said.

Despite the soaring temperatures, coaches and players say preparation makes the sports win out over Mother Nature.

"They walked off the field with smiles on their faces. Not a problem at all," Tietjen said.

Both coaches said they know the importance of keeping their athletes hydrated and cool. Coach Tietjen went through 24 gallons of water and Gatorade at his camp Monday that only lasted two hours!