CITYDESK/NEWS NEWS LAU R IE PEAR M AN
HEAD GAMES Shared bikes would include baskets that hold up to 20 pounds and coffee cup holders.
BOISE BIKE SHARE PROGRAM CLOSER TO REALITY Promising to be a model for other cities in establishing a sustainable transportation alternative, architects of the Boise Bike Share Program say they’re at a critical stage: securing private funding in order to launch the initiative, which would install 14 bike stations and send 140 shared bikes into the hands of Boise’s citizenry. As of press time, a business plan for the operation was slated to be presented to the City Council in a work session Oct. 9. BBSP is pursuing federal and private funding for the project, with an initial cash infusion coming from Boise State University, the Capital City Development Corporation and the Central District Health Department, which is the lead agency in developing the program. Once under way, a proposed budget estimates annual expenses to be approximately $350,000, with annual income of approximately $440,000. A 2010 analysis indicated that 33 percent of Boiseans traveled less than 15 minutes to work, and 51 percent had a travel time of 15-29 minutes. BBSP would target commuters who could travel to work either completely by bike or in combination with public transit. In addition to the Boise State campus, BBSP has defined its downtown Boise service area with borders of Broadway Avenue and Fort, 16th, River and Ninth streets. Fourteen primary bike stations would be strategically spread out by distances of no more than 1,630 feet (approximately one-quarter-mile). Some stations, in the downtown core, would be no more than two blocks away from one another. Each bike would be equipped with GPS technology so that users can find and return bikes to open stations. Special kiosks will be set up at special events to encourage usage. Each bike has a basket that holds cargo up to 20 pounds and even holds a cup of coffee. Proposed pricing would allow members to ride 30 minutes for free, $1.50 for the next 30 minutes, and $4 for each successive 30 minutes. Long-term users could purchase 24-hour passes for $8, seven-day passes for $25, and annual passes for $65 ($45 for students). But organizers recognize that their greatest challenge will be sustainability. If BBSP follows the trend of other bike share systems, membership and user fees will make up only about one-third of the cost of maintenance and operations. The remaining costs will need to be covered through grants, fundraising activities, sponsorships and advertising. BBSP is also exploring the possibility of linking bike share membership with mass transit sales. —George Prentice
8 | OCTOBER 10–16, 2012 | BOISEweekly
Idaho institutes new rules designed to prevent concussions JACLYN BRANDT The crunch of protective padding is usually greeted by cheers from Idaho football fans. But when helmet meets helmet, more than a few gasps can be heard from the sidelines. Some parents can only pray that their son isn’t the latest victim of a concussion or worse. “My son got two concussions in eighth grade. He finished the season and hasn’t played in the last two years since,” said Marc Paul. “As a dad that loves the sport—and I see so many good things about it—I would love to see him play because of how much he loved it before he got hurt.” But Paul is more than a dad. He’s also Boise State University’s assistant athletic director for sports medicine. “I love the sport, I really do,” said Paul. “I played football in high school and my son absolutely loves it.” But Paul’s son decided to stop playing football because of head injuries, a problem Paul sees on high school, collegiate and professional fields with more frequency. “As a dad, I see the other side of it. We know that it takes less of a hit to have the same affect over time,” he said. “Nobody wants that for their kid or anybody else’s. And when it’s my son, I certainly didn’t want that at all, especially doing what I do.” For the thousands of young men who suit up to have their moment under the Friday night lights, they’re also experiencing a new glare: a widening spotlight placed on sportsrelated concussions. “We had one of our players that had symptoms of a concussion—not a full-blown concussion, but he did show some signs—so he’s sitting out next week,” said Matt Holtry, head football coach and athletic director at Homedale High School. That Homedale student athlete sat out a full game because, in March, the Idaho Legislature passed a law meant to protect him from harm. House Bill 632, which passed with only seven “no” votes in the Idaho House and no opposition in the Senate, was signed into law by Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter April 3. The new law says that if an athlete younger than 18 years old “has sustained a concussion or head injury and exhibits outward signs or symptoms of such … then the youth athlete shall be removed from play.” The athlete will only be allowed to return to play once he or she is “evaluated and authorized to return by a qualified health care professional who is trained in the evaluation
Matt Holtry, head football coach and athletic director at Homedale High School: “Most of us played in an era when somebody might have had a concussion and they would be back in the next game.”
and management of concussions.” “It’s all part of the step-by-step,” said Holtry, referring to the young man he benched for a full game after taking a hit to the helmet. “He has to pass some tests before he gets back on the field.” Additionally, Idaho school districts are now required by the Idaho Athletic Association to train coaches to recognize the signs of a concussion. Holtry said Homedale High School has an advantage, because unlike many other small Idaho schools, Homedale has a team trainer who ensures that all coaches can double- and even triple-check symptoms of a possible concussion in their players. Boise State coaches and trainers had been on the lookout for possible concussions long before most Idaho high schools. Bronco coaches and trainers have what they call a “baseline test” process for players. According to Paul, when a student athlete first arrives on campus, he or she is given a series of tests. “It tests memory and reaction time, visual motor skills and cognitive ability, all kinds of things,” said Paul. “When the athletes come onto campus, we give them a baseline test; they haven’t been hit yet, no concussions, nothing. And once they start practicing and playing, if they have a concussion, we wait until the athlete reports symptom-free to us.” The university works with a local neuropsychologist to help evaluate those results, but Paul said it’s only the beginning of the process. “If they come out of that test OK and everything is fine, we wait 24 more hours, then we go out and stress test them: running, pushups, etc.,” Paul continued. “And then they get back to practice, but it will be a noncontact practice. They eventually progress into full practice. So it’s a big process. And at any point if they say their headache comes back, we go right back to the beginning.”
Additionally, the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s Playing Rules Oversight Panel passed a new rule to protect the athlete from the possibility of a concussion. “If a player loses his helmet [other than as the result of a foul by the opponent, such as a facemask], it will be treated like an injury,” reads the rule. “The player must leave the game and is not allowed to participate for the next play.” Fans of college football have seen the new rule already enforced dozens of times this season. Fans and athletes are split on the topic, but it’s something the universities are taking seriously. “It’s something that we knew this past summer and then during practice. Coach [Chris Petersen] went through it with all of us,” said Paul. “We practice it with the players so it was something we were prepared for.” The NCAA rule doesn’t apply if a football helmet is pulled off by another player, to stop competing teams from using it to their advantage. A player who loses his helmet is also required to stop playing, even if the play is not over. Paul said he believes the idea is a good one, as long as it can be enforced correctly. “It’s one of those things where a play can happen so fast on the field that the referees have to be able to determine: Was it taken off as a result of a penalty or did it just pop off? And how do you stop a kid from still running when he loses his helmet?” According to the NCAA, a 2011 study revealed that a player’s helmet came off an average of more than twice per game. But even if the helmet stays on, head-tohead contact is serious business and the process of recovering from a concussion is not a short one. “This is a long process; you don’t 9 just get a concussion on Saturday WWW. B O I S E WE E KLY. C O M