March Message
As we kick off March, Slo-Pitch National is looking forward to and planning the 2021 season. Play typically has begun by now in beautiful British Columbia and many leagues are working towards starting up very soon.
All regions across Canada continue to recover and manage Covid specific to their provinces and local health organizations. Slo-Pitch National has approached these challenges with an attitude of prepare and adapt as necessary, as there is no “one size fit’s all” plan that can be developed. As a result of the necessary adaptations, SPN created some Return to Play suggestions where events and leagues are encouraged to select what works for them as mandated by their specific local requirements.
Slo-Pitch National insurance is in place for the 2021 season, and we have secured additional coverage for our League and Event organizers specific to Covid-19 liability. For more information on our 2021 Insurance Coverage please go to www.slo-pitch.com .
Spring typically welcomes League Registration, Umpire Clinics and kick off tournaments. We are aware that this will be different for 2021. A majority of umpire clinics across Canada will be hosted virtually, or outdoor gatherings, where permitted, will take place adhering to government guidelines. In 2020 we introduced the “Double Play” umpire registration – which was a 2-year membership for umpires who carded in 2020. If you registered as an umpire in 2020, you do not need to take the exam again in 2021. Umpires will be required to login and accept the 2021 waiver information to have their membership activated.
Throughout the various shutdowns and scale backs that were presented to us over the past year, Slo-Pitch National went to work to refresh our website and retool our registration systems for years to come. Members will now access their online accounts at SPN Central through our website. All former accounts are still in place, however, for enhanced security, members must update their passwords upon their first visit back to their account. We have added features that will assist Event Conveners and League Executives organize their events and leagues. We encourage all league executives to go online and get familiar with the updated league profiles now. Any questions that you have or assistance that you need can be accessed through your regional office (regional and National office information is available at www.slo-pitch.com ) or via our National office through our new “Live Chat” directly on our website.
In February we announced that Slo-Pitch National will host the Miller Lite Challenge on our usual National Championship Weekend in August. Our intent is to offer the National Championship style and excitement to more teams for the 2021 season. We are excited to work with our hosting communities to welcome players back to the diamonds for friendship and competition.
As the next couple of months unfold, you will see more and more events come online and be advertised on our tournament calendar and social media platforms. Please keep in mind, that our intent to work back towards being able to host events, and this requires these events to be advertised and planned well ahead of the event dates. We may run into circumstances where events will be cancelled or postponed due to unforeseeable situations or changing conditions related to Covid-19. We thank our members for their understanding and patience.
We are excited to work towards returning to our diamonds in communities across Canada, it has been a very long year for everyone, and we are here to assist our organizers who will need everyone’s support more than ever as we recover from the pandemic. Please remember to pitch in and encourage positivity in the season ahead. Please remember that many of the challenges we are facing are not easy to solve, but the end goal is to serve a game that we all love to play, back to everyone. We appreciate your support and patience in the coming months.