Wheeling Vintage Raceboat Regatta Gets the Go-Ahead
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WHEELING -- The 15th Annual Wheeling Vintage Raceboat Regatta will be held as usual on Labor Day weekend, having been given the green light to carry on with enhanced COVID safety procedures.
Regatta Chair Debbie Joseph said Thursday that the Regatta committee was "very, very excited" to be able to hold the annual event, which brings in guests from across the country -- literally, this year, with four entrants coming from as far away as Washington state. Joseph said that Dr. Clay Marsh, WVU health sciences vice president and executive dean and the state's "coronavirus czar," cleared the regatta to go ahead with the safety procedures in place.
"We have worked very, very hard to do everything we can to make this as safe an event as we possibly can, and we're very happy that Dr. Clay Marsh approved our efforts, and said that we had done virtually everything he knew that we could do," Joseph said.
Children under 12 will be required to wear masks when in the pit areas.
All other people, regardless of vaccination status, are strongly encouraged to wear a mask when in the pits, especially when in groups. Masks will be provided and available to spectators. Hand sanitizer will also be made widely available. The pit area will not be opened during lunch to spectators, though autographed posters will be distributed free of charge as usual from the top of the Heritage Port steps.
Roxby Labs will be on site for the Friday of the regatta from noon to 2 p.m. to test as many of the teams, safety crews, officials, and committee for COVID-19. These tests come at no cost and results are expected to be available that night to those tested -- the committee will not have access to them. This test consists of a nose swab, and is not mandatory, but the committee recommends that as many people as possible participate.
"We are very excited to be partnering with Roxby Labs in bringing the testing to the regatta," she said. "… Roxby is jumping through tons of hoops to get this done for us. ... (We can) say, 'When we tested everyone Friday, there were no positives.' With everything we can do, we don't have anybody that's in the pits as a potential carrier."
Joseph stressed that the committee was ready to completely scrap the regatta in the event that it was deemed unsafe to hold -- last week, the committee slated today as a tentative go/no-go date for whether or not the event would be held, with the ultimate fate left in the hands of public health officials.
"We on the regatta committee were ready to completely cancel the event, if that's what health department officials thought we should do," she said. "They indicated that we have done everything we could possibly do, especially considering that this is a mostly outside event, ... to keep our people as safe as we can.
"Our biggest concern remains kids under the age of 12 that can't be vaccinated right now," she added. "It still continues to worry us, and there will be kids in the pits. Some of the teams bring their families. Our major concern remains with them, which is why we asked kids under the age of 12, they'll be required to wear masks. Our goal is to protect the children. That's our biggest thing."
Joseph said the regatta has "a long history" of prioritizing children's wellness, including their partnership with Easter Seals.
More than 60 entrants will make their way to Heritage Port on Labor Day weekend, with participants coming from Washington, Florida, New Hampshire, Wisconsin, and many more from within eight hours away.
"Our title sponsor, WesBanco, is very happy that we'll be able to bring this great event to Wheeling," Joseph added.
Questions about the safety protocols may be directed to committee medical director Dr. David Kappel at 304-599-1548, or co-directors Debbie Joseph at 304-650-0185 and Dan Joseph at 304-650-0907.