Gary Thorson, athletic director for Sisters High School (SHS), is looking forward to the start of the fall sports season.

“We are super excited to get fall sports rolling again for both SHS and SMS (Sisters Middle School),” he said. “As we started to come out of the pandemic last year we had a good bump in participation numbers and we are hoping to see that again this year,” he said.

And the best part for families is that once again there are no pay to play fees for being involved in sports and activities at either school.

“We don’t want to have any barriers for students who want to join a team,” he added.

The only exception to paying for sports if for students who are interdistrict transfers living outside the school district.

To get things underway, Thorson is urging families to get kids registered on the school’s athletic page using “FamilyID.” The site can be reached at www.familyid.com/sisters-school-district.

In addition, all incoming freshmen and juniors, must have a physical completed before they can practice. Sophomores and seniors who did not take part in athletics last year also need to get a physical. Physicals are good for two years.

“We really need people to go ahead and get that done as well as to make sure the kids have an up-to-date physical,” he said. “That way everyone will be ready to go when the high school fall season officially gets underway on August 15.

“The OSAA physical form needs to be filled in by the physician and physicals can be done through their regular family physician and also through our student based health center by appointment,” Thorson said.

Forms are available at the high school office as well as on the OSAA.org website.

Middle school students also need to have a physical every two years.

The athletic office will be open at the high school from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. the week of August 8 for those needing assistance. People can drop by or call 541-549-4045.

Thorson will be leading a mandatory meeting for athletes and their families on August 10 beginning at 7 p.m. where he will address the entire audience for about 15 minutes before having the fall coaches — cross-country, soccer, football, volleyball, and cheer — break out for team meetings. The office will be open beginning at 6 p.m. for those who still need to register on the FamilyID site.

A meeting for fall coaches will take place the same day beginning at 5:30 p.m.

Sisters is now a member of the newly formed 3A league called the Mountain Valley Conference which consist of Sisters, La Pine, Creswell, Pleasant Hill, Elmira, and Siuslaw. Cross-country, wrestling, and swimming have been assigned to special districts for state qualifications, which is also expected for tennis, golf, and track and field.

“We have a great group of coaches ready to go this fall at both schools and it will be especially exciting at the high school as we enter our new conference at the 3A level,” said Thorson. “It is a good fit for us given our population and will give us a little bit better travel situation overall for most of our teams, which is much welcomed as well.”