March is National Athletic Training Month and is an opportunity for athletic trainers to raise awareness for what these key components to athletics do.
“We play a part in work life and sports,” Pampa High School Athletic Trainer Rolando Salas said. “It’s very easy to think about athletic training in the sports setting. But we’re branching out. Nike says ‘If you have a body, you’re an athlete.’ So, we’re found in the military, theater arts, Cirque du Soleil (who actually has a host of trainers), etc.”
Athletic trainers are often confused with personal trainers, but in reality, they are two completely different occupations.
“Athletic trainers have to go through a master’s program to get nationally certified,” Salas said. They have to go through classes of bio-mechanics, kinesiology, sports nutrition, anatomy and physiology, etc. It’s a degree you have to obtain. We are healthcare professionals. We work with the physically active.”
Trainers do more than provide water and respond to injuries on the field/court.
“We have pregame treatments such as taping, morning treatments, after-school treatments, rehab, etc.,” Salas said. “They see the injury on TV, but they don’t see the rehab treatment back to the sport. Especially at a school this size, we have about 800 athletes and all 800 of them are under my care.”
Along with treatment, the training staff monitors the field, court and weight room in case some preventative measures are needed.
“If we see something in the weight room that may need changed we can go to the coaches and say so,” Salas said. “If there is something on the field, like maybe a lot of holes, we might need to tape up some of the kids. Having an athletic trainer is the safest thing to do. Some may blame the referees for not keeping the game safe. Sports, in general, are not safe so it’s good to have an athletic trainer as an insurance for when something does happen.”
The relationship trainers build with coaches may be among the most important relationships for trainers.
“It’s important to understand what each other does,” Salas said. “I’m not a coach, I’m not the one blowing whistles and running drills. But I do have to understand that I have to trust these coaches that they are doing the right things to train their athletes. But they have to trust me to be able to get these athletes back into doing these drills. The better the relationship, the easier it is for everybody.”
Salas said the best part of his job is the students, which makes it harder to tell them they aren’t ready to come back to the sport.
“It’s important to have a great relationship with them, too,” Salas said. “Sometimes they think they are ready but they are not. But sometimes they are ready but don’t think they are. The good thing is we build a rapport with them and build that trust with each other.”
Athletic trainers also have a good rapport with medical professionals in the area.
“It’s important for us to relay information on how it happened, what I think happened, etc.,” Salas said. “They are the higher providers and with their imaging they can better diagnose. But the communication between us is critical. Locally, 47 percent of Pampa is economically disadvantaged so a lot of the time it’s harder for them to see a doctor. For us to be able to provide care to those who can’t be seen is an extreme benefit to Pampa athletics.”
There are 18 athletic training student aides on the staff including two seniors: Avery Botello and Dakota Laumbauch.
Botello has been in the training program for two years after looking for a way to gain information in the medical field, which she has an interest in.
Botello said the hard part about being a trainer is getting blamed for circumstances beyond their control.
“We get blamed for a lot when it’s not necessarily our fault,” Botello said. “We try to take care of them the best we can and they think we aren’t doing our job or aren’t doing it the right way.”
Botello enjoys the friendships and times she has spent with other trainers.
“I love the rides to the games and how we listen to music,” Botello said. “An hour before the game we will start wrapping and make jokes with the girls and during the game we have fun with the game. We’ve experienced some great memories.”
Botello’s and Laumbach’s advice to students interested in joining the program is to come ready to work.
Laumbach has been a trainer all four years of high school.
“My freshmen year we were playing soccer and we had an athletic trainer at the school I was going to (Chickasha, Okla.) that brought a nice environment and showed me basic things for when we were away,” Laumbach said.
Laumbach echoed Botello’s feelings about not feeling recognized being a challenge, but loves the memories made in the program.
“I have a lot of friends who are football players so I like being around my friends in bus rides, Suburban rides, after games,” Laumbach said. “Senior Night this year was crazy, coming back by 21 points in the fourth quarter.”
Salas said he is passionate about developing the program and his seniors have been a big piece of that.
“For me to have them is a huge help, but also extremely rewarding to watch them grow,” Salas said. “Even just in this one year, I’ve already seen them grow exponentially. I’m excited to see the rest of the kids grow and try to make every experience they have the best as they go through high school.”
Salas, who is from Wheeler, has been involved in athletic training since 2015, completing the program at West Texas A&M University. He started out at West Texas High School before coming to Pampa in 2021.
Salas is big on advocating for the profession, which he says gives a lot.
“This profession gives so much to so many people,” Salas said. “For the athletes we are their first line of healthcare. Creating the rapport with them is the biggest thing. For the athletes to have an athletic training program is great for their well-being.”
Salas said the field of athletic trainers is expected to grow 23 percent by 2026 and the average salary of an athletic trainer is right around $57,000.
“It comes with a challenge every single day and is extremely rewarding,” Salas said.
For more information on Pampa High School or the Athletic Training Program, call 806-669-4800.
