Lights FC prepares to beat heat during Las Vegas summer
Thirty minutes into the Lights FC’s match against Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC on Saturday, everything was stopped.
Even pro athletes need water breaks.
With Cashman Field sporting a temperature of 97 degrees at kickoff, the Lights had their first in-game hydration break of the season during their 4-1 victory but certainly not their last. It’s one of the ways the team will adjust to the Las Vegas summer heat.
“It did feel hotter today,” forward Samuel Ochoa said after the game. “We felt it. I’m pretty sure they felt it. It felt like they were tired at the end.”
The United Soccer League doesn’t want the Lights playing in those temperatures often, which is one reason that from now until the end of July they have two games at home and seven on the road.
The Lights still have to train in the heat, though, and they’ve moved their practices earlier as the season progresses. The team began training at 8 a.m. this week at Kellogg Zaher Soccer Complex, with plenty of water breaks.
Coach Isidro Sanchez hoped weeks ago that the Lights could start practicing at night in June, but it made more logistical sense to stick to the mornings when the fields are always available. No one on the team seems to be complaining about the early-morning heat, either, as many hail from warm-weather climates.
“In Mexico, we used to train in the same heat,” defender Marcelo Alatorre said. “The heat won’t stop us.”
If anything, the Lights hope the heat stops opposing players. Owner Brett Lashbrook said before the season that he thought Las Vegas’ temperatures could turn into a home-field advantage, and Ochoa echoed the same sentiments after the win over the Switchbacks.
“I’ve played in different cities where the weather does affect the away team, and we have to take advantage of that,” he said. “Hopefully when it does get hotter, teams will come in here and start to (tap) out in the 60th minute.”
Fight Lights
The Lights took a field trip to the UFC Performance Institute on Monday, and fighter Forrest Griffin taught them a few skills.
”I was just blown away with how they train over there,” Alatorre said. “Their facilities are amazing. That’s how they create great fighters.”
Pub Crawl
The Lights are doing a Downtown Las Vegas pub crawl Saturday that will stop at Gold Spike, the Underground Speakeasy at The Mob Museum and the Plaza. Tickets start at $30 at LightsFC.com and include a ticket to the Lights’ match June 16 and one complimentary drink at each stop.
Injury/status updates
— Alatorre was a full participant at Tuesday’s training session despite taking an elbow to the forehead against the Switchbacks that required five stitches.
— Defenders Miguel Garduno and Marco Cesar Jaime Jr., midfielder Juan Jose Calderon and forward Juan Carlos Garcia did not participate in practice. All are nursing lower-body injuries.
— Defender Zak Drake and midfielder Sebastian Hernandez were not at training after working on a side field for part of last week. They also didn’t attend the UFC event, but Lashbrook said they are still on the team.
More Lights: Follow all of our Las Vegas Lights FC coverage online at reviewjournal.com/lights and @RJ_Sports on Twitter.
Contact Ben Gotz at bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz on Twitter.
USL hydration break policy
— If the pregame temperature is 82 degrees or above, the USL mandates a hydration break.
— Each break will last up to three minutes.
— The break will take place about 30 minutes into a half.
— If the temperature drops to 72 degrees before a break, the referee can cancel it.
— The ball must be out of play for the break to start.
— The clock still will run and the break will be added to stoppage time.
