Our teams attend at least 2 tournaments a year and we wanted to share some of our top tips for you for before, during and after tournaments. 

Pre-Tournament Prep:

• Skate sharpening – Get your skates and any spare blades sharpened right before the tournament by your go-to skate sharpener. 
• Clearly label your equipment – At every ringette tournament, there are tons of sticks, skates and water bottles. Before the tournament, label everything! 
• Sleep long and sleep deep - aim for at least 8 hours a night and no screen time before bed to get the best sleeps. This restorative sleep makes a big difference to your play on a weekend with 4 or more games.
• Nutrition - Incorporating a variety of foods in one's diet, such as whole-grain bread and cereals, green, leafy vegetables, fruits, lean meats and full fat dairy can prove beneficial for overall performance. Drink plenty of liquids to stay properly hydrated. "Carb loading" is important but you also want lots of protein for muscle repair and recovery.
• Tournament rules and True Sport principles - go over the tournament rules with your athlete (coaches often do this too). True Sport principles are at the bottom of this page.
• Book your ferry - for us island folks, this is a good way to know which ferry you are going to be on and hopefully you can coordinate with your team as this is great team bonding time!
• Talk to your kids about healthy choices during the tournament - when eating out with the team, encourage them to choose healthy meals to improve their athletic performance. Encourage them to avoid fried, sugary, greasy foods, pop, candy and sweets. Want the burger... sure! but skip the fries. Let them pick out a couple of 'treats' to enjoy at the end of the weekend/tournament. 

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Home & Away Packing List:

• Any piece of ringette equipment you think you could possibly need - And backups, whenever possible. See Player Equipment List.
• Lots of clothes for your player – clothes and socks will be wet and smelly after each game and need to be aired out or put in a ziplock for washing at home. 
• Extra small towel for your skates - be sure to dry those blades between games
• Things to do for downtime – Although downtime is limited, there is always some over the course of the tournament weekend and not all tournaments are in a spot with something to do locally, so bring some stuff to occupy the time: games, headphones, a deck of cards, books, homework etc.
• Electronics -  Hopefully your athlete will be too busy spending time with their team between games to need these but they can be handy for long car rides or siblings. We reccomend no screen time before bed and games. 
• Bring Your Own Snacks – For before/after the game and back at the hotel room in the evenings, you want to bring a ton of snacks and drinks so you are not paying exorbitant prices at rinks. Make sure post games snacks are high protein. Check out this great article with snack ideas: Tournament Nutrition and Recovery.
• Emergency Travel kit -  Bandaids, antibacterial wipes, neosporin, instant ice packs and more for cuts and scrapes. Also medicine for stomach issues and headaches. 
• Hand Sanitizer - So many people in one arena means lots of germs to go around.
• Enzyme spray - To minimize the smell of gear in your room and car. Please don't use Febreze or other carcinogenic/perfumed sprays as many people are sensitive to those. Also, they simply mask the smells rather than eliminating the underlying odor.
• Running shoes - for dryland training​ ​

Away Tournament Packing List:

• Toiletries – Toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, backup deodorant, etc. 
• Towel for the hotel swimming pool – sometimes hotel pools run out of pool towels on tournament weekends. It's also handy for going to and from the pool.
• Flip Flops for heading to/from the pool 
• Bring Your Own Breakfast – Not every hotel has breakfast, or sometimes it's not open for the early games. If there are a lot of ringette players staying at the hotel, expect breakfast to be busy. Pack something for a quick breakfast: cereal, cereal bars, fruit, oatmeal, milk, juice, bagels and cream cheese, etc. 
• Laundry - If the hotel has a laundry facility, bring quarters and laundry detergent to do laundry. 
• Epsom salts - a hot epsom salt bath is great for athlete recovery and also for parents who have been hanging out in a cold arena all day!

Player Equipment List:

• Labeled Water Bottle (and optionally a spare bottle with electrolytes).
• Skates & extra backup laces 
• Ringette pants (or hockey pants and socks)
• Athletic socks (multiple)
• Undergarments (multiple)
• jillstrap or jockstrap
• Shin pads
• BOTH  jerseys
• Shoulder pads
• Elbow pads
• Neck guards
• Mouthguards (multiple and make sure you fit them before you leave)
• Helmets & cages
• Hockey gloves
• Sticks (ideally 2 in case one gets broken)
• a roll of stick tape 
• 2 rolls of hockey tape

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True Sport
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Comox Valley Ringette believes in the True Sport mandate and the notion that “good sport can make a great difference.”

• Go For IT!
• Play Fair
  Play Honestly – obey both the letter and spirit of the rules. Winning is only meaningful when competition is fair.
• Respect Others
  Show Respect for everyone involved in creating your sporting experience, both on and off the field.
  Win with Dignity and lose with grace. 
• Keep it FUN!
  Find the JOY of Sport.
  Keep a positive attitude on and off the field.
• Stay Healthy
  Place physical and mental health above all other considerations – avoid unsafe activities. Respect your body and keep in shape.
• Include Everyone
  Share sport with others. Ensure everyone has a place to play.
• Give Back
  Find ways to show your appreciation for the community that supports your sport and helps to make it possible.

We have pledged to be a part of the True Sport.