California Forcing Students To Navigate Treacherous Mountain Roads To Compete Against Trans Athletes

Parents of California high school students spoke out Thursday against a mandate requiring athletes to join new leagues that allow transgender participation and require travel on dangerous winter roads.

The California Department of Education informed Tahoe Truckee Unified School District (TTUSD) parents on Dec. 9 that their athletic programs will be transferred to the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) beginning next school year, according to a release from TTUSD.

Following concerns about scheduling conflicts, TTUSD announced a compromise: the district would legally join the CIF in July but continue to participate in its current league through the end of the 2028 school year. (RELATED: Joe Rogan Slams California for Allowing ‘Monsters’ to Roam and Eat Pets)

Parents and students, however, say they don’t like that the new league’s policies force girls to compete with boys – while forcing students to travel dangerous mountain roads in the dead of winter. They voiced their concerns at a Dec. 17 TTUSD school district meeting.

A high school track and field athlete addressed CIF mandates allowing biological males to participate in women’s sports.

“I don’t see how it would be fair for female athletes to compete against a biological male because they are stronger, bigger, faster, and that’s just not fair,” the young woman said. “And I just don’t see the point in, you know, making a complete change right now. And I think if there’s an opportunity to stay in the NIAA, I think you should, you know, take that opportunity.”

One father, a lawyer, said the community is generally accepting of transgender people, but opposition to their participation in women’s sports “doesn’t have to be political.”

He went on to suggest that the TTUSD board seek an injunction because the Justice Department already challenges the participation of transgender people on sports teams that do not match their biological sex.

“You can simply say that this matter is before the courts and a lot of harm is going to be incurred if we take this step at this stage, only to find out perhaps later that it was not necessary,” the lawyer argued. “There is a federal battle brewing on this issue that should provide enough cover to obtain a temporary restraining order on this decision and enjoin the California Department of Education.”

Other parents raised the issue of transporting student-athletes over dangerous, snowy roads to participate in sporting events.

Currently, TTUSD athletic programs allow them to play at neighboring schools, even if they are across state lines, like in Nevada. However, the move to CIF would see many teams travel for competitions in Tahoe – which requires crossing the mountainous Donner Pass in the dead of winter.

A girls’ basketball coach at a local high school and parent of two children directly affected by the decision commented publicly on “the serious ramifications and unintended consequences” of moving to the new sports league.

SODA SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 29: A sign marks Donner Summit as snow falls along Interstate 80 (I-80) in the Sierra Nevada Mountains at the start of a powerful winter storm on February 29, 2024 near Soda Springs, California. Blizzard warnings were issued with snowfall of up to 12 feet and wind gusts of up to 100 mph expected in some higher elevation locations during the multi-day storm. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

“If this CIF membership mandate comes to fruition, my children and hundreds of other children will be forced to take buses across the peak for half of their games, exposing them to foreseeable harm from serious traffic accidents crossing the peak at night in winter, which could result in serious injury or even death,” the father and coach said. “The question is not if, but when these accidents will occur on our winter roads above the summit.”

One concerned mother pointed out that TTUSD had previously attempted to move to CIF in previous years, but always backed away due to concerns about unsafe roads. She also said the merger would put parents and students at competing schools at risk.