Juab is not the only district acting on the issue. Another principal, Nolan Johnson of Green River High School, said his district has suggested that schools be allotted a certain number of miles, and after these are used up, they won't get buses.

"We knew that this would come," said assistant director Dave Wilkey of the financial impact, "but not this fast."

Durbin suggested that the solution will probably be different for different classifications.

One issue that faces sports programs immediately is that normally if a school cancels a contest already scheduled, there is a breach of contract penalty that results in a fine that can be anywhere from $100 to $1,000. This could mean Juab High would be fined for the missed games for every level of play, sophomore, junior varsity and varsity.

"It wouldn't be right for us to penalize schools for what their boards or superintendents decide," Davis principal Rulon Homer said during Wednesday's meeting.

Still, others said schools should still adhere to policies that have been in place for many years.

"I don't know how the price of gas going up changes our procedures," said Dugway principal George Bruce. "They should be ready to pay the fines."

Some said paying the fines might be more economical.

"Some could say it's a lot cheaper to pay the breach of contract fine than pay for the bus," said Robert Park, the region 16 representative.

Wright is aware of the breach of contract issue, but hopes the executive committee will be sympathetic to the economic pressure facing schools, especially rural schools that often travel much farther and generally have less money in the first place.

UHSAA executive director Evan Excell said he believes the issue will only get bigger and more complicated as the price of gasoline is expected to remain where it is for the foreseeable future.

"I think it's a very widespread problem," Excell said. "We're going to leave it up to the regions on how to deal with cancellations, but we'll probably have to have a meeting with superintendents and talk about some solutions."

Wright believes the UHSAA will have to be creative and assertive in helping districts deal with what has become a financial burden.

"I think it's going to take that kind of brainstorming to solve this problem," he said. "If we'd had some chance to plan for this cost in our budgets, it might be different. I don't think this is going to affect only high school sports. I think you're going to see college athletics affected by it eventually also."

Initial fines are decided upon by the regions affected by a cancellation. Those decisions can be appealed to the UHSAA executive committee. Durbin wasn't sure if or how much his school would be fined for cancelling its participation in the two tournaments.

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E-mail: adonaldson@desnews.com