Eighteen days ago, they were first allowed to shoot the ball, dive into the water, run laps, introduce new cheers, spar with teammates, hit the slopes, slap the puck, or mount the balance beam at the first practice of the winter season.

Friday and Saturday, most of Maine’s high school athletes will be on the court, in the pool, on the track, on the sidelines, on the mats, at the resorts, on the ice, or in the gym for some real competition as the winter sports season gets under way for most everyone. Class A basketball players begin their regular seasons a week later on Friday, Dec. 14 along with track and field athletes, who start sprinting, jumping, throwing, and hurdling for real in the Eastern Maine Indoor Track League on Dec. 29 (Dec. 22 is an exhibition meet).

Skiers hope to get on the slopes for real on Dec. 20, but the current warm spell may make that a little difficult. Hermon is supposed to host a slalom competition at Hermon Mountain at 4 p.m. that day.

While some coaches and athletes would prefer to have a little extra time to prepare for the regular season, others don’t mind the quick start. Still others would like the same start date, but a much earlier start to preseason.

“I think the season starts too late actually, and that’s a real beef with me,” said Hermon boys varsity basketball rookie head coach Alan Tweedie. “I know you’re waiting for football to end, but you have hundreds and hundreds of kids sitting around waiting for the season to start and only two weeks to get in practice, scrimmages, alumni games, equipment distribution, picture days and everything else in the space of less than two weeks.

“I’d just like to be in the gym for a week and do nothing else. You feel very rushed.”

Forty-three Eastern Maine basketball teams will be in action Friday night while another 33 will take to the hardwood on Saturday.

In wrestling, Hermon will usher in the regular season with a home meet against John Bapst of Bangor and Old Town at 6 p.m. Friday. Two of the few Friday swim meets in the state are in Oakland (Messalonskee vs. Brunswick) and Boothbay (vs. Lincoln Academy of Newcastle).

Saturday will be a busy day all around as the University of Maine is hosting the Penobscot Valley Conference Relay swim meet (10 a.m.) in Orono and several schools will be involved in wrestling meets at locales like Brewer, Bucksport and Maine Central Institute in Pittsfield (all three meets begin at 10 a.m.).

Friday’s schedule is light for hockey with most of the games slated for Saturday, but Houlton-Hodgdon will host Stearns of Millinocket Friday night at Miller Arena.

Basketball’s regular season will run through Feb. 5 for Classes B, C, and D and Feb. 19 for Class A.

Wrestling’s regular season runs through Jan. 26, gymnastics through Feb. 9, swimming Feb. 11, and ice hockey Feb. 18. Cheerleading tournaments begin Jan. 26.