Swollen Arms, Shaking Legs, and Blurred Vision

My non-skiing friends think I'm crazy. They don't understand what we do, why we do it, or why it is fun. I cannot blame them, because for someone that does not cross-country ski, why would running until you want to throw up along with doing push-ups, pull-ups, dips, sit-ups, and box-jumps until you can't do anymore be fun? What about waking up the next day to ski for three hours? I can't speak for everyone when I give my opinion on why it's fun, and I don't argue that I am completely sane, because I'm not. The insanity of our sport and our character is what makes it fun. Spending a majority of my time with twenty-five of the hardest working, fittest athletes on campus is what makes it fun. Knowing that on any given day, someone on our team can wake up feeling great and have the race of his or her life makes it fun. It's more than the toughness of the sport, the talent level of our team, and the work ethic instilled in us by our coaches. For me, when I look around the gym at the end of a long, brutal morning of testing, and see someone on the pull-up bar with the other twenty-four athletes and three coaches screaming in support, I realize why this is fun.

We completed our annual fall testing on Saturday morning. While some may not be happy with a result here or there, I think we can on the whole, look back on the day and smile in knowing that we busted our asses for two hours in an effort to separate ourselves from our competition. There were impressive 3000 times on both the men's and women's side with both Sylvan and Beth setting impressive PR (personal record) of 9:25 and 11:09 respectively. It was incredible to see people push themselves beyond what they thought was possible in the strength testing. It was satisfying to see the look on someones face after he or she destroyed their previous personal best, but wanting more. Beyond this, it was the team chemistry that was displayed when people finished the 3000 on the verge of throwing up and found it in themselves to raise their voices in support of their team members crossing the finish line behind them. When someone was getting tired on the pull-up or dip bar, everyone got louder and pushed their teammate to four or five more dips until they collapsed off the bar. I can't explain this feeling to my non-skiing friends as they would have to participate in the insanity to truly understand it.

This team is talented and fit, but I think we gain an advantage with the team chemistry that has been built throughout the fall. This is why I don't mind my non-skiing friends calling me crazy. This is why waking up on Sunday to ski for three hours with sore arms, shoulders, and armpits didn't phase us. And this in turn becomes my answer to my friends' simple question of, "why?"

-Harry