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Jacob Windle 2019-01-27 08:48:26 -05:00
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@ -74,10 +74,18 @@ and shiny, with ornate columns gracing the front of lecture halls, offices, and
When it was our turn to unpack, the experience was surreal. My entire life fit into one rollable bin. My parents, siblings, and I rolled the bin into the Santoro hall elevator, past beaming orientation volunteers, and down the hall to my room on the second floor. My new random roommate, Tre, had just arrived and was unpacking his stuff. After introductions and shaking hands with the kid I was to live with for the next year, my family and I exited the dorm.
My mom gave me a tearful hug goodbye, telling me to be safe and careful and that she loves me, and my dad stoically shook my hand. My siblings said bye in their own special way. Eli flipped me off as my Mom drove away, and my litle sister never looked up from the iPad she was holding. Just like that, I was alone, at this weird summer camp type place where I was to continue figuring out what kind of person I was going to be.
My mom gave me a tearful hug goodbye, telling me to be safe and careful and that she loves me, and my dad stoically shook my hand. My siblings said bye in their own special way. Eli flipped me off as my Mom drove away, and my litle sister never looked up from the Nintendo DS she was holding. Just like that, I was alone, at this weird summer camp type place where I was to continue figuring out what kind of person I was going to be.
## College Lacrosse Begins
Not too long after getting settled, all of the CNU lacrosse freshmen get emails from the head coach. The email contained a detailed itinerary of the weeks to follow. We were to have 5 a.m. lifting sessions followed by sprint workouts every other day, and a mandated study hall twice a week as freshmen. Also, the email had information about when the first practices were, and when the fitness testing was, as well as a warning about conditioning.
To say that the conditioning was brutal would be an understatement. Once it started, it would feel like it would last forever.
We had a few initial team meetings about check-ups, insurance, and other administrivia. After a week, conditioning began. To say that the conditioning was brutal would be an understatement. Once it started, it felt like it would last forever.
At exactly 5 a.m., all of us lacrosse players would congregate on the lacrosse field at an hour most would call "bright and early," but it was actually dark and depressing. In the frigid morning air, around 50 of us were nearly huddled for warmth. Each person saying to the other "Do you think he'll show?" and "If he doesn't we can go right?" All of us were cold and uncomfortable, standing dormant waiting for the strength and conditioning coach to show up.
And then, suddenly, when some hope of some warmth returning to our toes being restored, Dean would materialize. It seemed like he picked a different shadow to walk out of each morning, just to scare us. Dean was scary enough when we could see him, being close to 275lbs. We'd hear him yell "get on the line," and we'd sprint until some of us threw up. Dean did not like lacrosse players, he felt that they were entitled and did not work hard. Dean's dislike showed in what he put us through, and these workouts progressed to the point that Dean would eventually show up with trash cans for us to vomit in. He would chide us and say things to us as we vomited like "that's good, I bet you'll do it again," and "don't waste so much time throwing up."
Finished, heaving, doused with sweat and last night's food in 10 degree air, we'd have to then stagger to the weight room to complete the next segment of our training. While it wasn't as bad as conditioning, it was still tough to handle. Workouts showed on TV monitors reminiscent of Big Brother, telling us to work harder and finish our sets. We were lucky at this point if the head lacrosse coach made an appearance to tell us to work harder, and chum it up with his few favorites. The weight lifts weren't unreasonable, but each weightlifting session was capped by Dean's 'special' ab workout. However, Dean's ab workouts were not predicated on strength. The rule was, if anyone failed, then the whole team had to start over. Despite the all-for-one, one-for-all aspect of the workout, and despite the ridiculous exercises Dean made us do that were designed for us to fail, we had figured out a system. When Dean isn't looking, you can relax for a second. Simple, but foolproof.
Conditioning continued this way for weeks, and I was starting to grow tired of the trail of tears every other morning to the field. College was supposed to be a fun place where I found out who I was, not a job. I didn't enjoy being told what to do every day.