During high school, some of us came straight home from school and collapsed into ourselves away from the gaze of our teachers. Others went to the gym for a workout. But for some, every waking hour after school was dedicated to playing a sport. Some of these people were recruited to play their sport at Dartmouth, while others were not but that doesn't mean they've given up on their sport in college.
Elizabeth Short '12, a member of the varsity cross country and track team, explained the process of walking onto the team.
"It's not actually like anyone can just join walking on isn't easy," she said. "You still have to be qualified."
Short said that coaches consider a walk-ons' high school record and ask for that person to complete a time trial. If a walk-on beats the goal set by the coach, he or she will be able to run for the team.
Starting late makes it all harder. The percentage of walk-ons on a team varies, and Short estimated that around 15 percent of the running teams consisted of walk-ons. By contrast, Ian Accomando '12, a member of the lightweight rowing team, estimated a 50-50 split between walk-ons and recruited athletes.
Due to the competitiveness of sports teams at Dartmouth, many of those interviewed said that walk-ons must show a remarkably high level of self-motivation and dedication.
"I definitely felt like I had to prove myself at the beginning." Jon Katz '12, a walk-on to the lightweight crew team who is no longer on the team, said.
Another member of the lightweight crew, Phil Grisdela '12, said that this level of intensity and the desire to prove oneself is expected and desired from walk-on members.
"I think we are lucky to be in a sport where people can pick it up quickly, and athletic, driven guys can do really well regardless of their experience level coming in," he said.
Skill level inevitably comes into play in the initial weeks for walk-on members, according to Short.
"There's definitely a skill difference at the start," she said. "But the thing with endurance running is that every workout makes things level out fast."
Accomando recalled when rowers were placed in mixed boats of recruits and walk-ons, which proved to be "a disaster," though he said it turned into a valuable learning experience.
No longer on the team, Katz said that the time he was able to spend with his team off the water helped bridge the gap between walk-ons and recruits.
"We were logging the same grueling hours as them, showering and eating with them, so we all became fast friends," he said. "It made me great friends."
Although recruits and walk-ons come in with different skill sets, the social dynamic settles gradually into intimate familiarity after hours of training over the first term. Some walk-ons may quit, just as fairweather recruits might in the early fall of their freshmen year. But for those who stick it out and commit to the grind of a varsity sport, origins eventually blur, as each individual's contributions to the team socially and athletically become as valuable as the next member.
