Varsity athletes seem to get a lot of perks: free TruMoo, private yoga classes and a wardrobe of Nike or New Balance gear. But when non-athletes return to campus refreshed after the lengthy interim, they contrast sharply with varsity players, many of whom spent the break practicing and playing with their teams. Athletes have little flexibility to travel, get internships or spend time with family at home.
Between training trips, holiday tournaments and Hanover workouts, athletes don’t end up getting much of a break. With grueling trainings surrounded by fellow students, some athletes felt like they barely got a chance to escape the Dartmouth bubble.
The College’s academic calendar differs from that of the Big Green’s competitors — most of which have winter breaks that fall in January. Dartmouth athletes, then, must practice and compete during the December break. From the outside, it’s easy to be jealous of a chance to travel with friends to a tropical destination, but these teams sacrificed time at home, which for us is priceless.
Big Green teams achieve their goals of getting in peak physical condition and bonding as a team both on and off campus. Many winter teams packed the six weeks with interleague play before facing their Ivy League rivals come the new calendar year. Men’s hockey played seven games, including a tournament at Thompson Arena. Men’s basketball team tallied nine games, many on the road. Some of these matchups — such as the men’s basketball game at the University of Illinois, the women’s basketball game against DePaul University and the men’s hockey game against the U.S. Air Force Academy — could not have happened during the regular school year. Though there are a lot of great schools within driving distance of Hanover, the teams take advantage of the time off from classes to engage with new matchups.
After finals, coaches capitalized on their players’ extra time, often running multiple practices in a day. Though traveling to Puerto Rico and Tampa Bay, Fla., may sound like a vacation, the swimming and diving training trips are extremely physically and mentally demanding. We originally thought taking a trip to Puerto Rico seemed extravagant, especially with the College’s Karl Michael pool available. Given the time that these athletes put into training, however, they deserve to tan and explore the rainforest rather than be cooped up in their dorm rooms between practices. And a change of scenery can be a good source of motivation.
Not every team travels over winter break. While the men’s and women’s squash teams have historically taken training trips over the winter break, this year the team stayed in Hanover. Some squash players said they found it strange to train on an empty campus, but they added that it was nice not to have to fight for court space with other clubs.
Track and field athletes gearing up for the indoor season spent long hours training in Floren Varsity House. Without academic stress, they focused on getting in peak physical shape and bonding as a team. Some distance runners were excused from Hanover over the interim, as their workouts can be completed anywhere. While some athletes said they found training at home to be equally as productive as at school, they said they missed running with their teammates.
Whether or not teams travel isn’t the main question at hand. Call us lazy homebodies, but our idea of winter break includes days of family time, hanging out with high school friends and doing things you don’t get to do during a crazy Dartmouth term. We admire the time athletes put into their sports over break and agree that in exchange for giving up all that, a trip to a tropical destination is as close to compensation as possible. But even palm trees and sunny skies can’t compare to our cozy living rooms.
