University of Richmond Athletics
Outside the Lanes: Stensby Style
10/12/2011 | Women's Swimming & Diving
Oct. 12, 2011 - Our Swim Family's Inside Jokes
One of my favorite songs the last couple of months has been "Murder in the City" by the Avett Brothers. One line in particular really hits home every time I hear it. The line is:
"Always remember there was nothing worth sharing like the love that lets us share our name."
To me this phrase embodies both what it means to be a family as well as what it means to be part of a college swim team. One of the special things about the swimming groups here at the University of Richmond is that everyone is proud to be a Spider!
Pardon my use of this corny sports phrase, but "one must care more about the name on the front of their jersey than the name on the back." In swimming terms, this translates to caring more about the logo on the cap (UR caps only have a spider logo) than the name on the heat sheet.
Like any family that shares a bond, there are also various inside jokes we as a swimming family share. While I suppose they are no longer inside jokes if I am sharing them online, these jokes allow members of the UR community to share and love the Spider name. Here are a few of my favorites:
1. Stuffed animals
and dolls on away trips...
One of the most famed stuffed animals on the Spider Swim
team is senior Liz Cohan's stuffed turtle, Mr. Turtle (see below). This lovable little
reptile travels to all of our road meets (he was spotted sporting a stopwatch
during one of Liz's races at our meet in Wilmington) and has also been known to
make appearances at practice as well.
While she has by no means gained the notoriety of Mr.
Turtle, freshman Allison Titley's plush doll has quickly become a team favorite
as well. Only time will tell if this somewhat awkward inanimate object will
also become a staple of the Spider Swim program. For now, we'll just say that
during some hard kick-sets, commonly heard between repeats is the phrase, "Swim
this one for Ding Bang!"
2. The Richmond
hipster community...
"Hipsterism" has made its way from Richmond's "Fan district"
and into the nestled campus community here at UR. It has undoubtedly begun to
infiltrate the Spider Swim team, as evidenced by head coach Matt Barany's taste
in music, my "hipster"-branded Ray-Bans and the fact that most of the Spider
swimmers are going to dress up as hipsters for Halloween.
3. The Darkside...
In addition to this so-called "hipsterism", our women's team
has also become obsessed with Lululemon apparel. For those of you who are
unfamiliar with Lulu, it is the end all be all in today's athletic apparel. I
recently walked into the store just to see what this craziness is about with no
intention of buying anything. Next thing I know, I am leaving with a pair of
way to expensive shorts. Needless to say, even the coaching staff routinely rocks
Lulu at morning practices.
4. Workout
enthusiasm...
At our Monday evening Masters practices, the group performs
a circuit with three stations in the water and one dry-land station (out of the
water). The dry-land typically involves body weight exercises like squats,
push-ups and core exercises. Like most swim teams, any time your head is out of
the water offers a great opportunity to socialize. One group in particular has
taken to dancing while performing these exercises. Normally, this would be a great
time to insert a photo or video, but neither would do this group justice. It is
simply something that you have to witness firsthand. Speaking of which,
sign-ups for the winter Masters group are just around the corner. More details
on that soon.
If any of you former or current Spiders are out there and
want to share your favorite Spider inside jokes, send them via email to tstensby@richmond.edu and I will post
them in a later blog.
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