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"Something tells me that with all the PhDs
walking around on campus, someone
can come up with an l1-digit number."
- Michael Sullivan, press secretary for Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas),
voicing his opinion on the feasibility of changing the common
university practice of using social security numbers
as identification.
ST0TERS TO T ITs
T
aily overlooks
thletes
THE DAILY:
On page 15 of The Daily
20) the top headline reads
o Goodwill for Wolverines'
>wever, you have overlooked
e sport in particularly (which
aurprise).
or track and field we've
naged to send one current
slete and a graduate of
ichigan. John Mortimer will
running the 5,000-meter
eeplechase) and Karen
irvey will be running in the
)00-meter steeplechase (the
:eplechase's first ever appear-
at the Goodwill game). I
ethat track is not a revenue
ort here at Michigan but is
e of the few sports that can be
sly classified as world wide. It
ems that often we are pushed
the back. I mean it didn't
ther me when there was a
rap up of Michigan's team for
is last year and we were not
en mentioned (considering the
omen's Track and Field Team
*oth indoor and outdoor
g Ten's and had 2 national
ampions), and it didn't bother
t when the same pictures of
ople who weren't even on the
am were printed, but to ignore
meone making the ranks of
oodwill standards is pushing it.
It would be nice if you could
clearly recognize what you over-
looked (as clearly as you were
quick to state the absence of any
Wolverines in the Goodwill
Games) and maybe even have
someone report about the out-
come.
Maybe for the
Commonwealth Games in
Malisha you'll be able to avoid
the same mistakes and recognize
your Wolverines who are repre-
senting their countries.
NICO.E FORRESTER
KINESIOLOGY SENIOR
Sports editor
not 'true fan'
TO THE DAILY:
In response to Mr.
Kleinbaum's article mocking the
class of 2002 ("Freshmen a year
too late;' Orientation issue), I
must say how wrong you are.
True, we were not on campus
for the fun and festivities and
true we were not all able to
storm the field after Charles
Woodson's INT against MSU
and his Return against OSU, but
just because you were in school
does not mean we missed out.
What you do not realize, Mr.
Kleinbaum, is that the true
Michigan Fans are always there.
Meaning our spirits are always
with the teams and the fans at
the actual game. I actually feel
sorry for you. I am from Boston
and was present for the hockey
championship, something you
may not be able to claim, and if
you can claim that statement
then I will not mock you or
laugh at you, I am happy that
more fans are there..
However, I think I under-
stand your mentality - you
have that high school mentality,
you know, the one that stereo-
types the upperclassmen as the
predators of the freshman. Let
me tell you something about
Michigan that you, a mere stu-
dent, may not know and I, a life-
long fan, do know. Michigan is
not a high school. It is a univer-
sity, where mature people come
to learn. Michigan sports is also
about family. We fans are a
community. We do not mock
when other fans are unable to
share in the same happiness.
That may be more the Michigan
State mentality, in which case
you applied to the wrong school.
I am offended that you attach
"fan" to your name in regard to
Michigan sports, because you
are not a fan. You are an imma-
ture student who forgot he was
in college and not high school.
See you next year Mr.
Kleinbaum. Maybe I'll let you
sit with us, the real fans at the
games.
REZA BREAKSTONE
INCOMING FIRST-YEAR STUDENT
Mountain biking is definitely not for the faint-hearted
recently had the experience of mountain biking tacular. I spent quite a while just trying to fi the
for the first time. Getting on one of these bikes bracket into the pedal.
has held a certain appeal for me since the first time Eventually, I got the hang of the pedals and away
one of them ran me down - near the Chemistry we went. I found that in moments of panic, pulling
Building during my first week at the University. out of the pedals' restraints was not a problem. In a
This practice still continues regularly today, as at parking lot I practiced hopping the bike up over the
any given moment while walking across campus, curb while Chili practiced hopping his bike up over
one can see bipedal students scatter from cars. Feeling that I had the natural athletic
their bi-pedal counterparts. Finally, I got ~ ability to try out some trails after an entire
the opportunity to be a part of the preda- 15 minutes of riding, we proceeded to
tors rather than the prey. some rough trails where I could see how
My friend, Chili, gave me the opportu- that full-suspension feels.
nity to try this ESPN2 sport. Chili goes 4The first trail we went down had the
by a singular name like a Brazilian soc- added attraction of bowling-ball-sized
cer player and has all the implied charis- stones congregated in the middle of the
ma. He's an experienced, serious biker trail. As I followed Chili's effortless path
with the scars to prove it. down the hill, bouncing wildly after him, I
The first thing I found is that bikes realized about halfway down the impor-
have come a long way since the Huffy I DAVID tance of course selection. Of course,
had in fifth grade. Recently, engineers WALLACE immediately upon recognizing my new
have developed all kinds of innovations CA TCH ER IN strategy, I hit a particularly large rock that
that allow the serious bike enthusiast to TI W R 'tY sent me airborne. Kicking out from the
kill himself in the most original and pedals, I managed to land myself between
painful ways possible. Also, the bikes cost way the handlebars and the seat, two inches from the
more than that Huffy and 10 of its brothers. front tube. Future generations of Wallaces will one
Chili has a bike that costs roughly a million dol- day thank me for preserving the family line when,
lars and is loaded with the latest features that allow for a moment, the prospects appeared hopeless.
him to careen through rocky downhill trails at 50 I must admit, cruising along those trails - duck-
m.p.h. His bike has a front shock, a rear shock, a ing tree branches, hitting exposed roots and praying
custom seat, a carbon frame, shimano components for my safety - hooked me on the sport. Whirling
and Direct TV. Of course, having the insane men- down rugged terrain, feeling the wind part across
tality common to mountain bikers, he let me ride it my face, I stepped outside my normal surroundings.
while he used another bike. I realized that I treat myself rather conservatively,
My little excursion nearly ended before it began. and that every so often I need to try things I nor-
Another advancement in the world of bikes is the mally wouldn't consider. It injects new energy into
clipless pedal, which requires you to wear an outra- life's daily grind.
geously colored shoe with a metal bracket in the And I intend to keep biking. Chili says that in our
sole that fits into a Fig-Newton-sized pedal. The next lesson, he'll show me how to properly run
thinking here is that when you lose control on a down a pedestrian without damaging your drive-
mountain trail, your legs are locked to the bike - train. I can hardly wait.
thereby making your crash that much more spec- -Reach David Wallace atdavidmsv@umicheds.
In the dog days ofsummer; it's too late to do anything
Ljooking around my apartment living room, all I not that yellow." The turtle? You've been saying
have accomplished this summer becomes clear you're going to get one since you graduated high
to me. I know, I know. The summer's not over yet. school. When you made it into a pet store once to
We still have a good month left before Fall begins actuate this grand idea, the elderly woman behind
to blow its way into town, with its dreaded first the counter told you this tiny little turtle would cost
semester. That's what you may be optimistically about 80 bucks (including the tank, pebbles, food
thinking. Sure, I'd like to think that way too. But and fake plastic tree to keep the turtle company,
I've seen it happen almost every summer etc.). The idea still seems coo' now, but
of my life before now. So I don't see why you just spent your last $S0 on a Billy
it will change this year. Joel ticket (nosebleeds).
You know what I'm talking about. One So do what I'm doing. Take stock now,
day, you wake up and look at your eaten- because if you waste your time planning
'dar only to discover it's July 25. "Holy what you'll do in this last month of sum-
shit!" you say to yourself. "Where the mer, there'll be no time left to do anything
fl*k did my summer go?" Or maybe anyway. Which brings me back to my
you're not that vulgar. original point - looking around my
Seeing this date at least brings you to apartment living room.
the realization that you've wasted a large Well then. On the wall to my left hangs
number of potentially fruitful summer CHRIS a sign, "Mitch. The Best." Under it are all
days. So then you start a familiar routine. LANGRILL the articles and columns I have written
You sit there and try to figure out how IDIOT this summer (yes, so modest). See, Mitch
you can cram everything you wanted to WNINI) Album is my idol, and I can finally say
do, but didn't, into the quick-to-disappear that I'm at least trying to follow in his
days of August. Sure, you'll call up your best friend footsteps.
and take that canoeing trip you had been talking The wall in front of me houses my most holy
about. And you'll find a way to get a week off work piece of summer memorabilia: Pearl Jam's "1998
to go home and visit your parents. And you'll also North American Tour" poster. Seeing them in
squeeze in all those miscellaneous things - mak- Chicago a month ago was - and I don't care
ing that dentist appointment, buying that turtle how sad this seems - the crowning achievement
you've always wanted, etc., etc. of my life.
Stop now. Give up. It's not gonna happen. None Other than that, I only see some beer cans out
of it. By the time you call up your friend, it will be on the porch. A bunch of empty wine bottles I've
a week into August and he'll say school starts at the been collecting. A plastic Uncle Sam figurine I
end of the month and there just isn't the time, blah, bought at Meijer one night when, well, drunk.
blah, blah. The only reason you'll go home for a Other than that, there hasn't been much to my
week is because you get kicked out of your apart- summer.
ment in mid-August and can't move into your I would say I still have a month to get a little
house until the end of August. more done than writing once every two weeks,
And the miscellaneous things? Please. No one seeing a two-hour concert and drinking a lot, but
wants to go to the dentist. You'll look into the mir- we've already gone through all that.
ror on August 12 and just say to yourself, "They're - Reach Chris Langrill at sircml@nich .ed
FCAN'r NAVE THE S IAVE
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