The UBC baseball team may have won their regional championship last weekend at home, but they hope to have a long way left to go in the playoffs.

The Thunderbirds have flown south to Fresno, California for the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Baseball National Championship Opening Round. The tournament begins this Tuesday, with the winner of the five-team double elimination tournament advancing to the 54th Annual Avista-NAIA World Series, held in Lewiston, Idaho May 28-June 4.

UBC, ranked no. 7 in the NAIA, entered the tournament by virtue of their victory in the NAIA West Grouping Tournament last weekend, their second straight. The T-Birds went undefeated in the tournament, finishing their victory with a 11-3 win over Oregon Tech in the finals.

The weekend also saw a slew of UBC players given awards. Shortstop Samie Starr and pitcher Sheldon McDonald were named to the all-star team, while second baseman Alex White, centre fielder Blake Carruthers, and pitcher Mark Hardy were awarded Gold Gloves for their defensive play. Coach Terry McKaig was also honoured with his second straight Coach of the Year award.

UBC, which will play the winner of a match between University of Houston at Victoria and Ohio Dominican, is the number one seed in their group after their impressive season. They will be led on offense by Nic Lendvoy, who led the T-Birds with a .385 batting average, 7 home runs and 51 runs batted in. The rotation is led by McDonald, with veteran Mark Hardy and Brandon Kaye providing additional support up front.

In the 21st century, you can’t mention sports without bringing up performance-enhancing drugs. They serve as an ever-present threat to the integrity and credibility of sports around the world.

Canadian universities are no exception. Last year, four varsity athletes in Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) tested positive for banned substances: three for marijuana use and one for steroids.

Normally a side of the CIS that gets little attention, last week the issue exploded with the arrest of Nathan Zettler, a University of Waterloo football player who was not only using, but also trafficking, performance-enhancing anabolic steroids.

According to UBC Human Kinetics Assistant professor James Rupert, an anti-doping expert, the problem of performance enhancers in university sports isn’t about to go away anytime soon.

“The problem is that it escalates. If I take a little bit I go a little bit faster, then you take a little more…eventually one of us is going to start taking a dangerous level and take unnecessary risks,” he said.

As drugs become easier to obtain, harder to detect, and competition increases, a question presents itself to the university athletic system and its varsity players: Just how effective is drug testing? Is the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS), the largest multi-sport organization in Canada, doing enough to prevent young athletes from diving into the dangerous and tempting world of doping?

The CCES’s Doping Control Program

To keep athletes in check when it comes to drug use, the CIS collaborates with the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES) to create and maintain a doping control program. It aims to ensure athletes comply with the rules of the Canadian Anti-Doping program.

Tom Huisman, Director of CIS operations, said the CCES are crucial for the legitimacy of their efforts. “You need to work through them if you want to have a doping program that is recognized and respected,” he argued.
Yet the question still remains of how respected the CIS drug testing program is. Huisman said that on average 300 to 450 student athletes are tested per year. In the 2008/2009 academic year, only 2.69 per cent of varsity athletes were tested.

“The number needs to balance the resources that are available [from the CCES] and the objectives of the program itself,” said Huisman. “With that number, it comes to about 1 in 20 to 1 in 25 student athletes…the odds are that one athlete can be tested from each team.”

Although one member from every team can be tested, in reality drug tests are administered in certain sports than others. In 2009, 108 tests were administered in football. Swimming, soccer, rugby and other sports had ten tests or less administered to players nationwide.

With the cost of each test estimated at $500, Huisman said it is necessary for the CIS to test certain sports more than others based on their history of drug use. “You want to put your resources in an area where you might have issues,” he said.

Despite the financial necessity of selective drug testing, these uneven procedures have caused apathy in players from less frequently tested sports.

Chloe O’Neill, a member of the UBC rowing team, said, “I’ve never been tested. I don’t know of anyone on the rowing team that’s been tested.”

“If you win gold at Nationals, you don’t get tested. I doubt I would ever get tested. Ever!”

Intelligent Testing

The drug testing policies in place in the CIS not only focus on specific sports, but also focus on specific athletes.
The CIS’ drug control program states that all CIS athletes are eligible to be tested both in-competition and out of competition, through either random or targeted testing.

One of the criteria that increases a player’s chances of being tested is the position they play. Certain positions are more likely to be tested because of the higher benefit that drugs have to these players.

CCES more frequently tests individuals who have a history of failed drug tests or who have gained a considerable amount of weight within a relatively short period of time. They also take tips from other coaches and players in attempts to catch players doping. These not-so-random drug tests have a mixed reaction with athletes.

Justin Belzile, a member of the UBC football team in 2009, said that he definitely noticed the difference between athletes who were tested and those who were not.

“I can’t really say anything, because I have no idea, I only have assumptions. But I can tell you that I made those assumptions by knowing who got tested—people who [the CCES thought]looked like they [took] steroids,” he said.

Women’s volleyball team star Liz Cordonier, who was recently named CIS MVP in her sport for the 2009/2010 season, has been tested by the CCES three times.

During one incident she was approached by two testers while sunbathing at her home in Winnipeg. She was also tested after nationals alongside her teammate.

When asked if she felt being tested so frequently was fair practice, she replied, “Yeah, what’s the point of testing if you’re just wasting everybody’s time?”

Education

In addition to tests, the CIS also attempts to control the use of doping through education. In 2008 an online education program on doping was created. This program consists of an online test that is now mandatory for every athlete to complete to play at the CIS level and teaches players of their rights and responsibilities.

While players have to print out a certificate after taking the test and send it to their athletic department, Huisman admitted that the CIS doesn’t actually look at these records.

“CIS does not require schools to provide proof that their student-athletes have been administered the educational program,” he explained.

However, Huisman didn’t seem too worried. “I believe, and am confident, that the schools are pretty diligent to make sure that their athletes are well-educated on it.”

O’Neill, who was never required to complete an anti-doping education program, said, “Our coach doesn’t talk to us about it….There was some kind of meeting for it, but I don’t think any of us went to it.”

Although the CIS contends that their drug-testing program is effective, the limited size and scope of the CIS and CCES drug-testing program has often been criticized.

Now with the recent discovery of performance enhancing drug trafficking at Waterloo University, the question remains—is the CIS truly doing enough to combat drug use?

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UBC will delay a decision on whether to join the NCAA—again.

For many athletes and coaches at UBC, the summer is a time to reflect on the past season and plan for the upcoming year.
But for the university, it will be a time to make decisions about whether to apply for membership in Division II of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

“By the end of September we will have an idea of how hospitable our future in CIS might be,” said UBC VP Students Brian Sullivan.

“I suspect by the end of September we will have a little more clarity about the process of moving us forward, getting to a decision point for December and June,” he added.

It is the second time UBC has missed a self-imposed deadline on making a decision on whether to enter the NCAA and leave Canadian Inter-university Sport (CIS), the organization that governs all university sport in Canada. With the exception of SFU, who joined the NCAA last year, all Canadian universities with varsity teams compete in the CIS.

Exactly one year ago today, UBC President Stephen Toope told the Senate that UBC would delay a decision on whether to join the American association for a year, saying the university had several unresolved issues with joining the NCAA.

In March 2009, the NCAA Division II Review Committee issued a 588-page report, which did not make a recommendation either way on the contentious issue. It revealed that of the 537 people who filled out a survey on the issue, 52 per cent were against moving to the NCAA.

With the CIS Annual General Meeting coming up in June, Director of UBC Athletics Bob Philip assured that UBC will retain membership in both Canada West and the CIS, committing for the next two years. However, whether or not they will apply for the NCAA is still undecided.

One of the key factors UBC is taking into consideration in terms of the move to NCAA is the full-ride scholarship opportunities available, which often make playing in the US more appealing than playing in Canada for student athletes. Philip has long claimed the lack of scholarships hampers UBC’s ability to keep top athletes in Canada.

Other issues the university seeks to resolve is the often weak competition in the Canada West conference for many UBC teams, and the necessity of the university undergoing American accreditation if they were to join the NCAA.

While there are proposed changes to the CIS scholarship program this year, including a flexible scholarship model that would allow for limited full scholarships for key players, Philip does not believe these changes would affect UBC’s decision.

“There are a number of factors that will go into UBC’s decision to go or not go into the NCAA that are not just the scholarship issue,” he said.

“What I have seen in CIS in regards to the change in scholarship proposal, I would say that this would have no effect on [our decision]. You can argue that it is better than it was, I am not arguing that it isn’t, but it is not a significant change.”

Philip argued that regardless of what the CIS does, it will not impact UBC’s decision.

“[Our contemplation of the NCAA] is not an anti-CIS thing, it is more what’s the right thing to do for UBC Athletics in Vancouver,” he said.

“We didn’t go to the CIS and say, ‘if you don’t change we’re leaving.’ We never felt that the CIS was in a position to change…it is not about the CIS not doing its job, it’s about the CIS doing what it can do,” he said.

With two years of negotiations, meetings and discussions behind them, both Sullivan and Philip are aware that UBC needs to make a decision as soon as possible.

“We need to settle this issue to be fair to perspective students, student athletes and coaches who are thinking of coming to UBC,” said Sullivan.

Philip added, “This can’t continue on too much longer and we are all aware of that. Yet, I think having this interval to pause and to constructively work hard within the existing structure of CIS to try to get these improvements has been the wise thing to do.”

OTTAWA (CUP) — Fans of the Gaels, Carabins, and Cascades — among others — must all have asked themselves at one point what in the world their teams’ name means. In order to spread some wisdom from coast to coast, the *Fulcrum*, with the help of sports editors from across the country, attempts to reveal the meaning behind the names of some of Canada’s university teams.

McGill University Redmen and Martlets
Montréal, Que.

The Redmen is the name used to describe the men’s athletic teams at McGill. The term was first used in 1929 as “Red Men” in order to describe the red uniforms won by the sports teams. The word “redmen” also serves as a nod to the Scottish heritage of James McGill, the university’s founder, as in previous times the word was used to describe Celts who had red hair. The Martlets is the name used for the women’s teams at McGill since 1976. A martlet is a mythical bird that has no feet, making it unable to land. As such, it is constantly soaring. Three martlets are featured in the university’s logo as they were also present in James McGill’s family’s coat of arms.

– Andrew Hawley, The Fulcrum

University of Manitoba Bisons
Winnipeg, Man.

The men’s hockey team at Manitoba has worn the Bison logo the longest, having played in the Canada West conference since the 1919–20 season. Bisons once dominated the Canadian prairie landscape through their sheer size and numbers. This powerful animal is sacred to Canada’s First Nations peoples and is used as a symbol for the province of Manitoba and for the University of Manitoba sports teams. The animal as a logo is intended to symbolize strength, determination, and perseverance, which are integral aspects of all Bison athletes.

— Noreen Mae Ritsema, The Manitoban

Concordia University Stingers
Montréal, Que.

Up until 1974, Concordia University was actually two separate universities. When Loyola College and Sir George Williams University combined to create Concordia, their athletic departments remained separate for a year. In 1975, they combined and were originally given the name the Concordians. In November 1975 the name was changed to Stingers, and they adopted their current colours of maroon, gold and white. Around 1979, a bee mascot was introduced to represent and cheer on Concordia at various events, sporting and otherwise. Though originally given the name “Stinger,” he is now known lovingly throughout Concordia as “Buzz.”

— Jamie Gewurz, The Concordian

University of the Fraser Valley Cascades
Abbotsford, B.C.

The University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) was founded as a community college in 1974, and its athletics program started in 1981. UFV gained university status in 2008 but began competing on the Canadian Interuniversity Sport level in 2006.

The school’s teams are named the “Cascades” in honour of local legend and geography. The Cascade mountain range, or the Cascades, extends from southern B.C. to northern California, includes many volcanoes, and is a part of the Pacific’s Ring of Fire.

The area’s mythology describes the mountains as chiefs who fought each other with fire and stone. Indeed, their logo seems to personify the mountains.

UFV’s mascot is a sasquatch, a purported resident of the Cascades.

— Des Fisher, The Fulcrum

University of British Columbia Thunderbirds
Vancouver, B.C.

UBC was founded in 1908, but for many years varsity teams competed without a team name. They were occasionally called “The Blue and Gold” as a substitute, referencing their uniform colours. In 1933, The Ubyssey stepped in by running a contest to find a “popular name or mascot.” The write-in candidate that garnered the most student support was the “Seagulls.”

Unsurprisingly, we rejected the name, and held a public meeting the next year. After a lengthy debate, consensus was formed around “Thunderbirds” as a suitable name, beating out “Golden Eagles.” “Thunderbirds” was used informally by the athletic department until 1948, when an official ceremony with the Kwicksutaineuk people sanctioned the use of the name “Thunderbirds” for all teams on campus.

University of Western Ontario Mustangs
London, Ont.

According to Andy Watson, sports information coordinator for the Mustangs athletics department, the origin of the name at Western dates back to the 1920s. Two local London newspapers coined various nicknames for sport teams, including “Broncos” for the football team. With their original colours of purple, tan and white, the team was even labeled the “Skeletons” at one point. The first reference of the word “Mustangs” was in 1929 by the London Free Press. At the time, the head football coach wanted the team to be called the “Purples.” However, the Western Gazette student paper conducted a poll, and “Mustangs” won against the “Purples.” From then on, “Mustangs” was the official name for the university’s teams.

—Andrew Hawley, The Fulcrum

Université de Montréal Carabins
Montréal, Que.

According to the Carabins athletics department website, the sports teams’ name was initially derived from describing a type of student. In the 19th century, the French term “carabin” was used informally to describe medical students, especially those who frequently played sports. The term became more popular over time in describing med students who played sports when they weren’t studying, following the “work hard, play hard” mantra. The students’ association at Montreal embraced the word “carabin” for symbolizing school spirit and student solidarity, and the term was officially adopted for athletic teams in 1922. The Carabins logo features the school colours of blue, white, and black, and also includes a campus landmark: the imposing Roger-Gaudry tower, designed by noted architect Ernest Cormier.

— Andrew Hawley, The Fulcrum

Wilfrid Laurier University Golden Hawks
Waterloo, Ont.

Back when Wilfrid Laurier University was called Waterloo College, the school colours were firmly established as being purple and gold, but the athletic teams did not have a name. In the 1950s, students on campus began to call its varsity sports teams the Mules. This name was quickly adopted by Laurier’s student newspaper, formerly called the *Cord Weekly*. By 1960, when the university had changed its name to Waterloo Lutheran University, the editorial board at the *Cord Weekly* felt that its sports teams’ name was derogatory, and the student body began to search for alternatives. In the end, the students decided on the Hawks, with Golden being added on as a reference to the school colours. An actual stuffed golden hawk exists on campus; though the feathers are deteriorating and the golden paint is peeling, it still symbolizes an important part of the university’s history.

— Jaehoon Kim, The Fulcrum

Queen’s University Golden Gaels
Kingston, Ont.

Since the Scottish Presbyterian Church founded Queen’s in 1841, the university’s sports teams are called “Gaels” in reference to Scottish heritage. The term “Gael” refers to a person who speaks Gaelic, a language typically originating from the Scottish Highlands. As well, Kingston Whig-Standard reporter Cliff Bowering coined the term “Golden Gaels” in 1947, which referred to the head-to-toe yellow outfit debuted by the team in a football game. The “Golden” term caught on by the 1950s and has remained since. In 2008, though, the Queen’s athletic department started referring to teams as simply the “Gaels,” but they stated that the name was not being officially changed.

— Amrit Ahluwalia, The Queen’s Journal

University of Ottawa Gee-Gees
Ottawa, Ont.

Garnet and Grey have been the traditional colours for the University of Ottawa, dating back to when the school was founded in 1848. The team did not initially have its own name but was instead referred to by its colours, as most schools were back then. Local Ottawa media began calling the team GGs (the abbreviation for garnet and grey) and by the 1950s this developed into the name Gee-Gees, which has stuck ever since. Since a Gee-Gee is the lead horse in a race, Ottawa’s logo features a horse encompassing two letter Gs.

— Andrew Hawley, The Fulcrum

McMaster University Marauders
Hamilton, Ont.

In November of 1948, the McMaster Silhouette published a contest to come up with a nickname for McMaster’s varsity teams. The paper offered one prize for the winner — the hope of inspired varsity teams. A student by the name of Bill Cline entered “Marauders,” and by early December, the Silhouette reported that the “Mac Marauders lose opener to Central Y.” In the yearbook for that season, the football team, which was coached by McMaster legends Ivor Wynne and Les Prince, was listed as the McMaster Maroon Marauders. The name has stuck ever since.

— Brian Decker, The Silhouette

Cape Breton University Capers
Sydney, N.S.

Cape Breton Island was home to the University College of Cape Breton beginning in 1974. In 2005, the school was officially renamed Cape Breton University while maintaining its former athletic colours: a bright stream of orange, green, and white. The name “Caper” (a term describing a resident of the island) was chosen to reflect Nova Scotia’s pride in preserving the Gaelic culture and its ties to a history of Scottish immigration, especially during the Highland Clearances (CBU’s mascot is called the Highlander). The image of a charging Gaelic warrior represents everything that the athletic department at CBU stands for: fierceness, strength, and determination.

— Katie DeClerq, The Fulcrum

Simon Fraser University Clan
Burnaby, B.C.

The university was founded in 1965 and named after Simon Fraser, a fur trader who charted most of what is now British Columbia, including the Fraser River. The explorer was a member of “Clan Fraser,” a Scottish clan of French origin that was founded in Inverness in the 13th century. “Clan” then became the name for the university sports teams, as Clan Fraser was involved in every major military conflict in Scotland since its founding. As a nod to the university’s close ties to Scottish history, the Clan’s current mascot is a Scottish terrier named McFogg the Dog.

— Matt Lee, The Peak

Acadia University Axemen and Axewomen
Wolfville, N.S.

Acadia University has a mascot derived from its unique history. The school is located in the rural but scenic Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia. Upon its founding in 1868, Acadia was little more than a collection of educators looking to establish a Baptist institution for higher learning. The university was created on donated land from the loggers and “axemen” of the Annapolis Valley — the traditional labourers during the heady foresting days of yore. The axemen donated their time to clearing the land and building the first structures of Acadia University; hence their selection as the school’s sports teams’ name.

— Tim Hansen, The Athenaeum

University of Victoria Vikings
Victoria, B.C.

This school’s team name dates back to 1945–46, when a naming contest was held while the university’s home was Craigdarroch Castle, a large Victorian mansion.

Mike Tucker, communications officer for the Vikes, relayed this report from alumnus Harry Greenhough: “I was down in the smoking room at the Castle, and I was talking to this fellow, and he had just won $5.00 because he’d thought of the name ‘Vikings.’ And he was very happy. And when you consider that $5.00 in those days was quite a bit of money, it was well worth it.”

The Vikes mascot is a Viking named Thunder — appropriate, since the Norse god Thor was the god of thunder.

— Des Fisher, The Fulcrum

Bishop’s University Gaiters
Sherbrooke, Que.

These aren’t your green reptilian “gators.” The term “gaiter” refers to the clerical boot covering (originally made of leather) worn by Anglican bishops up until the early part of the 20th century. At that time, gaiters were used for practical purposes as bishops were mobile and often rode horses for travel. The name is a nod to the university’s history, as the primarily English-speaking school (Concordia and McGill are the other universities in Quebec run primarily in English) was established in 1843 as a Bishop’s College and remained under the Anglican Church’s control until 1947. Despite an undergraduate student population of just under 2,000, Gaiters fans have a reputation for showing a strong affinity for their sports teams.

— Andrew Hawley, The Fulcrum

Carleton University Ravens
Ottawa, Ont.

Founded as a small college in 1942, Carleton was first associated with the name “Ravens” in the 1940s. The school’s football team was called the “Originals,” and in 1948 the student newspaper the *Carleton* (which later became the *Charlatan*) called them the “Ravens.” This was likely because the team sported Raven-black coloured jerseys. According to Keith Harris, a former athletic director at Carleton, it was a photograph of the football team that inspired the name: during a game in rainy weather, players apparently covered their heads with black jerseys, bearing a resemblance to black birds. To this day, Carleton’s emblem—which dates back to when the school received university status in 1957 — includes a pair of ravens.

— Erin Walkinshaw, The Charlatan

University of Calgary Dinos
Calgary, Alta.

Known for its dinosaur-related attractions such as Dinosaur Provincial Park and the Royal Tyrrell Museum, Southern Alberta’s dinosaur motif is not limited to tourism. The University of Calgary officially selected the “Dinosaurs” to be their mascot when the athletic department was established in 1964. The building of the athletics program coincided with the archaeological digs in Dinosaur Provincial Park, and the excitement inspired the university to choose Rex the Dinosaur as the mascot. The sports teams’ name was later officially shortened to “Dinos” in 1998. To their knowledge, they are the only dinosaur-related university sports team in North America.

— Katie DeClerq, The Fulcrum

University of New Brunswick Varsity Reds
Fredericton, N.B.

The University of New Brunswick teams had various nicknames before they were named the Varsity Reds. This was especially true during the latter part of the school’s 225-year history. There was a wide variety of names including Red Devils, Red Raiders, Red Harriers, and even the UNB Swimming Beavers and Mermaids. The media often confused teams and even the student population was unclear as to which name belonged to which team. At the beginning of the 1993–94 season, the athletics department drummed up suggestions from the surrounding community and polled the coaches for a final decision. The name “Varsity Reds” was proposed and stood out from the pack.

— Colin McPhail, The Brunswickan

Lakehead University Thunderwolves
Thunder Bay, Ont.

Lakehead University had gone through a couple of name changes in its history before settling on “Thunderwolves.” The school used to be known as the Lakehead Technical Institute back in the 1940s, and its sports teams were referred to as the “Mustangs.” By 1965, Lakehead had gained full university status, and their team name was changed to the “Nor’Westers,” coined after a group of mountains in the Thunder Bay region. In 1998, university president Frederick Gilbert decided on a name change as “Nor’Westers” was somewhat difficult to market. After a student vote, the team was rebranded as the “Thunderwolves.” The name was a nod to the city of Thunder Bay as well as the university’s fitness centre, called the Wolves’ Den.

— Jaehoon Kim, The Fulcrum

Storm the Wall is back, and with a record 3000 students and community members competing, the only part of the event not growing is the 12-foot-high wall itself.

Started in 1979, Storm the Wall was created to bring students together. Since its humble beginnings, the event has grown to become one of the most well-known university recreational events in Canada.

Teams divide up the tasks of a 1 km run, 225 yard swim, 2.8 km bike ride and 450 meter sprint, leading to the climactic moment where all members of the group scale a 12-foot wall in front of their peers watching from the Grassy Knoll.

Otherwise known as “storming the wall,” every team member and individual competitor must make it over the wall to finish the race, which, as Events Coordinator at UBC REC Caitlin Brenchley explained, is the most difficult and dangerous part of the event.

“This is probably one of the most risky events that UBC REC runs,” said Brenchley. “Especially when students are doing it for the first time and have a bunch of people cheering them on,” she added.

So just how the heck do competitors scale a 12-foot wall? As Brenchley said, many of the techniques vary with skill level. Here are just a few of the different ways people choose to scale the wall:

The two-one-two:

Used primarily by REC or “Just for fun” competitors, the “two-one-two” technique involves one base on the ground and one or two people at the top of the wall, explained Adam Mattinson, who is competing in his third Storm the Wall. The person scaling the wall then climbs on top of their teammates and is pulled up over the top.

The Rocket:

Another technique for storming the wall is “the Rocket.” Used primarily by male teams, this method also uses two bases, but has no supports at the top of the wall. Instead, participants run at the wall, are supported by their two bases and try to grab the top of the wall all by themselves.

“Male teams often shoot themselves up on their own,” said Brenchley. “They use their height and upper body strength to pull themselves over.”

The Run & Jump:

Iron Person competitions are what they sound like—instead of a team, it’s one person doing all parts of the relay by themselves, culminating in storming the wall. IronMen are allowed one person at the top of the wall to help them, while IronWomen are allowed one person at the bottom as well.
To scale the wall these Iron Persons run up the wall and grab a hand. “They somehow use their upper body strength and their friend’s upper body strength to sort of heave themselves over,” Brenchley said.

The Superman:

But if competitors are feeling exceptionally confident, they can also race as Super IronMen or IronWomen. These Super Iron People scale the wall with absolutely no help (although women are allowed one person at the top).

Jordan Meynhart, a competitor who has completed this amazing feat, explained that making it over unassisted is all about skill.

“My vertical is very small and I actually can’t jump very high. I can’t even dunk and I’m like 6’2’’, he said. “I think it is all technique running up the wall.”

Although he couldn’t think of any tricks to making it over, he did propose a new technique to help future teams.

“I do think it would be cool to do a cheerleader launch with a team and kind of chuck people over,” he said.

Participants compete in the following categories:

Competitive Teams
Teams will complete the entire course without assistance, and will be eligible for advancements to Semi-Finals and Finals.

“Just For Fun” Teams
Teams will compete only once. They are given any help they need to ‘storm the wall’.

Iron Persons
Individuals will complete all four legs of the relay themselves before storming the wall in the following categories:

IronMan
May have the help of one male at the top of the wall.

IronWoman
May have the help of one person of either gender at the bottom of the wall.

Super IronWoman
May have the help of one person of either gender at the top of the wall.

Super IronMan
May not have the help of any one.

Last Wednesday, the men’s rugby team lost the second World Cup match this year against the California Golden Bears of Berkeley 41–10.
In front of a few spectators at Thunderbird Stadium, the men’s team played valiantly despite missing eight starters due to injuries. As such, they were out-muscled and out-played. In the first ten minutes, the Golden Bears scored two tries, with one conversion. By half-time, Cal was ahead 24–3.

“The many young guys…playing are good, don’t get me wrong, but they lack physical strength, size and experience, and California capitalized on that. The team needs to literally grow,” said graduating prop Clayton Hunter-James.

“I truly believe if we were not hindered by the vast amount of injuries we could have beat that
team. I remember in September saying, ‘Wow, with these guys, we are going to kill Cal
this year.’ Unfortunately most of those guys were not with us for the game,” Hunter-James continued.

‘The guys’ Hunter-James was referring to are the backs. Of the usual seven backs, only one played last Wednesday. The inexperience and nerves crippled UBC’s chances. “This game, being one of the
biggest in our year, brings out the nerves in some of the younger guys and that had its effects in the first few minutes of the game. Once the boys start to make contact and settle in, it becomes easier to focus on their individual assignments,” graduating senior Sam Penhall said.

“Before the game we were really worried about losing like we did when we were down there, which in the end pretty much happened,” added Hunter-James. “[But] by the second half everyone realized these guys are not that tough and when we run at them, well they are not used to it and don’t like it at all, quite frankly.”

On Monday, a UBC football player tripped in a small pothole and suffered a second-degree ankle sprain while practicing.

“It’s one of the worst facilities for football at any university in Canada. It’s actually unsafe,” said head coach Shawn Olson of Thunderbird Stadium.

After many years of promises, help is on the way. UBC’s Property and Planning Committee gave full approval to install a turf field at Thunderbird Stadium.

The $2.6 million project will see the grass of Thunderbird Stadium ripped up in late April and replaced with a synthetic turf field. Dan Cooper, Facilities Manager of Thunderbird Stadium, said that UBC Athletics will decide within the next month whether to go with Field Turf, PolyTan or Astroturf for the stadium, which is expected to be ready by the time training camp begins for the men’s football team in early August.

“It’s massive,” said Olson. “Absolutely massive on so many fronts…from a recruiting perspective, it’s one thing to watch a recruit on the field and they see a pothole, or they see a nice turf field with a huge thunderbird logo in the middle.”

“Around the league and with alumni, it’ll be huge as well, because I think the perception is that nothing’s been done for football for a while, and I think that will change as soon as the ground is broken.”

It’s a perception that has a fair bit of truth to it. While Athletics has spent millions on Thunderbird Arena, a baseball field, a track field and installation of turf fields for soccer, the football program has languished in recent years.

Critics of UBC’s Athletics Department have pointed to the lack of attention placed on the football program as a reason for its struggles over the last few years. The team has won one playoff game in the last decade, and coach Ted Goveia was let go last fall after a third straight season in which the T-Birds didn’t make it to the playoffs.

Following Goveia’s dismissal, Athletic Director Bob Philip promised the field would be installed and while detractors pointed out the promise had been made before, this year he came through.

The decision also means the end of concerts at Thunderbird Stadium. Radiohead, REM, dozens of Warped Tours and plenty of different festivals have graced the stadium overthe years. Olson, himself a student at UBC in the 90s, admitted the decision was unfortunate.

“There’s been some great memories here…I remember some Arts County Fairs, Edgefests, all kinds of Lollapalooza stuff,” he said.”It’s bittersweet.”

The turf also secures the future of Thunderbird Stadium, built in 1967, for the foreseeable future. Tentative plans by UBC had marked the area the stadium sits on for market condos, with a smaller football stadium built at a different location on campus.

“I love Thunderbird Stadium,” said Olson. “I think it’s one of the coolest stadiums in all of Canada. I tell recruits it’s got a lot of history, a lot of nostalgia. It just needs some TLC.”

With the “strongest pitching staff he’s ever seen,” head coach Terry McKaig is confident that the T-Birds will succeed during league play, and once again compete in the NAIA World Series Championships in May.

“There is no doubt that [the championships] is our goal this season,” said McKaig. “It is our goal every season, but we’ve definitely been building towards this for the last few years, and we think the team we’ve assembled has a definite chance,” he added.

With no other fully-funded university baseball program in Canada, the T-Birds annually compete in a series of exhibition and league games against smaller colleges in north-western USA. The T-Birds started their season  with a 14–1 record, including a perfect 8–0 in conference play.

Last year, as the defending Western Crown Champions, the T-Birds were strong all year, ending league play with a 26–6 record, winning the conference championships at home and securing a spot in the NAIA Championships in Southern California.

Yet it was at the league championships that their season fell apart, after an injury left them without top pitcher Mark Hardy, who is expected to be chosen this summer in the MLB draft. The T-Birds went on to suffer a “tragic” 15-12 loss against Azusa Pacific and were eliminated in the opening round of the semi-finals.

The loss wasn’t in vain, however, as it was Hardy’s injury and the team’s elimination that sparked many key changes to the roster this year. One of these changes was the recruitment of additional pitching staff.

These recruits include Sheldon McDonald of the Northeastern Huskies who, in 2008, had 72 strikeouts for the team, and Brandon Kaye, who played for the Douglas College Royals and was a 45th round draft pick of the Toronto Blue Jays in 2009.

“I would say depth is our biggest improvement,“ said McKaig. “We realized in Southern California, after Mark Hardy’s injury, that we had sort of hit the wall and ran out of arms. Now let’s say one of our top arms goes down, it would hurt, no question, but I don’t think it would mean that we still couldn’t beat a good team at the end of the year,” he said.

The team has lost a few big hitters this season. Foremost among them is Jon Syrnyk, who led the T-Birds with seven home runs, 24 steals and a .333 batting average. Despite this, McKaig is optimistic that the team’s overall abilities will fill in any offensive gaps.

Already, numerous players have stepped in to provide offence for the team, such as rookies Blake Carruthers and Keaton Briscoe, who has demonstrated his skills early on with three home runs, 17 RBI’s and a .420 batting average.

“We might not have the one or two hitters that are going to carry us all year, but I think we have seven or eight overall that are better than the seven or eight we had last year,” said McKaig.

This year’s team may have versatility and strength, but if they want to have a chance at the final championship round they will also have to maintain the momentum they’ve built up through the rest of the season.

“It is great that we’ve got off to a good start and we have a really good record, but at the same time what we did in February isn’t going to matter if we don’t do it in May.”

2008/2009 Recap

Final Record:  26–6.

Playoffs: 5–3.

Standings: No. 1 seed in the unaffiliated conference, lost in NAIA semifinals round.

Interesting fact: Before Thunderbird Park was built, UBC played its home games at Nat Bailey Stadium, home of the Vancouver Canadians.

2009/2010 preview

Star slugger: 
Through 15 games, Nic Lendvoy leads the team in home runs (5), runs batted in (20), total bases (39), and has had six multiple RBI games.

Defensive wizard: 
Shortstop Sammie Starr, in his final season with the Thunderbirds, has a team-leading 45 assists this year to go with an outstanding .915 fielding percentage—and his .345 batting average isn’t too shabby, either.

Ace pitcher: 
Brandon Kaye, half-brother of Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Scott Richmond, has given up 1.50 per nine innings (better known as earned-run average, or “ERA”) and is second on the team with 12 strikeouts.

Schedule:

Mar. 27 @ Lewis-Clark State (DH), 1pm
Mar. 28 @ Lewis-Clark State, 12pm
Mar. 29 @ Washington State University, 3pm
Apr. 2 vs Corgan College (DH), 12pm
Apr. 3 vs Corgan College (DH), 11am
Apr. 6 @ Seattle University, 6pm
Apr. 10 vs Concordia (DH), 12pm
Apr. 11 vs Concordia (DH), 11am
Apr. 16 vs Lewis-Clark State, 4pm
Apr. 17 vs Lewis-Clark State, 1pm
Apr. 18 vs Lewis-Clark State, 2pm
Apr. 24 vs Oregon Tech (DH), 12pm
Apr. 25 vs Oregon Tech (DH), 11am
May 1 @ College of Idaho (DH), 1pm
May 2 @ College of Idaho (DH), 11am
May 6–8: West Grouping Tournament
May 18–21: Sectional Tournament
May 28–June 4: NAIA World Series

— DH indicates doubleheader. All
game times local.
Home games
available on CiTR

Over the past month, you might have seen calendars on campus featuring muscled males, rugby balls and very little clothing. The men’s rugby team has put out a calendar to raise money for their program‚ but whatever you do, don’t call it an “official” team fundraiser.

“Is it from the men’s rugby team? It doesn’t say UBC Rugby or UBC Athletics anywhere in it, does it?” said Steve Tuckwood, an associate director of Athletics, showing off his best poker face.

The story behind the rugby calendar is a familiar one. Athletes looking for sources of money to pay for the resources needed to compete.

In this case, the rugby team wanted better practice equipment, a possible ice machine,  and the possibility to go on a tour.

These expenses would be normal for UBC’s tier one athletic programs (UBC ranks its programs into three tiers with those in tier one receiving the most funding), but not for a tier three team like rugby.

Short on necessary equipment, the team sought a new revenue stream. They struck gold with the calendar. The idea came from team manager Christopher Daniels, who had seen other teams and groups cobble together calendars to help ease their financial burdens.

From shooting to editing to printing, Daniels put in about 60 hours to get the calendar together.

“We…thought it would be fun and give the athletic community at UBC a little excitement and personality,” said Ben Jones, a member of the rugby team.

However,  when it was brought to UBC Athletics’ attention, the project was shot down.

“It wasn’t a brand of character that UBC Athletics wanted to portray student athletes,” said Jones.

“A team can fundraise, but it has to be professional, it has to be tasteful,” said Theresa Hanson, an associate director of Athletics.

“We wouldn’t allow a team to throw a kegger as a fundraiser, for example…if you’re a varsity athlete, you’re representing the Athletic program and UBC at all times.”

Still, the team continued to press for the calendar to go through until it was finally approved but with two conditions: all UBC identifiers be removed from the photo and all explicit images be edited out, an edict that Jones admitted required the team to do some more post-production work with a few of the images.

With the approval, just over 900 calendars have been sold at $15 a piece‚ slightly short of the 1000 that they printed.

“I thought it was very successful,” said Daniels.

“Considering that we couldn’t get the calendar out until the New Year because of delays…we still managed to sell a considerable number.”

Spence McTavish, the head coach of the team, said that the money raised will be used for either a new ice machine, or for a new scrum machine. Though he kept his distance from the project, he was pleased with the “entrepreneurial spirit” the team showed.

“It was a fun thing to do, they had a laugh with it and made some money.”

Those wishing to purchase a calendar can e-mail Christopher Daniel, the team manager, at christopher.daniel89@gmail.com.

After five months, 22 wins and a 3500-kilometre flight to Ottawa, the UBC men’s basketball team are bridesmaids once more.

The T-Birds lost to the Saskatchewan Huskies 91–81 in the CIS gold medal game Sunday evening, dashing UBC’s dreams of winning their first national championship since 1972.
Josh Whyte and Kamar Burke each had 16 points in a lost cause for the T-Birds. UBC gave up a 14–0 run late in the first quarter and was unable to recover against the No. 5 Huskies, who upset the No. 1 ranked Carleton Ravens to advance to the final.

The loss was doubly heartbreaking for UBC, who had not only lost to the Huskies in the Canada West semifinal, but also lost in last year’s championship game, a 87–77 loss to Carleton.

It wasn’t supposed to be this way. After qualifying for the CIS championships with the No. 3 seed, UBC was serenaded with honours upon arriving in Ottawa.  Josh Whyte, who led the team in points, assists and steals was named CIS MVP, and Kevin Hanson was given his second Coach of the Year award.

UBC followed that up with easy victories over Lakehead in the quarterfinals (79–58) and Calgary in the semifinals (77–63).

Despite this, the T-Birds had no answer for Saskatchewan’s speed and skill. Guard Showron Glover, the leading scorer in the CIS this year, had 28 points, ten assists and six assists and the Huskies forced UBC into 18 turnovers.

Down at one point by 17 in the third quarter, the T-Birds continued to claw back, cutting the lead to five points on a number of occasions in the fourth quarter.

But the Huskies responded each time, and a three-pointer by Michael Linklater gave Saskatchewan a 84–78 lead. It was the nail in the T-Birds’ coffin, leaving the crowd of 125 or so that had packed Mahoney and Sons to watch the game filing out with a bitter taste in their mouths.

Two weeks ago, after UBC lost to Saskatchewan in the Canada West semifinals, coach Hanson invoked Canada’s performance in hockey at the Olympics.

“If we’re fortunate enough to get [into the nationals]…we can look at the Olympics where Canada lost to the US in the first round,” he said. “It would be a great scenario for us to have that same chance in two weeks.”

Indeed, the scenario unfolded as Hanson predicted—except that in this version, Ryan Kesler scored in overtime for the US.

“It doesn’t matter if you score 20 points or how well you play if you lose,” Kamar Burke said. “We didn’t get it done. We’re really upset right now.”