Meredith Nix '19 loves running-- read her interview with TSV here.
Read MoreAthlete Profile: Vaiva Palunas
Palunas broke the 22-year old CMS women’s discus record with a mark of 43.42m (142-5) at the Rossi Relays hosted by CMS last year. She was also 10th in the nation going into Nationals for discus.
Read MoreAthlete Profile: Teeana Cotangco CMC '19
Teeana Cotangco, a first-year at CMC, will serve as the team’s point guard for this upcoming basketball season.
Read MoreAthlete Profile: Maddie Peterson
Maddie Peterson ‘19 has joined the soccer team this year playing defense. After playing soccer for 11 years in her hometown of Salt Lake City, UT, she’s bringing her skills to the CMS team.
Read MoreAthlete profile: Mara Falahee
Athlete Spotlight interview of CMS basketball player Mara Falahee (SCR) '16
Read MoreAthlete Profile: Deena Woloshin
The Claremont Equestrian Team is composed of students from all of the five Claremont Colleges and requires no previous background in riding. The team ranges from individuals who have never ridden before to those who have been riding for most of their lives. Each member takes weekly lessons from the team’s trainer and has the opportunity to compete on the show team for the duration of the school year. The horse shows are hosted by various teams from other colleges and are put on by the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association. Competitions consist of Flat classes and Over Fences classes. Flat rounds consist of a combination of walking, trotting or cantering and Over Fences requires participants to jump fences of a certain height. The team competes in seven or eight shows per school year, located anywhere from San Diego to Arizona. Scripps first year Deena Woloshin arrived on the team at the start of the 2014 season with years of experience behind her.
How did you get involved with riding and showing?
When I was five, I lived in London right next to Hyde Park, and they had barns and cobblestone streets. When I turned six, I was kind of upset because we had just moved, and I was a kindergartener, and so for my sixth birthday my parents got me a package of horse riding lessons at one of these little barns. And I just stuck with it.
What do you do with horses now? What does being on the equestrian team mean?
I was only looking at colleges with equestrian teams, so at home I have my team, but when I came here I started riding with the trainer for the show team. We have team dinners which are really nice, and the show team has two types of competitions. There is flat where you go around the ring and you are judged based on how your position is and how you [look] with the horse. Then there is another section of jumping where you have a course that you have to memorize, and you are judged based on how well it is performed, based on the horse and how you are riding.
What type of riding do you do with your team at home?
At home, I do a type of riding called eventing which is a three-phase event. It is dressage, which is a type of flat work, and then cross country, which is basically a cross country running course except on horseback with much bigger obstacles and is really fun. Then there is show jumping which is probably what most people know about horseback riding. You are in a ring with jumps, and you are timed, and you have to get through the course as fast as possible without knocking anything down or falling off or missing a jump. I compete with a separate team at home for that.What is your favorite part about being involved with an equestrian team?
I feel like equestrian people, horse people in general whether you are a cowgirl or a jumper or just work on a farm, are different types of people. You always have something to talk about, and having that community at school is something really important.
What is the best part about being on the Claremont Equestrian Team?
The girls are really nice, you get to meet people from different schools, and it is a good way to do that. Whether people are competing or riding for fun, you get to meet a different group of people who you might not otherwise meet. We also get to travel for competitions, which is really fun. You get to meet different people at the shows and see where different people ride. It’s an experience!
What are you most excited for during the remainder of the year?
We are going to Arizona for a competition, and I have never been to Arizona before. The weather will be really nice, and it will be cool to actually go somewhere that is a trek. It will be good bonding and riding, and definitely an experience.
The team’s next show is in Gilbert, Arizona from Feb. 6 to 8.
Athlete Profile: Wren Osler '18
Talia Speaker '18 interviews Wren Osler '18 for this issue's Athlete Profile
Read MoreThe First Year Experience: A just-as-hard-hitting look at the first-year life
As of last week, we have officially been “in college” for an entire month now. I know, I know, hold your applause; we have accomplished the impossible with grace and aplomb. I understand how impressed you are. Since the function of this section is to give an in-depth review of the true first-year experience, it is thus my duty as your friendly neighborhood staff writer to relay to you the top ten things that I have learned during my first four weeks of school.
Read MoreAthlete Profile: Maya Bhat (CMC '18)
Maya Bhat (CMC '18) didn't compete in golf until a few years ago, but she's been playing for most of her life. Photo courtesy of Maya Bhat.
A first year at Claremont McKenna College, Maya Bhat has been swinging a golf club for most of her life. Influenced by her dad to start playing, she is now a member of the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (CMS) Women’s Golf team. She did not start playing competitively until her sophomore year in high school, but improved quickly from a handicap of about 18 to her current 2.8.
When did you start playing golf?
I’ve owned golf clubs since I was four, but I also started gymnastics when I was four. Gymnastics took up most of my time as I was training up to 26 hours each week and along with school there wasn’t much time for golf. I’d usually play once every three months or so until I got injured in gymnastics three years ago. I guess seriously and competitively I’ve been playing golf for about three years, but I’ve owned clubs for 14 years.
What influenced you to start golf?
My dad got my whole family into golf. He’s always loved it so he introduced my mom, brother and me to the sport and it became a family event. My parents travel a lot for work so when we do get time together we try to utilize it really well. One of the things we do together is play golf. We all have varying levels of skill but we all play. So on the occasional Sunday we would drive across the border from Singapore to Malaysia and play a round of golf. It’s a nice way to spend time with the family and I thank my dad for using it to connect the family.
What was it like to switch from gymnasticss to golf since they are so different?
It was tough. Both gymnastics and golf are very individual sports in the technical sense, but gymnastics is much more of a team sport. You’re always with your teammates, you go through the same crazy-hard training sessions, you get yelled at by the same coaches and you go through the same mental blocks. Since you spend so much time with your teammates they become your best friends and they’ve always got your back. Whereas with golf when you’re in a competition you are alone in your head and you have so many thoughts going through your mind. And controlling those thoughts rather than being able to laugh and talk with your friends was a huge difference. The fact that you also have to stay focused for 4-5 hours in a golf game was tough compared to the five minutes you are on the apparatus in a gymnastics competition.
What is the best part of being on a college team?
I guess the team. Now I have a consistent team and I’m playing with girls, which is crazy. Back home my whole team was guys except for one other girl. Now I’ve actually got girls to play with which is really cool. Also back home everyone had different training days and training hours so although we were a team we weren’t really because you just did your own thing. Being on a college team is kind of replicating the family that I missed from gym because we’re all going through the same thing together.
Can you tell me a little bit about your first tournament?
We played at Torrey Pines in San Diego, which is a beautiful course. I did not play as well as I would’ve hoped. I don’t know what happened but the two days we played were not my finest. It was a lot of fun though. Other than not playing well, the course was gorgeous and the team was super fun. The three days we were gone were the hottest three days in Claremont, so while all of my friends in the Claremont colleges were toasting, I was in a hotel with AC, super-comfortable beds, and pillows, and blankets and it was fantastic. It was a good team bonding experience, especially as a freshman coming onto the team.