The truth

Collegiate varsity student athletes are unfairly held in superior status to collegiate club athletes. Speaking from the perspective of a club athlete with varsity athlete friends, it is unfair that we as club sports are often thought of as second rate, not competitive, or "recreational." A serious club sport, such as rowing at NMU, practices six times a week. This is on par with many varsity sports or slightly less. Varsity sports however have reserved spaces for practice, team rooms, coaches, and trainers. As a club sport we have to fight to use a public gym or other public space, we have a coach to run practice for us only sometimes, and we have to work around the schedules of our athletes. As a club sport we do an excessive amount of travel for regattas and training. Varsity sports also spend a large amount of time on the road. However there is another important contrast to be made here. Varsity athletes ride comfortably on buses and planes driven by a hired person. As a club sport we pack into 15 passenger vans and take turns driving. When the varsity athletes arrive at their hotel, we arrive at the gym. Varsity athletes shower and relax in bed, while we spread out sleeping bags and crash on the floor. At the beginning of a season a varsity athlete is handed a schedule, while a club athlete spends hours working together with teammates to make a schedule. What is handed to varsity athletes by all of the behind the scenes administrators, club athletes need to prepare for themselves. And perhaps the most impressive reason that club athletes should be held in greater regard is that we are given no scholarships, no uniforms, no Nike shoes, and no equipment. In fact while every Varsity athlete at Northern receives free text books, many receive scholarships, and none pay anything to compete, I find myself paying. Paying for travel, paying for use of the athletics facility, paying for equipment, paying for use of a dock, uniforms, regatta entry fees, and spring training. All of this on top of tuition, rent, food, and textbooks. Unlike Varsity athletes the majority of club athletes have to hold down jobs to pay for all these things on top of practice, class, and competitions. As a dedicated athlete, who rows with an extremely dedicated group of people. I find that I am not overstepping my bounds in any way, when I say that a club athlete puts forth as much, if not more effort, to compete than a varsity athlete. We both work hard on the field, we both work hard in out studies, but club athletes also have to work hard to finance their desire to compete, and coordinate the things necessary to compete. I used to want to be varsity, but now I have come to realize that being a club athlete, has been, and will continue to be a more rewarding and challenging experience, than I would receive as a pampered member of a varsity program. I row club, not because I am not "good enough" for varsity, but because I am better than varsity.