A WALK IN THE WOODS - University at Buffalo

opinioninmyALUMNI SHARE THEIR THOUGHTSSkydiving anyone? UB’s 31 official club sports run the gamut from Kendo (a Japanese form of fencing)to Ultimate Frisbee and even skydiving. Did you play a club sport or participate in intramurals while at UB?MICHAEL GELEN, JD ’88I joined the Gymnastics Club.We had to commute to a localgym for practice a few timesa week and pay our own wayfor most competitions, whichled to a lot of carpooling,team dinners and fun trips.We competed mostly withinthe Northeast, and eachyear qualified a team for theNAIGC (National Associationof Intercollegiate GymnasticsClubs) Nationals. It was thebest of both worlds to be astudent-athlete without thepressure and lack of time/sleep that comes with aDivision 1 schedule. It wasalso great to have a groupof friends with a commoninterest, and to meet andmentor those who were juststarting out in the sport. Ieven met my now-husbandthrough the club, and ourteammates were wellrepresented at our wedding.Mary Busch, EdM ’10 & BA ’08Amherst, N.Y.I played intramural volleyballfor a few semesters. I thinkthe most memorable thingsabout it were our team name,the “Funky Beaners,” andthat our team color was tiedye.We lost quite a lot but westill had a lot of fun playing.Tom Trinchera, MLS ’96 & BA ’94Poughkeepsie, N.Y.It was the summer of ’75,and my roommate BobFlaum, BS ’77, and I playedon a summer intramuralsoftball team with Schoolof Management DeanJoseph Alutto [now interimpresident at Ohio State] andProfessors Howard Foster,Jerry Newman, SandyGunn and others. It was areally incredible experiencespending time with thefaculty outside the classroomand Crosby Hall, and weactually won the LeagueChampionship.Ken Nussbaum, MBA ’81 &BS ’77Edgemont, N.Y.I played on the rugby team,a club sport, in 1967 and1968. As I recall, our clubplayed in the “OntarioRugby Union.” My mostuncomfortable memory isbeing kicked by an opposingplayer and then lying on thatcold winter ground tryingto regain my breath (I thinkwe used injured players assideline markers). On theother hand, I have many fondmemories of playing variousCanadian teams and enjoyingthe tradition of attendingvery rowdy after-gameparties. A keg of beer andsinging old rugby songs wererequirements.Allyn Gemerek, BA ’68West Point, Va.During the summer semester,the international students inthe engineering school wouldget together for a weeklygame of football (“soccer”for those who don’t knowany better) out by the tenniscourts next to Legoland [assome then dubbed the EllicottComplex]. It was some of thebest football I have played. Wehad players from Africa, theMiddle East and Asia; mostwere from Europe and SouthAmerica. There was even oneAmerican!Chris Behnke, BS ’00Whiteland, Ind.As a freshman in the fallof 1957, I notified the trackcoach that I was a sprinterin high school and would liketo join the team. Despite mybeing a sprinter, he enteredme in my first competition,a five-mile cross-country“meet” against Army at WestPoint. I was taking so muchtime to finish the race thatthe cadets had to rescueme from the hills with aU.S. Army jeep, much to theapplause of my teammatesas we crossed the finish line.David Greenholz, BA ’61Lake Worth, Fla.I had taken bowling asa gym course and reallyenjoyed it. So when therewas an opportunity to join aleague in the Student Unionbowling center, I jumped atthe chance. My friends alsojoined, making it a lot offun. It is a social sport and Icontinue to bowl on a league,as do members of my family.My son is bowling for hisuniversity!Sue DiGiacomo, BA ’74Brick, N.J.The question for In My Opinionderives from the monthlyelectronic newsletter @UB.To read previous issues, go towww.alumni.buffalo.edu/news.56 UBTODAY Fall 2013 www.buffalo.edu/ubt