Matthew Monroe

Having a tap-dancing background, Irish Dance has always been something I’ve wanted to try. Well, now I can say that I have, and it’s a lot of fun. Irish Dance meets once a week in the Alumni Gym to learn new steps, practice routines, and put together fun group dances. It’s a great workout (my calves were on fire the following day) and a delightful way to improve your balance, learn fun routines, and get to know other people with similar interests.

Before coming to Dartmouth, I had never really skied. Although I’ve yet to hit the Dartmouth Skiway, this past week, I made the trek into Pine Park to Headcorders, the meeting spot for Dartmouth Club Nordic. Nordic (or cross-country) skiing is very different from what a Floridian such as myself would typically imagine skiing to be. After suiting up, hitting the (moderately uphill) slope, and falling down about a dozen times, I finally started to get the hang of it. It’s tough, and I’m really bad at it, yet it’s so fun that I’m determined to improve. I’ve even started using some of the Nordic ski-geared workout equipment in the student fitness center! Hopefully, next time, I can make it around the loop with a few fewer scrapes.

After I was accepted to Dartmouth, I went through a very long waiting phase where I got really excited about all of the minutiae of college. I remember walking around campus on Google Earth, hunting through the Wikipedia pages for new facts about the school, and spending who knows how many hours reading through blog posts (very full circle). On this search, I came across the Dartmouth Timber Sports Team and knew I had to try it. Timber Team is both a chill extracurricular club and an actual team that competes at regional Timber Sports events. At practices, club members learn to saw logs, split wood (my favorite activity), build fires, and even throw axes. Then, once a term, they head to a competition with other New England schools. Although my hands were freezing and I ended up very, very sweaty, I had a fantastic time. Despite being very exerting, chopping wood is somehow quite calming. Every time I’ve felt stressed the past few days, I’ve found myself wishing there was a log nearby I could turn into firewood. I’m taking this newfound appreciation for cellulose a bit further and getting certified to use Dartmouth’s woodshop next week, so if anything exciting comes of that, I’ll be sure to post about it! 

A preface: Sorry, Mom, if you’re reading this. I know you are not thrilled at the prospect of me fighting others with sticks on a slippery surface (love you). With that out of the way, Intramural Ice Hockey is insanely fun! Coming off of Nordic skiing, let’s talk about another winter sport I am not very good at. I joined one of my friend’s Intramural Hockey teams to give it a go and ended up having a great time. The great thing about intramural (IM) sports is that you don’t have to have any experience to join. The school provides free equipment rentals and a space to play, and you and your team figure out the rest from there. Now that I understand more about how the process works, I’m looking forward to the rest of the season and to next term, when I’ll hopefully have time to play on an IM team for another sport!

Now, here’s my dilemma. I want to continue to test-run other clubs, but these four have been so fun that I’m determined to add them to my already busy schedule. I’m hoping to keep the balance while cramming some additional excitement into my remaining spare minutes. And who knows, maybe those other new extracurriculars will pop up at some point in a future blog post. I hope you’ll keep an eye out!