With Warm Weather, Anyone Can be an Athlete

I’m going to state something that seems totally obvious—springtime might be the most enjoyable time to be a Columbian. There may not be any athletic events occurring on campus, but it doesn’t seem like anyone even notices, especially when the weather begins to shake off winter and fully transition into spring.

On days like we’ve had for the past two or three weekends, it’s almost a crime not to go outside and enjoy the sunshine. One of the best ways to do that is to catch a ballgame, and New York has some of the best baseball teams around in the Mets, Yankees, and Columbia Lions. The first two teams are expected to make the playoffs in October and the last team is leading the Lou Gehrig Division right now with eight games to play.

If you find yourself unable to catch the 7 train to Queens, the D train to the Bronx, or the 1 train to the soon-to-be-renamed Andy Coakley Field for a weekend getaway, don’t despair, as there is plenty to do in terms of personal athletic enjoyment here in Morningside.

Each of the past three Saturday afternoons, I have been photographed by total strangers while engaging in random pseudo-sports that it seems pre-tarp-removal Columbia was made for. There are many of the playground type games that can be played on or around campus without much cost or difficulty. Here are some ideas that can be implemented as soon as this coming weekend.

Crab Soccer—Estimated cost: less than $5
Three weeks ago after Columbia Community Outreach, the Columbia Outdoor Orientation Program (COÖP), which I am a member of, engaged in a game of crab soccer on one of the smaller lawns on College Walk. All that was necessary for the game was a beach ball about the size of a soccer ball, but any other sized soft ball is fine. The game is played like soccer, except players have to crab walk instead of run—hence the nifty name. The game can be played with or without shoes, but I would advise taking them off because there is a high probability of getting kicked on or around the face (not to mention shoes can be used for goals).

Four Square—Estimated cost: around $15
This good old playground game probably just made you think, “Four square?! I haven’t played that since I was in third grade!” Well, my friends, our campus seems like it was made so that you can rekindle your past glory. With a little doctoring up with sidewalk chalk, the concrete boxes in front of Alma Mater can be easily transformed into a four square court. The most difficult thing to find for this game is a kickball or a specially made four square ball (pretty much a kickball that says four square on it). My suitemates and I are lucky enough to have procured all the necessary items and have played many times in the past two weeks. The best part of this game is that it can always keep going because if you’re playing it in public, chances are within 20 minutes there will be a line of nostalgic twenty-somethings trying to recapture their youth.

Whiffle-ball—Estimated cost: less than $8
The lawns next to the steps, the South lawns—now that they are finally open—the lawn in front of Furnald, and plenty others provide ample room for a rousing game of whiffle-ball. Most places nearby sell the essential kit containing a thin yellow bat and small white ball, and all you need to do is gather at least six people and you’re in for a good time.

Basketball—Estimated cost: less than $25 or free
Since construction is going on in Levien Gym, there’s only one basketball court, and that’s definitely not enough for all the serious ballas we have here at Columbia. Luckily, the weather is getting warmer and there are basketball courts on the east and west sides of campus at Riverside and Morningside park. Gather a gang of your closest friends and take your game to the streets in the coming weeks; I know I will.

If none of these suggestions tickle your fancy, there’s still hope. Once you log out of World of Warcraft and leave your hovel of a room for the first time since your hibernation began in mid-October, it will be difficult for you not to find something fun to do on campus. Throw a football around, toss a baseball, play frisbee of the ultimate or not-so-ultimate variety, or just go for a run around campus or in the park. Classes, papers, and finals can wait for a few hours, as we only have a few waning weeks to enjoy this ideal climate here on campus. After that, finals will take over and soon enough it will be summer, and we’ll all head to our residences for the break.

If you’re not going to go out and support one of Columbia’s spring sports teams, go out and engage in some competition of your own. Trust me, you won’t be sorry.