Community, Clubs, and Competition
by Amelia Berthold
September 15, 2023
Five canoes charge across the lake to Gannett, the lodge at the Boy Scout camp that we use to store extra food and make phone calls to our families. Faces are covered in various colors of war paint, and Ben is dressed in an orange and blue tie dye denim vest that we got from the thrift store on our first town run. As the boats hit the shore, one by one Arcadians take off running, throwing life jackets behind them as they go. This chaotic scene, not characteristic of a typical Sunday on Massawepie Lake, was the beginning of a tradition that Arcadians hope to continue with future generations of Adirondack Semester students.
On the morning of September 10th, ten Arcadians competed in the first annual Great Arcadian Triathlon, an athletic feat involving swimming, canoeing, and running that had been anticipated for weeks.
The idea for the triathlon was born after one student noticed how active the group is this semester. In their first few days together, this year’s Arcadians had already established a run-club. “It feels good to get my heart rate up,” states avid run-clubber Berit Brecke, citing running as a good break from schoolwork. In addition to run-club, Arcadians have developed many other clubs to share their interests with each other, including swim-club, interesting-food-combinations-club, and even club-club. Daily meetings of run-club and swim-club became routine leading up to the triathlon and served as opportunities for training.
The triathlon, completed in randomly selected pairs, commenced with a quarter-mile swim by one partner followed by a mile-long canoe together, and then a mile of running completed by the other partner. Darlenne and Callie graciously agreed to be course officials and made the event possible with their professional timing skills and rules such as “no bumper boating canoes”, “no running slowly,” and “don’t wear shoes while swimming.” To ensure safely, assistant director Eva Wetzel acted as a lifeguard and made sure to have much-needed snacks at the finish line.
After Callie shouted a commanding “3, 2, 1, go!” the swimmers started off in a frenzy of splashing. With a quick burst of energy Sam established a position in the front but was quickly surpassed by the steadily paced Berit. The order of swimmers soon became apparent, with Berit holding the lead and Sam bringing up the rear. The runners, waiting by their canoes for their partners, were concerned for the swimmers at times. “Is Sam drowning?” questioned Ruby as they looked across the water. Sam, who was doing a unique version of the backstroke did indeed look like he was drowning as his arms flailed and head bobbed with each stroke.
As the swim transitioned to the canoe portion, positions began to change. Berit and her partner Arianna maintained a steady lead throughout. Campbell and Ruby, who finished the swim in second place, fell to the back—blaming their lack of efficiency on a broken canoe seat. Conversely, Sam and Ben came from behind and entered the running portion in second place.
The racing canoes hit the shore and their runners took off along the dirt road leading to Gannett. Arianna and Ben, the runners for their teams, retained first and second place respectively. Ruby, a star runner for the Saints cross country and track teams, made a notable run to claim third place for their team after advancing from the back.
Berit and Arianna claimed victory, but all runners were cheered through the finish line by their fellow Arcadians. “I think it really shows who we are as a community,” remarked Meg when reflecting on how supportive everyone was the whole time regardless of the fact that it was a competition.
Although there were some reservations to completing the triathlon on the planned date due to homework, participants were glad that they went through with the activity. Between the overcast weather threatening rain and a fast-approaching essay deadline, the Arcadians almost called off the event. Afterwards, as the Arcadians were congregated around the finish line, they remarked about how accomplished they felt. “I hope this tradition continues,” said Arianna. “As long as nobody beats my time,” she adds. Upon return to Arcadia, after celebratory ice cream at Gannett, Meg noted that she was the perfect amount of tired to get her essay done. As the rest of the Arcadians finished their ice cream, they were already brainstorming ideas for future competitions—most notably the Arcadian Olympics.
Results
1st place: Berit and Arianna, 32:10
2nd place: Sam and Ben, 33:11
3rd place: Campbell and Ruby, 33:47
4th place Meg and Amelia, 34:04
5th place: Cooper and Abhainn, 36:39
Amelia