Category: Announcements

Now Hiring: Challenge Course Facilitator

The George Mason University, Mason Recreation, Center for Team and Organizational Learning (The EDGE), located at the Freedom Center on the Prince William campus, is seeking applicants for the position of Challenge Course Facilitator.

The EDGE is an incredible opportunity to work with others in an exciting and stimulating environment. Applicants will join an expert team of facilitators on The EDGE challenge course, challenging themselves and the groups they work with. Our season runs from August 13 to Thanksgiving 2013, with the option to extend to Spring, Summer and Fall 2014.

Responsibilities:
– Educator: Effectively facilitate and process with group to inspire learning
– Group Management: Properly set up and explain challenges to group
– Maintain control of the group: Create an environment to encourage group to reflect upon challenges, ensure physical and emotional well-being of participants, be aware of risks associated with challenge courses, fit and check equipment to guarantee proper use, ready to respond in an emergency situation, and be aware of and adjust to group or individual needs.
– Course Setup, Maintenance, and Inspection:
Inspect and set up high and low elements for daily use, occasionally assist with maintaining elements, equipment, and trails. and adhere to and assist with the EDGEinspection practices.

Qualifications:
Required:
– Ability to attend all training sessions
– Ability to work a minimum of three days per week (Monday-Sunday) between the hours of 8:00 am – 6:00 pm
– Current First Aid/ CPR/ AED certifications or ability to be certified by start date
Preferred:
– Experience facilitating experiential education programs including ropes/ challenge courses, team-building, ground initiatives and games
– Adults pursuing a college degree, or graduates in youth or education-related fields including recreation, education, psychology, and social welfare.

For more information on The EDGE, please visit our Web site at: www.edgeatmason.com

Apply Now

Intramural Sports Survey

Project Sneak Peak

Project Sneak Peak is a one night, two day trip beginning on the second day of three summer freshmen orientations. Students participating in Project Sneak Peak will select to participate in either an outdoor wilderness camping trip (including rock climbing or kayaking) or a DC-based community service trip with a group of fellow freshmen students attending summer orientation. This is a wonderful opportunity to be a part of a once in a lifetime experience, build long-lasting friendships and memories. No experience necessary, just a willingness to have fun and be open to new adventures!

Sponsored by the Transition Resource Center, Center for Leadership and Community Engagement, Mason Recreation, and Orientation and Family Programs and Services.

Spring Training: Running

Spring is finally here! What better way to enjoy the weather than going outside for a run? Running may seem basic, but there are actually many factors to consider if one plans on logging some miles this year. Let’s cover some of the basics to help you enjoy your run.

Shoes: Purchasing running shoes is literally where the rubber hits the road. A good pair of shoes increases comfort and can help prevent injuries. The process can be overwhelming, so do your research and get properly fitted by a sales associate. How long should a pair of shoes last? Generally you should be replacing your shoes every 300-400 miles or every six months. It is also important to consider what type of surfaces you will run on.

Warm up and Cool-down: Each run should begin with a warm-up and end with a cool down. The warm up raises the temperature of the muscles for optimal flexibility and efficiency. It also serves to slowly raise your heart rate, which helps minimize the stress on your heart. On average, your warm up should last between 5-10 minutes. The importance of the cool down is to maintain good blood flow and to allow the heart rate to gradually return to resting levels. The cool down should also last about 5-10 minutes.

Stretching: Stretching is something that should be done every time you run. When practiced properly, stretching can help prevent injuries, reduce muscle soreness, and has the potential to improve performance. One way to do this is to implement dynamic stretching into your warm up routine. Examples of dynamic exercise are walking lunges, hurdle walks, high knees, and T walks. When you finish your run, be sure to utilize a foam roller. Regular usage increases flexibility, decreases muscle tension, and helps prevent injuries. After rolling, finish up by performing some static stretching to give your body that final stretch.

Running in warm weather: The key is to stay hydrated. Water is pivotal to your body’s ability to function. Exercise performance is impaired when the body is dehydrated by as little as 2percent of the body weight. Be sure to drink plenty of fluids, during, and after your run.

The next thing to consider is keeping cool. Wear light-colored, loose-fitting clothing that will allow your body to breathe and cool itself down naturally. If possible, a run early in the morning or later in the evening is a good option to avoid the heat.

Mason Trap and Skeet Club Wins DIII National Championship

The Mason Trap and Skeet Club Team continued the legacy of their historic program last month by winning its 11th National Championship in San Antonio, Texas. It was their first National Championship since 1994.

“It was a big team effort. We did not win any individual honors but as a group we shot really well,” head coach Gary Olin said. “That is why we won six team trophies. It is good to be back on the national stage.”

The program, which started in the early 1980s, is the second oldest club sport at Mason behind only rugby. Legendary coach John Linn led the team to seven consecutive national championships from 1985 – 1992.

Olin, who has been the head coach since 2001, has led the team back to its winning ways and ended their dry spell.

The team had a fair amount of success leading up to the championship, winning a couple of tournaments during the regular season. They won the team high overall among many others in the Eastern Regional Championships that featured over 120 shooters from 12 different schools ranging from Vermont to Virginia. They also won their second consecutive Virginia Own-The-Trophy tournament where they have the honor of traveling with the trophy for a year.

Among their team accolades included many individual titles from sophomores Austin Hall and Renee Murphy. Both are Eastern Regional Champions and improved tremendously from last year. Their near perfect performances at nationals, included a 99 by Hall in trap.

“We work hard all year long and to go down there and not win would be a let down,” said Murphy, who only has two years of shooting experience but already is the woman’s champion in Virginia. “We work so hard for it. We realized that all of our hard work and practicing pays off. We went down with the mindset that we were going to win this year.”

The Trap and Skeet National Championships are very different from other sports because every team qualifies for nationals as long as they can afford it. There are three divisions that are determined by how many shooters a team has.

A program like Mason, which has only eight shooters, is placed in division three. Larger programs like Lindenwood University from Missouri are placed in division one because they brought over 50 shooters and have more larger budget than other schools.

The hardest part and biggest difference in shooting, according the Olin, is not the money or size of the program.

“In some sports if things are going badly, the coach can call a timeout and talk to the players like in basketball and football,” said Olin, whose coaching position is 100% voluntary. “When your team is shooting, you do not get to do that. You just have to stand back and watch them. You have to keep your fingers crossed and hope that they do well. It is hard to be a spectator.”

For the shooters, the toughest part is keeping their head straight even when they miss a target.

“Mental. There are people on our team where if they miss one bird, they are done,” said Hall and Murphy. “They get so frustrated with it. You could hit everything but could also psyche yourself up. Some people just beat themselves up about it.”

The team’s next goal is to build the program and recruit more shooters so they can repeat as champions.

“I think we could be even more successful if we had even more shooters. The coaching is awesome. If you could find yourself doing this and keeping up with it, it is definitely something to look into,” said Hall and Murphy. “You have to try it before you turn it down because it becomes addicting.”

With three shooters graduating, the program is looking for new shooters for both men and women.

STORY BY JAMES ZEMBRISKI

Inline Team Wins Regional Championship

For the first time in their five-year history, the Mason inline hockey team won the SECHRL Regional Champions on February 23rd and 24th in Snellville, Georgia.

The Patriots defeated the defending national champions Bethel University 6-4 in the championship game.

“It felt great. It would have felt a lot different if we got it our first few years but four years of trying to get it and being so close with losing in overtime, losing in double overtime. It was so difficult to try and get over that hump,” said senior defenseman Andrew Lensing, who had 17 points in five games during the tournament. “Winning it now with the defending national champions in the same division and some teams that made it very far in nationals. It definitely made that 12-hour trip home a lot easier.”

The Patriots started off the weekend playing lackadaisically, tying Central Florida 5-5 and losing the Florida Gulf Coast 10-3. Coming in as the number two seed, they were only one loss away from going home. Frustrated and confused, the players organized a team meeting.

“We had a team meeting to try and get everyone focused and on the same page. We played horrible defense those first two games. It was just sloppy,” said Lensing, who is only behind his twin brother Cam in team goals with 15. “Everyone was just not playing well. The biggest thing said by our captain, Seve Cordova, was we need to start playing as a team.”

After playing like individuals, the Patriots started playing as a team. Cruising to victory over Coastal Carolina 9-1, they found themselves in a rematch with FGCU in the semi-finals.

Entering the third period down by four goals, the Patriots had a steep hill to climb. With 30 seconds left, they decided to pull goalie Jordan Pohl to give them an extra skater.

Sophomore Josh Herr skated towards the FGCU net, received a pass from senior forward Harrison Murdock and shot the game-tying goal glove low with only 19 seconds remaining to make it a 8-8 tie.

Senior Cameron Lensing scored the game winning goal 2:41 into overtime to send the Patriots to the championship.

“Harrison looked at Cam and I and said we have to score this shift. We got out there and Harrison beat his man and passed it to Cam who scored,” said Andrew Lensing, who registered a hat trick with two assists in the game. “We scored that shift and that is how we won the game. It was pretty cool.”

The next step for the Patriots was Bethel University in the championship. The Patriots lost the only two meetings against Bethel this season, getting outscored 11-2.

“We didn’t feel too intimidated. Every game we played Bethel before that, we played them well. It was just the momentum was not in our way, we do not get the first goal and stuff like that. We knew we could beat Bethel going into that game,” Andrew Lensing said.

Andrew Lensing scored the team’s first four goals in the 6-4 championship win over Bethel in a game the Patriots overall dominated.

“We played our game. They like to go 100%, quickly at you while we like to slow the puck down, find the mismatch and go one-on-one. It helped that we got the first goal because it kind of set our tone because they were backed on their heels,” said Andrew Lensing, scoring seven of his 13 goals in the semi-finals and finals. “We played a little bit differently defensively with our second line going to a 1-1-2, which is when one person is up, one in the middle and two defenseman back. They did not know what to do against it. The second lines’ defense was the best it has been all year.”

The Patriot’s first regional championship guarantees them an auto-bid in the national championship tournament in April. Inline hockey’s national tournament is exactly like March Madness in college basketball. Roller Hockey’s “selection Monday” is March 11th.

“We are pumped for nationals. We have shown all season long that we can hang with the best. We’ve beaten two top teams in the east, we have beaten the national champions and we won the south,” Lensing said. “We are pretty confident. There are no easy to go up against but we are pretty confident we can beat any team there.”

The Patriots finished the regular season with 10-2 record. Their top scorer, Cameron Lensing, has 21 goals and 21 assists. The next time they play is not until the national championships in Ft. Myers, FL on April 10th.

STORY BY JAMES ZEMBRISKI

February Love

February is the month of love. Many people may have felt the stress of finding a Valentine for Valentine’s Day, but before you can focus on being with someone else for a day or maybe even longer, you need to learn to love yourself first.

Love your body. Love yourself. You may think that sounds lame, but it’s important. Unlike relationships your body is with you for the rest of your life. So treat it with the respect it deserves.

Here are 5 ways to love your body this month and every month after.

1. Get enough sleep. For those of you who are awake for over 12 hours every day, working out and sleeping for only 4 or 5 hours, that is not enough. You’re body is eventually going to break down and get sick or injured. According to Laura Blue of Time magazine, 6.5 to 7.5 hours a day is ideal for your body to feel rested.

2. Have a good attitude. It’s the little things, like not thinking negative things about your body or comparing it to celebrities. You have to remain positive because your body and mind need that to remain motivated towards change.

3. Put yourself first. Most people do so much for others that they don’t have enough time to do what they want. If you want to exercise make time for it or even if you want to read a book schedule that it in. Turn off your cell phone or put it on silent (because I know some of you are attached) and just enjoy time alone, trust me, you need it.

4. Challenge yourself. You don’t have to do anything drastic like sign up for your first marathon but setting simple goals like stay at the gym for 45 minutes today instead of 30 minutes can benefit you overall. It’s up to you to challenge yourself, your body will thank you later!

5. Eat green. Now not everybody loves fruit and vegetables but they’re really good for your body. They provide a good source of fiber, phytonutrients as well as vitamins and minerals.

If you have other ways you love your body on a daily basis feel free to share!