{"id":4496,"date":"2020-07-09T11:24:23","date_gmt":"2020-07-09T15:24:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/magazine\/?p=4496"},"modified":"2020-07-30T16:22:58","modified_gmt":"2020-07-30T20:22:58","slug":"join-the-club","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/magazine\/issues\/summer-2020\/join-the-club\/","title":{"rendered":"Join the Club"},"content":{"rendered":"
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URI club sailing team members Kevin Stamp ’22 (left) and incoming captain Luke Ingalls ’21 on Point Judith Pond last fall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Grace Kelly<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you think about sports at URI, you might think first about varsity sports like basketball, football, or track and field. But look again, and you\u2019ll find a group of dedicated, competitive club athletes. URI\u2019s club sports teams have earned national championships, a world title, and have even spawned Olympians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The some-540 students of URI\u2019s club sports programs are not only competitive\u2014practicing six days a week, sometimes seven\u2014they also run the show: They hire coaches, manage club finances, book and host tournaments, and coordinate transportation. Some teams\u2014like hockey and field hockey\u2014have tryouts. Some, like sailing, don’t have tryouts, but expect participants to have experience. And many\u2014like crew and rugby\u2014accept anyone and everyone.” If there is a pertinent use for the term \u201clevel playing field,\u201d this is it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Club sports are an often-misunderstood niche within college sports. They receive about thirty percent of their funding from student fees. The rest of their operating expenses come from fundraising (much of that from alumni) and membership dues, which can vary greatly from team to team. But don\u2019t make the mistake of thinking these athletes are \u201cjust\u201d club athletes. Like varsity athletes, they train hard, compete against other schools, and vie for national championships.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These are their stories.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Club crew members get in an early morning workout in the fog on Narrow River last fall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Crew: The Commitment <\/h1>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s 6 a.m. at the URI Boathouse, and all is dark. A groggy crew of novices gather in the boat bay, hands clenched in sweater sleeves. It\u2019s too windy to go out on the water today, but that doesn\u2019t mean the crew has the day off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead, coaching staff lead a grueling two-hour session of rowing machine and bodyweight exercises. They keep the pace in what sounds like an aerobics class from hell: \u201cThree, two, one, switch!\u201d he bellows, as rowers strip off their shirts and change places, hopping on and off the ergometer. Steam rises from their shoulders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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