By Brandon Davis
A common dilemma many students face when beginning their college careers out of high school is figuring out how to stay in shape while adjusting to a new schedule.
The Student Activities Center’s fitness center offers a variety of different activities to help keep students in shape, including an accessible weight room stocked with treadmills, free and machine weight systems and other cardiovascular equipment.
“In the Louisville Metropolitan area, this [SAC] is one of the best facilities around,” Ken Carey, gym employee, said. “The vast array of equipment and stuff that this facility has here along with the facilities at the Crawford and Humana, it can’t be beat.”
The SAC is open weekdays from 6 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. and is free with an active student ID.
The SAC fitness center also provides five racquetball courts, two squash courts and complete locker room facilities along with four multi-purpose gym floors which are used for basketball, volleyball and badminton.
“It offers pretty much everything you want,” Greg Welsh, junior nursing major, said. “They have a gym, basketball courts, racquetball and they’re always open when you need them to be so it’s pretty convenient.”
For those looking to keep themselves occupied in some competitive form or just looking for a way to blow off some steam without all the sweat, the Cardinal Corner might be the answer. Also located in the SAC, the Cardinal Corner provides an assortment of free games for students to compete in, including pool, ping-pong, air hockey and foosball.
The Ralph Wright Natatorium, located on the corner of Warnock Ave. and Floyd St., is one for the newest facilities on campus and allows students a chance to swim in an Olympic-size pool. The Natatorium is also home to the U of L’s men’s and women’s swim teams and is complete with an eight-lane, 50 meter competition pool with depth ranging from four feet, six inches to 18 feet.
“It’s really a great facility,” Matt Blanford, graduate student and lifeguard, said. “It’s brand new and I think students are surprised when they find out that it’s even here and they’re allowed to use it for free.”
The Natatorium is open from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays and is also open at various times on weekends.
The Humana Gym is another facility available for students looking to work out. Located on Bradley Ave. and Eastern Pkwy., the Humana Gym offers complete weight and cardiovascular rooms, dry heat saunas and gym floors are available when not used for club practices. Free for students, the Humana Gym is open from 8:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.
U of L also offers a variety of different sports clubs and intramural league sports which provide students looking for a more structured plan to help maintain a healthy lifestyle, a solid solution while satisfying their competitive juices.
With clubs like badminton, fencing, gymnastics and many others, students are given the opportunity to compete while receiving a chance to learn a new sport or continuing to play a familiar one. There are also many different intramural league sports students can play including football, basketball, and soccer.
What made the election of the president of the United States so special was not only the president who was elected, but the number of youth who participated in getting Barack Obama into office.
According to the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, approximately 24 million 18-29 year olds cast ballots in the 2008 election, a turnout rate of 54.5 percent.
Thank you, America, for once again proving that I, as a gay man am a second-class citizen, and I'm in fact not created equal.
Last Tuesday, Arizona, California and Florida passed a constitutional ban on gay marriage, stating that marriage was to be between one man and one woman. They joined 26 other states that have laws written in their state constitutions, including Kentucky.
As you now know, even if you're hidden under a rather significant rock, Barack Obama was elected the 44th president by a rather significant margin. What you may not know is what happened around the country, or the underlying factors behind Obama's historic victory.
The Outcasts
Voting, paying taxes, military service, jury duty, and obeying the law are all part of Americans' civic responsibilities.
A person can be fined if they don't pay taxes, however, they can't go AWOL once they join the armed forces and jail time can be the consequence for breaking the law.
For the registered voter, there is no legal punishment for not casting their ballot. There is an underlying civil punishment. It is the punishment of not participating in making a difference.
In response to Darren McVey's Oct. 28 "Everyone can vote this election, not everyone should" column, as a fellow non-voter (though for different reasons), I'd like to thank you for raising the B.S. flag on the idea that those who don't vote can't complain.
It's time to discuss the outrageous 130 percent online tuition fees that the University of Louisville charges its students.
"All distance education courses are charged 130% of the undergraduate/graduate in-state tuition rate," according to U of L registrar's office Web site. "Students are charged this amount even if you have already been billed as a full-time student." The cost difference is approximately $95 per credit hour.
The relationship between the black community and the Republican Party is like that of a young couple that has a bad break-up. They used to love each other, but something came between them and they may never reconcile. What a shame that will be if it comes to pass.
The Republican Party of Abraham Lincoln is the party of Emancipation. In the years after the Civil War, Republicans passed the 14th and 15th Amendments legally mandating freedom and equality for every American regardless of race.
President: Barack Obama
Instead of talking about change we can believe in, Barack Obama might be better suited calling it change we must believe in.
Senator: Mitch McConnell
In looking at Mitch McConnell's career, a vote for him is not just a trip into the election booth, but an investment in your future, whether you are a U of L student or a Louisville citizen.
Congressman: John Yarmuth
It is clear that in John Yarmuth, we have a friend. In examining his voting record, one can see a commitment to funding alternate modes of energy such as biofuel as well as heavier regulation on oil companies in order to keep costs low.
"There never will be complete equality until women themselves help to make laws and elect lawmakers."
-Susan B. Anthony, (1820-1906), pioneer in the Women's Suffrage Movement
If only Ms. Anthony, could see how far we've come.
Complete equality? Well, we're still working on that one.
The necessity of an electoral college has been a much debated issue since the infamous presidential election of 2000.
Many of us remember going to bed with Al Gore as president, only to wake up to George W. Bush. Gore had won the popular vote, but Bush had succeeded in capturing the majority of electoral votes.
