A: If you asked my wife this question, she would probably tell you that I never really grew up. But, I was born in Kansas (Abilene) and moved to California (Rancho Cordova) for high school and college (San Diego State University). I lived in California for almost 10 years and think of myself as a Californian even though I've not lived in the state for over 40 years.

In high school I played football, baseball, and tennis, I also wrestled and ran track a couple of seasons. Basically, if the sport involved running, hitting things or sweating (not hard to do in the Calif. Central Valley heat), I tried it out.

Currently, I cycle, work-out at the gym, cross country ski, play Pickleball and chase after two granddaughters to keep active.

Being a competitive athlete at Vassar means that the student is committed, dedicated, and hard-working. It is difficult to juggle the demands of the classroom and athletic performance at a school such as Vassar and I admire the students who are successful at doing so.

I think that coaches could get a better understanding of the pressures students face and expectations of faculty members by understanding what happens in the classroom. XC and track athletes are lucky to have the coaches they have since both James and Justin have been VC students and directly understand the demands of the classroom.

The F.A.S.T. program is an excellent start at improving the sense of community. I think we could also do a much better job of bringing a real-world athletic perspective onto campus by bringing more athletics-related speakers to campus. Although the trend seems to have lessened considerably recently, in past years, we've had numerous sports psychologists, Olympic athletes, Olympic coaches and trainers, and prominent athletes giving talks on campus. The perspectives and experiences provided by these sports figures can enhance and inspire performance and bring disparate portions of the campus together to help foster a better sense of community.

Time management skills are among the most important things you can develop as a college student and are especially important for student-athletes. To help you with this, talk to your teammates, your coaches, your F.A.S.T representatives. The sooner you can figure out how to manage your time effectively, the better your Vassar experience will be.

Work to improve the facilities and try to keep the facilities within the heart of the campus. Athletics is being pushed farther and farther from the center of the campus. This makes attendance at competitions less likely and may even alienate student-athletes.

Without a doubt - swim Sunset Lake. Even though the quality of the water in is kind of scary, the turtles are almost as big as my car, and I'm not a strong swimmer, streaking through the library would not be something I would consider doing. 

I actually have a number of favorite spots on campus. The library would probably be first on the list because of its beauty and quirkiness. A close second is the trail around the golf course. This was one of my favorite places to run and is still on my list of most enjoyable local biking trails. Another is a short stretch of running/mountain bike trail through a grove of maple trees on the back-side of the farm. During the early Fall, the leaves on these trees turn bright yellow and taking that trail always makes me smile.

I'd like to see the college further commit to improving the athletic facilities. Things like putting training facilities and restrooms on the farm and at the tennis courts, as well as upgrading Walker and the pool are all things that need to be addressed in the very near future. I would also like to see the college upgrade the office space for the coaches and their assistants. These folks work too hard and get paid too little to have to work from such cramped conditions.

I've taught at Vassar since 1979 and have seen lots of changes over the years. Questions about what I'd like to see remain unchanged about the college after I leave have popped up often as I make plans for retirement. I would have to say that things like Vassar's reputation as a top-tier liberal arts institution, its commitment to a high quality education, and its commitment to the ideals of the D-3 student-athlete would all have to be on the do not change list.

Sunny and dry! I'm not much of a fan of cold weather (unless there is snow on the ground for skiing) and prefer hot, dry conditions.

The 100 mile ultra. Although it is far from an ultra experience, I rode in a century road bike race a few summers ago and really enjoyed the almost-meditative quality of the repetitive motions. I would think that an ultra would just give me more time to enjoy the repetition.

I've known Ron for a really long time and even though he's one of my favorite people on campus, I can't imagine what kind of sandwich he would design (eat two pieces of bread with a 10-mile run through the Gunks in the middle?), so I'll have to say $20 in my pocket.

Regular or Decaf at 5 in the afternoon? Neither - a big cup of chai is my normal late afternoon drink of choice. I'm kind of a creature of habit and try to only drink coffee in the morning.

I would love to have my grandchildren excel at any sport they truly enjoy but especially one involving running. My granddaughters have two tremendous female role models - their Mom and Grandmother- who both enjoy running, so there is hope that they'll take it up as well.