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JERRY'S LAST

JERRY'S LAST

Making A Difference Through Healthy Competition

In a world where appearance meant everything, people had gone toextremes Men and women had turned tostarving themselves, steroid abuse and many other heinous methods to achieve "perfect"bodies LaHaye Student Union decided tohelp by creating a competition called LaHaye LUser.

"The best fit forthe competition seemed to be an event similartothe television show,The Biggest Loser,'"Ben Cook, Student Centers Associate DirectorofFitness, said "We have modified the contest from the show,but the same ideas come from it."

LaHaye Student Union advertised the competition through flyers, signsand posters and information on their website Students received the message and responded

"We had about 38 applications, and we chose 12 lucky contestants."Emilee Chambers,Fitness Manager for LaHaye Student Union, said

The 12contestants participated intraining twice a week with LaHaye student trainers, nutritional lessons and competitions every Saturday During the competitions, the contestants listened toguest speakers, held group discussions on how to stay healthy and faced offin cardiovascular activity. Inkeeping with the show, every week there wereeliminations.

"Eliminationsare based on each individual's percentage ofweight lossand votes from the contestants,"SarahBlair, Assistant Manager ofFitness, said "The bottom three orfour contestants, according to weight loss, are indanger of getting kicked out ofthe competition It is up tothe votes, who will beleaving."

The winner received a fivehundred dollar prize package that consisted offreepersonal training sessions at LaHaye Student Union and an assortment ofgiftcards to places like Dick's Sporting Goods, Cinemark Movies 10. Wal-Mart, iTunes and Subway.

To the trainers, competitors and managers,LaHaye LUser was not about the competition "We want it to be a lifestylechange, notjusta competition,"Chambers said "We want thisto be something they benefit from, even if they don't win."

Through thiscompetition

What isyour inspiration and motivation?

Theversesin I Corinthians9:24-27 aremy motivation

Also, I have gained way toomuch weight aftermy senioryear ofhighschoolfootball and I wish togetback intogreatshape and stay fit. What areyou most excited about?

I can'twaitto lose weight and look thinner

How much time and dedication do you plan on putting towardsthis competition?

I will giveasmuch as

I need toand still go theextrathreemiles

I alsohave my hall behind me tokeep me going, M23-2

-Stephen Fenlason, FR,Red Team, trainer

Jonas McGaha

What are you most excited about?

I am excitedtohavea new look.

How much time and dedication do you plan on putting towardsthis competition?

What is your inspiration and motivation?

What do you hope togetoutofthis competition?

I hope toloseweight, learnhow towork out betterand how tobe healthy.

I am planning on dedicating about two hoursevery day forthenextthree months.

Jonathan Abbasi,FR Green Team, trainer Philip Justice

What do you hope togetoutofthis competition?

I reallyhopejusttobe abletotake whatever I learnduringthe competition and useit in my life continuously, to stay healthyforall of my days

My biggest motivation would probably be thatI havenever been healthy I alsowanted toshow my friends and familythatI could do thisand thatI can doanything if I have theheartfor it.

What areyou most nervous about?

I am nervousfor the Saturday morning competitions and then theeliminations I don'twant my team toloseand oneofus hastobe eliminated. I want tomake it all theway through the competition,and hopefullyevenwin.

Karen Leonard,FR Yellow Team, trainer Jamaal Gray

LaHaye Student Union chose to make a difference inpeople's lives "The best thing that LaHaye LUser has brought is theabilityto motivate people tolose weight in a healthy way,"Cook said to uo

I n lessthan a year, construction transformed the "Bald Spof'on the mountain intoa European styled skislope.This new addition presented . a place forstudents and the publictotube, ski and snowboard year-round.

The Snowflex Center was the firstsnowless skislope inNorth America.The slopes consisted of several layersofsynthetic material coated in liquid Ina promotional video forhiscreation, inventor Bryan Thomas said, "Snowflex is not snow,we don't tryto claim that it is, but there are some advantages. One, that it is softertofall on than hard pack and another is it never needs grooming."

"Snowflex has threejumps,two box grind railsand a quarter pipe,"Nick Johnson, junior, said."Anyone thatwants to get good atterrain park,you have a second home."

Although construction ofthe slopetook longer than expected,itwas finished by the opening offall semester.

"Our originalgoal was totry and get itfinished before school let out lastspring, but itwasn't going to happen,"Alan Askew,Project Manager said "We had an unbelievable amount ofrainthatwinterthat set back theconstruction."

Despite the hold up, phase one ofSnowflex was completed before thestudents came back from summer break, with plansforthe second phase underway

The white slopes and the Barrick Falwell Lodge gave the mountain a makeover General Manager Bryan Evans said, "The university has done a great job Allofus have been working on itfora while It's more than what we expected,it's better."

"IthinkSnowflex was agreatadditiontoour school," Jason Vboys, sophomore, said. "Itrytogetupthe mountain asmuch aspossibleand hit the slopes." T

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