SPORTS

Elitist Sports

Can you go skiing without selling a kidney in the process?

DARIA BOCICOVA Sports Editor

We live in a time when for some of us, sport is a source of entertainment or a lifestyle; for others, it can often become a privilege. The prices on sports equipment are rising, and it becomes harder for people with a below-average overall income to engage in those sports, therefore rendering them “elitist”.

I’ve recently discovered, and yes, I meant to say discovering because it was a whole event, anyway I discovered the prices of the equipment and had a micro stroke as I was scrolling through the website. I feel like that calls for some context. A good friend of mine happens to be the most outdoors creature anyone has ever met. If it were up to her, winter would be ten months out of twelve, and it would NEVER stop snowing. It sounds like hell if you ask me. But she is certainly living up to the Canadian stereotype here. And knowing how much I would dislike anything snow-related, she recently threatened me with going skiing. Let me tell you, the fear is real.

After I went through the five stages of grief, including three crying breaks, at the mere thought of that questionable opportunity, I finally came to terms with fate. I actually decided to look up what we’ll need.

If you type in “Ski equipment”, one of the first websites that you will probably find, at least I did, would be MEC, aka Mountain Equipment Company. It sounds like they would know what’s what. I quickly found the “Ski and snowboard gear” section, then despite having no clue what backcountry ski was, clicked on that as it seemed like the most logical choice.

The first pair of skis that was shown to me stood proudly at 1,938.95$, excluding taxes. And that’s only the skis. If that doesn’t make you want to stay home wrapped in a duvet instead, I don’t know what will. But retreat was not an option at that point, and after scrolling for a while longer, it became pretty clear that, on average, the price range for skis was between 800$ and 1,100$, depending on the model. For that price it better have a motor and a pair of wings in the package, so you can fly off the edge of a mountain.

Now, I am definitely no expert in skiing, but even I know that’s not the only thing you need. I then calculated the approximate price of all the equipment one adult would need, which gave me flashbacks to maths lessons, and I had to take another crying break. The complete set, including skis, poles, bindings, boots and helmets, would cost around 3,000$, on average.

That was clearly not the amount I was prepared to pay for something that would collect dust in the basement for the rest of the year, or life depending on how the trip would go. Plan B, rent the equipment. There are plenty of shops in Montreal that offer rental, one of them is Ski Town. You can rent equipment for a day, for holidays or a whole season. Renting a new adult ski set with BOA for a season would cost around 300-350$ with taxes.

But why are the costs so high? Making skis requires a usually unlikely alliance of materials which

Photo VIA SKI CANADA MAG

includes fiberglass, wood and metal. It would need specific molds to be able to recreate the necessary shape and ensure flexibility without risking durability. On top of that, ski in Canada is a seasonal sport and you would hardly see anyone picking out a new pair of bindings in the middle of May. Considering that many of the companies that sell them specialise in winter sports equipment, that would put them on a tight budget for a part of the year, and no one wants to work at their own expense.

There is also another option, as a last resort. You can always take on a DIY challenge, crafting shis in your shed. As for me, I have too little trust in myself and only one of the nine lives left to attempt something like that.

Now, I’m off looking for an excuse to bail on the trip. If you won’t see any of my articles nezt term, it means that I wasn’t successful and am currently buried in the snow on the side of the mountain somewhere.

P.S. If you do end up making skis, send me a test drive video.

Gender VS Fair Competition

BRITTAINNY JONES Contributor

For decades women have been fighting to get recognized playing the sports they love. Even in the 21st century, we are fighting for things that are still gender-specific, including different pay rates. Young women that play sports are striving to make a difference. Alexa Hawraniak plays soccer for her Cegep, John Abbott College. She is also part of the feminist society club in John Abbott college, making her even more passionate about this subject.

Alexa and I met at Starbucks on a breezy Autumn day. She walked in with her head held high and a walk with grace. I could smell her peppermint tea even before she got to the table. We chitchatted for a bit before we got to the goods. I asked her whether she plays soccer for fun or as a future profession? Her eyes immediately lit up with a fiery passion. “I do not necessarily play for fun. I am a super competitive person, so I really like competition. I play AAA for my Cegep also. So, I would not necessarily say for a future profession, maybe like university soccer is my next goal.” I then asked why she does not want to play soccer as a profession. Alexa laughed hysterically, nudging my shoulder. She said, “Do not get me wrong, I love soccer with my girls, but some of the people I play with are crazy! I also do not really enjoy running. I am interested and invested in being a crime scene investigator.”

When asked, “What is it like being a female soccer player?” Alexa wiggled in her seat and said, “I think as a female soccer player, women always must work harder, they always must prove themselves more, even if they do better in stats and everything. They always have to do more because it will never be good enough.” When we touched upon whether being a female player has any disadvantages, Alexa sighed and said, “I don’t think it gives me that much of a disadvantage at all. I mean, obviously, sometimes they do not take us seriously, which is annoying. Even though here in North America, women’s soccer is a lot bigger than men’s soccer. The women’s teams do historically better than the men’s teams as we have proven in world cups, Olympics, for example, the American women’s team won 4 world cups, won the Olympic gold and this year women just won gold so.”

We transitioned to something that would lighten the mood. We took a little break, we joked around things that have been going on lately. I mentioned that I saw the picture on the John Abbott College website of her with her teammates, and the girls seemed to be so happy. I asked if she found it empowering to be playing on an all-girls soccer team? Alexa laughed and said, “For sure! I think playing soccer with women is diffidently empowering, we joke about things and hangout outside of the soccer field. We all go to the same school and we are all hashtag girl bosses. I think just being a team with all these girls who love playing the sport, who want better for the sport is always great and we all share the same passion.” Alexa was grinning ear to ear, talking about the girls on the team.

I did some research on the pay difference between female and male soccer players are it was shocking. I asked Alexa, “It has significantly been over 50 years since the Equal Pay Act was passed in the United States and men still get paid more than women. What do you think about the pay difference?” She was processing this information because she seemed upset and fed up with how men get paid more than women. Alexa said, “The difference between men and women soccer players are atomical. It goes back to women. We only played soccer since the 80s-90s and only started becoming popular in the early 2000s. This is crazy to me because it is 2021, and times are changing, yet this is still happening. There is no logical reason this should be happening.”

Female soccer players are not seen as equals to male soccer players. It has been decades, and nothing is changing. Soccer is still being viewed as gender-specific because female soccer is newer in comparison. There are pros and cons to everything, and you need to exceed the cons to break boundaries and be the change. Alexa loves her passion even though there is controversy around it, and she wants to exceed people’s expectations of female soccer players.