Florida State University - Renegade / Tally Ho Yearbook (Tallahassee, FL)

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ifiecky Barnes, dances the night away on her twenty-first birthday . Reaching the iegai drinking age is a milestone in many coitege student ' s lives. photo by Eric Joh After a few pitchers this students test his agility at Pool. Poor Paul ' s is a typical stop for a waltz. I$rian Lucyk jumps out of the Westcott fountain with a smile. His friends surprised him with a dunk on the way to Potbelly s. 10 Student Life

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A j -Jennifer Johnson Soccer balls whaling at speeds of 65 miles per hour, obstacles of rushing water, fish nets, and a few injuries didn ' t get in the way of 23 year old Donna Dawson. Dawson participated in MTV ' s Sandblast the summer of 1995 and won the overall competition with help from partner Alan Conley. Conley was a friend of Dawson ' s from Daytona. She knew that this competition was something they would enjoy doing and that Conley was in good shape. It wasn ' t a big deal, I called up Alan and neither of us had to work, so we went to Orlando for a weekend to try out. Since I ' m a lifeguard and he surfs we ere in pretty good condition, so there was no real preparation, we had no idea how it was going to be, said Dawson. To Dawson ' s surprise, it was tougher than she thought. It looked really easy on TV, but a lot of people got hurt, said Dawson. Out of 64 participants, 22 eople were injured, including Donna. In the event Death Penalty Kick, where the opposing team aimed soccer balls at the players, Donna was nailed in the head. The all hit her helmet, leaving her with a gash which required nine stitches in her chin. She also received second and third degree burns on her hands from another event. Dawson participated in numerous events. One of the hardest was the Cannon Bowl. The event wasn ' t as easy as it looked. It was hard mentally preparing d jump off a platform into huge towering bowling pins floating in a pool of water below you and trying to knock them all down, said Dawson. The hardest part of he whole tournament was hurrying up to get ready for the next event. Even though some events were harder than others, Dawson did not let injuries or losses like that of the Death Penalty Kick, shake her confidence. She started ff the game with a strong lead in the first event. Skills from lifeguarding were a definite plus. The event began with climbing a wall of rushing water, then leaping nto a pool and swimming through a fish net trying to untangle herself quicker than her opponent. Dawson left Conley with such a strong lead, they were a sure thing. Throughout the events Donna was not alone. She carried with her a good luck charm, Flounder from The Little Mermaid. The stuffed animal was in as lany events he could possibly be in and also made a few television appearances. When I travel, he always comes with me. He ' s been with me for almost two and half years, so he means a lot to me, said Dawson about the fish. In the end Dawson stole the spotlight. With the opposing team not far behind, Dawson glided across a pulley strung from the top of a tower to a location on he beach. Her beautiful dismount into the water gave her a lead which put Dawson and Conley out in front for good. Whether it was the good luck charm or pure skill, Dawson and Conley walked away as the grand champions. They left with $10,000, a couple pairs of shoes .nd some clothes. Conley went to Costa Rica on a surfing trip and Dawson paid off bills and saved the rest. There really isn ' t another activity like this offered. It was a lot of fun and was good preparation for American Gladiators, the next event I want to try, said )awson. photo courtesy of Donna Dawson photo courtesy of Donna Dawson photo courtesy ot Donna Dawson Sand Blast 9

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photo by Eric Johnson DANCING THE v At Harvard, if a student went waltzing it probably entailed formal attire and classical music. Too bad for them. Students at this university waltzed to a different tune — free alcohol. The Tennessee waltz was again the students ' favorite tradition to carry on. Upon turning 2 1 , they could finally head into the bars on Tennessee Street and (legally) get tanked. As an added bonus, with the proper proof, each bar gave out one complimentary beverage — ranging from mugs of beer to shots of buttery nipples. The policy of a free pitcher was discontinued in 1994 when the bars began to lose too much money. The night I went waltzing was the best night of the year. I had been wanting to go into Bullwinkle ' s since I got here because I heard it was a feeding ground for honeys. I had so much fun I can ' t even remember it all, said junior Ryan Rasmussen. Several of the greek organizations added their own unique twist to the waltz. Gamma Phi Beta had the birthday girl sign her name and write down what she had to drink every time they finished a bar. I saw my friend Becky James ' (a Gamma Phi) signature sheet the next day and just died laughing. She was so canned after the first place that we couldn ' t even read her name after that, said junior Tiffany Jackson, a Delta Delta Delta. Bar-hopping wasn ' t the only event that transpired over the course of a waltz. The icing on the cake came when the honoree ' s friends tossed them in the Wescott Fountain as a final initiation into adulthood. When our roommate Brian turned 2 1, we got him good. Our buddy Eddie was driving him from Poor Paul ' s to Potbelly ' s and we were waiting for them behind the bushes out in front of Wescott. When they pulled up to the stop sign, we yanked him out of the jeep, carried him over to the fountain and threw him in, said junior Greg Sheaffer. Ah, the Tennessee Waltz — a night long not remembered. photo by Stacy Leigh Woonton ERIC JOHNSON Waltz 11