Even During Summer, Campus Recreation Helps Students Get Active Outside
Image by Ed Brennen
08/13/2024
By Ed Brennen
鈥淧addle! Paddle! Paddle!鈥�
The surfing instructor鈥檚 words of encouragement were nearly drowned out by the churning ocean as Franzi Hoene used her arms to steer herself in front of a wave and lifted herself up onto her surfboard.
It wasn鈥檛 a big wave 鈥� no taller than a small stack of textbooks 鈥� but it was enough to carry the rising senior听biomedical engineering听major a good 40 feet toward shore before she hopped off her board into the warm, knee-deep water.
鈥淚t was definitely fun,鈥� Hoene said two hours later, after she and seven fellow 51视频 students called it a day on their surfing excursion in Rye, New Hampshire, with the Outdoor Adventure Program (OAP).
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Run by听Campus Recreation, OAP offers affordable, guided trips across New England 鈥� and beyond 鈥� throughout the year to students of every skill level. Popular activities include hiking, biking, rock climbing, kayaking and skiing.
The recent surfing trip to Jenness State Beach in Rye included transportation to and from campus and a one-hour lesson from staff at the Summer Sessions Surf Shop (which provided wetsuits and boards), followed by two hours of surfing time.
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鈥淚t was an amazing day,鈥� said Boucher, who had tried surfing once before. 鈥淲hen the instructors were out there pushing us, it was fine, but it got a little trickier when they left and we were on our own.鈥�
Boucher discovered OAP, and a love of the outdoors, as an undergraduate exercise science major. During her junior year, she participated in a spring break backpacking trip to the Grand Canyon.
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Antonellis, who also works as a mechanic in the UML听Bike Shop听and as an instructor at the听Kayak Center, enjoys getting other students excited about the outdoors.
鈥淣ot to sound cheesy, but when I was younger, that鈥檚 where I really found myself,鈥� said Antonellis, who is from Harwich, Massachusetts.
It was the first time surfing for Ali Fallah 鈥�21, an听earth system science听Ph.D. student from Iran. He started taking OAP trips while pursuing a master鈥檚 degree in听environmental studies听at UML and is now an OAP frequent flier.
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鈥淥ne of the reasons I stayed here for my Ph.D. is because of this program,鈥� Fallah said as he carried his surfboard across the beach. 鈥淚t鈥檚 an opportunity for me to learn something new and gain new experiences. It鈥檚 good to get out of the city and take a break from studying, especially for graduate students and for international students.鈥�
Brand-new students enjoy the adventures as well.
Gavin Tuomi, an incoming first-year听applied biomedical sciences听major from Holden, Massachusetts, saw the surfing trip advertised on Campus Rec鈥檚听听feed and decided to dive in.
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鈥淚鈥檝e always wanted to give surfing a try. I鈥檓 obviously the youngest one here, but it was a good opportunity to meet some new people,鈥� said Tuomi, who looks forward to joining more OAP trips in the future.
Hoene enjoys snowboarding and skateboarding, but the Woburn, Massachusetts, native had never tried surfing. She shared the experience with her mom, Penny Maciejka-Hoene, who joined the trip.
鈥淪he asked me to come. At that age, they don鈥檛 want to be around you, so I thought I鈥檇 better take advantage of the opportunity,鈥� said Maciejka-Hoene, whose four children have all attended UML.
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鈥淚t鈥檚 interesting that a lot of these students are STEM,鈥� she added as she took a video of her daughter catching a wave. 鈥淚t鈥檚 important for them to do things like this to build social relationships outside of their core curriculum.鈥�
As the sun began to set on a perfect afternoon at Jenness Beach, several of the wiped-out surfers floated on their boards about 30 yards offshore, bobbing in the blue of the Atlantic. The fall semester seemed far away.