If you miss the thrill of competition and the pride you feel while competing for your school, the 6th Pac-12 Fitness Challenge is a chance for you to show your Cougar spirit. In three out of the last four years, WSU has finished second place despite leading for most of the week. [More]

Submitted by: Paul Lund, Cougar Crew Historian The Washington State University Men’s Crew team was represented by five oarsmen at the Northwest Indoor Rowing Championship, Ergomania!, Saturday February 4th in Seattle. The outcome was an impressive five medals and five personal best race results. In the Collegiate U23 Men’s Open 2000 meter event sophomore Jeff Rhubottom, Jr. (Burien, WA) took an early lead and stayed ahead through the first 500 meters. Junior Eric DeMaris (Snohomish, WA) opened a little more conservatively, but steadily closed the gap to his teammate, Rhubottom, Jr. Demonstrating why his consistency has earned him the stroke seat in the Varsity 8+, DeMaris stayed at the same pace until the last 250 meters when he built up to a sprint. He finished first in 6:28.5, and was followed by Rhubottom, Jr. in 6:35.6. Racing in between his fellow oarsmen, senior Joe Sudar went out aiming to improve his personal best by over 20 seconds. He was on pace well past the half-way mark, but the aggressive start caught up as he saw his speed slightly slow down. Sudar finished in 6:48.0, and took the last spot on the podium. In the second to last event of the day, the Men’s Open 2000 meter, Paul Lund (Harstad, Norway) and Orion McCabe-Gould (Olympia, WA) were hoping to show the result of their significant winter training in Pullman. Lund came out firing and jumped ahead of the pack, while McCabe-Gould was between 3rd and 4th for the first 250 meters. Seeded first, Austin Nichols from Pocock Rowing Center, passed Lund and took the lead once they crossed the 500 meter mark. Towards the 1,000 meter mark McCabe-Gould moved up and was within a few meters of his teammate. Nichols maintained his strong drive and stayed ahead with a comfortable margin going into the last 500 meters. With less than 300 meters to go, McCabe-Gould passed Lund for the first time in the race, and Lund was not able to respond. Nichols finished in 6:08, followed by McCabe-Gould in 6:... [More]

Cougar basketball has begun! With the cougar football season behind us it is time to shift our cougar pride in the direction of the basketball team. The team had its first game was November 5th vs. Lewis-Clark State and Pac-12 play begins December 29th. The team has a tough season ahead of them in the newly expanded Pac-12 and with two of their superstars, Klay Thompson and DeAngelo Casto, having left for professional basketball. That being said, it is more important than ever that we, the students, come out and support them. There is no better way to let loose for a couple hours and give your mind a break from studying than coming out to support your school. Now I, being a diehard cougar basketball fan, like to get to the games well before the doors open to ensure I get a great seat for the game. This is a great time to bundle up and bring some studying materials for a nice few hours of quiet study time. Waiting in line for Cougar basketball can be a time to get some work done as well as meet some new friends in line. I encourage everyone to buy their ZzuCru shirts and come out for the home games. It’s a lot of fun and a great way to let loose for a few hours before going back to hit the books. Plus, the team needs the support of the whole student body if they’re going to come back as strong as they have in years past. See you all there.

Our last home game of the season has arrived.  It feels like just yesterday I was writing about my commitment to attend every home game during my senior year.  Unlike my sleep challenge during Set the Trend “Goodnight Cougs,” I’m one game away from accomplishing my goal!  During Dad’s Weekend I faced a tough choice when my Dad and little sister, Meagan, came to visit.  Their idea of fun was not watching the football game in the cold at 7:30 p.m.  At first I was going to stay with them and watch a movie instead of going to the game, but my Dad noticed I was anxious about missing out on WSU Football.  Like any loving father he said, “You should go to the game, I know that’s what you want to do.”  Spending three hours apart on Dad’s Weekend wasn’t ideal, but witnessing the win against Arizona State University made the decision excusable.  With the last game against Utah this weekend I’ve strategized ways to defy the winter weather.  According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) the forecast for Saturday looks intimidating, “A 50 percent chance of snow showers.”  A chilly weather forecast warrants layers upon layers to keep in the heat.  Another challenge is getting cold feet, and I mean literally, my feet get really cold.  One way to keep your feet warm is to follow the advice of a tip posted on (espn.go.com).  A reader commented he used a newspaper to put between his feet and the concrete and his feet stayed warm through the whole game!  Check out more ways to stay warm at http://es.pn/w0BjlA.  With multiple layers of clothes, a newspaper and a comforting cup of cocoa I’ll be ready to cheer the Cougs onto victory.  Rain or snow I’ll be at the game, Go Cougs!

As a part of the Pac-12 Fitness Challenge there were many events held throughout the week at the Student Recreation Center. One event that caught my eye was the Zumbastravaganza. So on Wednesday, with the encouragement of my roommate, I gave Zumba a try. The Zumbastravaganza was event open to all and I estimated that around 200 people showed up. It was a bit overwhelming at first, but the energy was enough to get me excited.  The nice thing about trying out a potentially embarrassing fitness routine with hundreds of other men and women is that you will definitely not be alone when you mess up. Trying to keep up with the changing routines was a blast, but challenging. I will definitely be signing up for a Zumba class in the coming fitness sessions because the hour of dancing ended up being a fantastic workout. Trying Zumba definitely put me outside of my comfort zone and I am so glad I tried it. I am thankful that my roommate, Hannah, was there to support me too! Now I know that I have one more fitness option to keep my workouts diverse and engaging! To see the picture of all the men and women that came to the Zumbastravaganza, click here.

Well Cougs, we finished second. After a fantastic week of working hard, logging minutes and attending events, the Pac-12 Fitness Challenge ended on Sunday night. We had the lead all week long in both our Fitness Minutes and Total Points, but at some point this weekend the UCLA Bruins slipped ahead of us and beat our Total Points by about 20,000. The final count was WSU with a total of 405,324 points and UCLA with a total of 423,857. The race was close and I must admit I am a touch disappointed that we did not win. However, the week was a big win in other ways. We had more participation in the week-long event than ever before. Through our Zumbastravaganza we were able to raise money for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation. We had a blast getting to do the Halloween 5K run on Sunday morning with everyone in costumes. And, more impressive than anything else, the Cougars logged over 375,000 fitness minutes in just one week! The event was a huge success and was a great week. I cannot wait until next year when even more students get involved and fight for Pac-12 pride! Thanks to everyone who participated this week, it was great to see the students and community united and the Rec packed. Here’s to next year!

This week at the Student Recreation Center is the Pac-12 Fitness Challenge. I remember last year’s event was a ton of fun and am excited to have it back around again. This morning was really encouraging, as WSU has already taken a commanding lead with over 14,000 points logged for our university. Stanford is close with over 10,000 but I believe that we can stay ahead. People all around the campus are already logging their active minutes and participating in what UREC is offering for this week. Personally, I have my eye on Wednesday’s Zumbastravaganza! I love the feeling of a campus wide movement and that is why this week is so much fun for me. I cannot wait to log my fitness minutes, events attended and even my walks to school in order to help The Cougs win this year!  Click this link to see the current rankings and sign up yourself!