May 2, 2014 at 4:22 p.m.
JWMS students show their mettle in annual tug-of-war tournament, 3K race
JWMS students show their mettle in annual tug-of-war tournament, 3K race
The moment of truth came Wednesday and the students were ready to show their mettle. They sprinted down Acacia Lane in the morning, hoping to post a fast time in the 3K, and showed no mercy on their classmates in the afternoon tug of war battle royale.
The students prepare for the 3K race all year, increasing their running distances until they're ready to take on a full 3K run or walk.
"We start the school year off with a 10-minute run and then every month we increase it - 12 minutes, 14, 16, 18, 20 and so on - to the point that they're physically ready to run a 3K. Those that qualify, that passed all of those timed runs, are eligible to participate in the 3K," physical education teacher Bill Makris said. "Those that do not wish to participate in the run do a fitness walk out on the track. Everybody's involved doing some sort of physical activity."
The run/walk is a JWMS tradition. For more than 20 years, Rhinelander youngsters have been required to give it their best shot.
"We've been doing this probably 20-plus years. It's been a tradition here at the middle school for as long as I can remember. It's just a lot of fun," Makris said. "We want the kids to understand the benefits of physical fitness. In doing the 3K, we want them to realize they're ready and capable of doing that to build self-esteem and self-confidence and feel good about themselves."
"They find out it really isn't that bad, it isn't that hard, and hopefully it will encourage them to continue to push themselves and stay fit and active and healthy," he added.
Principal Paul Johnson said both activities help illustrate the importance of exercise.
"It's a culmination of what they're doing in physical education class. They've worked all year and done certain fitness criteria. It's been a standing tradition since before I've been here and it's a good way to promote physical fitness and healthy lifestyles," he said.
While the morning run/walk is a relatively calm event, the tug of war is loud and intense.
"Tug of war is always really crazy, really loud. It's a lot of fun. The kids love it and the teachers do too," Makris said. "We started that back in the mid-'90s. It's just a lot of fun. The kids get together, get their teams together, and it teaches them teamwork and, again, keeps them active and healthy. It helps to show them that physical activities can be a lot of fun while also being beneficial to them."
Teams from each grade level competed in the single-elimination tournament. Initially, the teams competed against the other teams in their grade level until the ranks were whittled down to the point where grade levels started competing against other grade levels until there was only one team left standing. The winning team was a group of eighth graders called the Rainbow Warriors. The team was made up of Autumn Lewis, Dan Barber, Ryan Hoople, Brittany Curby, Dessa Moras, Caitlyn Harris, Brandon Carlson, Brayden Engebretson and Morgan Elko. For an added bonus, there was also a male staff team, a female staff team and a PBIS team, made up of committee members who helped plan the event. Those teams faced off against each other and against the student teams, though no one was eliminated from the tournament because of a loss to a faculty team. The loudest explosion of cheers came when the female staff team bested the male staff team.
Johnson said the two activities have been combined so that all students have a chance to excel in whatever physical activity best suits them.
"We have it all as one-day, one event now to really promote physical fitness activities in two different ways - one being more cardio and one being more strength-related," Johnson said. "There are different ways that kids have strength so we want to find different ways to be successful in that. It's all about making all of the kids feel good and successful in whatever activity they excel in."
Marcus Nesemann may be reached at [email protected].
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