I totally agree with Kelly H.’s article, “Varsity Versus Gym Class.” She is right about the fact that students in varsity sports shouldn’t be forced to take gym so that we can get home and go to bed at decent times. I am on a national medalist synchronized skating team and I have to practice by myself at least 5 days a week (my rink isn’t open on Saturday’s so I can’t skate then) for at least 2 hours and I don’t get out of school until 3. I get to the rink at 3:45 and I am on the ice by 4. I don’t even get the opportunity to go home and start my homework! I usually don’t get out of practice and lessons until 6, then I teach or do conditioning until 7. I usually don’t get home until 7:30 and by the time I eat and start my homework, it’s already 8:30 and I have at least 2 hours of homework and studying to do every night. Sometimes, I don’t get to bed until 12 o’clock at night due to all the tests and quizzes that I have coming up.




If I got to leave school earlier and start practice sooner, I would be able to get home and do my homework earlier, which will result in me getting to bead earlier being that I have to wake up at 5:30 for school every day. Why should I have to waste my time getting “exercise” by playing games and things in gym when I get much more when I train? I think, along with Kelly, that varsity level athletes shouldn’t have to take gym because we don’t need the extra “exercise”, just the extra time.