It is a universal situation at 3:00pm on a Saturday when you make the five to ten minute trek to Merrill, feeling motivated to get on the treadmill, just to find that there’s not a single one available. A majority of the time I just stand there in disbelief. Not at the fact that everyone is trying to uphold their New Year’s resolutions, but that we only have 10 treadmills for 2,000 people. That’s 200 people per treadmill!
Not only is this unbelievably inconvenient for the people feeling motivated to actually move their bodies, but it is also incredibly awkward for the person on the treadmill mid-workout. You almost feel guilty that you got yourself on the treadmill first because there’s someone staring at you, waiting for you to get off. So how do we stop the awkward gym epidemic and continue to let those getting in shape reach their goals? Does it require more space to allow the extension of the cardio room? Could Merrill Gymnasium fit more machines?
Merrill Gymnasium, built in 1979, is approximately 110,000 square feet. It is home to the six-lane Mondo Super-X track, four tennis courts, eight-lane Tarbell pool, Bert Andrews Rooms for cardiovascular activities (the home of the infamous treadmills) and the Marcy Plavin Dance Studios. It’s impressive in itself that the athletics facility can hold all those sports.
The Bates Mission Statement believes, “Bates educates the whole person” (Bates College Mission Statement and Outlook). Yes, I truthfully say I chose Bates for the academics and the resources that the campus itself provides. Some of these resources include SASC, SWLC, Health Services, Purposeful work, etc. But an essential resource that helps students stay focused in class, feel healthy, and reduce stress, is physical activity. Not having the valuable resource of a treadmill is doing a disservice to the mission statement that Bates upholds. I am turning to Bates Students who I believe can help seal the deal on why something must be done about the student-to-equipment ratio in the Bert Andrews Room for Cardiovascular Activities.
Greta Oberdiek ‘28, a member of the Women’s Rowing team, expressed to me that she uses the cardio room as a supplement for rowing workouts and that, “there are often many people waiting in line, ready to jump on any treadmill”. Oberdiek overlaps with my issue of people waiting in line ready to get on whichever treadmill becomes available. Having people wait for machines is distracting to those working out. Oberdiek also noted that if she doesn’t want to wait, she is forced “to choose a different machine that I don’t want to use, such as the elliptical machine.” The fact that you cannot even go into the cardio room to do the physical activity that you want is just inconvenient.
