When Swimming Pays
Very few times in life are people able to swim in a pool full of money, but on Saturday, February 3, that’s exactly what students at Union College did. The annual Splash for Cash event began at 8 p.m. in the atrium of the Don Love building where students joined together to create cardboard duct tape boats.
At 9 p.m., the strength of those boats was tested in the first event at Splash for Cash, the boat races. While many designs were creative and proved efficient, there was one that stood above the rest. A design by 3rd year PA student Amy Grigore and her team took the event by storm. Their design was atypical but effective. The boat had a duct tape front to keep the front from becoming waterlogged. The body of the boat wrapped around the “driver’s” body with arm and leg holes for stroking and kicking. Amy Grigore explained, “We just wanted something streamlined. We made sure not to use too much duct tape because that really weighs it down. And good range of motion for my arms and legs. My favorite event is definitely the boat races.”
There were a number of other winners at Splash for Cash as well. Tylar Bissell, 3rd year PA student explains his team’s strategy for winning the co-ed relay race. “Our strategy was to swim fast. One of the fast people go first and another fast person goes last, then the mediocre in the middle.”
Chloe Blackburn, a senior marketing major, also provided some insight on their strategy for winning the girls’ relay race. “We strategized who would go first and last, other than that, we just said we’d swim really hard and it was super fun!” Myranda Zambrano, a junior business administration major and Chloe’s teammate, added, “It was really fun to do it with all my friends, and it was a great bonding experience.”
Other students just came for the fun of swimming. Sophomore graphic design major, Jovan Cross, explained, “This is my first time doing it. I really want to dive in and swim, that’s really why I’m here. I want to swim.”
Perhaps the event most enjoyed by students, however, was the jump for free money at the bottom of the Larson swimming pool. Junior international rescue and relief major, Nathaniel Brown proclaimed, “I love splash for cash! It’s free money … and I’m poor. My favorite event is the dive for money.”
At the end of the night, over $2,000 had been given away to Union College students...and it was more than gladly accepted. Thanks for the free money ASB!
Kayla Miller is a junior studying nursing.