SPORTS

There are some oddball sport clubs at FAU, clubs that seem almost out of place on a university campus. However, like the unknown and unpredictable nature of the element of wind, the clubs in this section may be weird, but they still kick butt.

Sky Diving:

Roughly 13,000 feet in the air, Kyle Schiegner looked out of the plane. A few seconds later, he was falling toward earth, wind rushing past his face. This is just another typical weekend for Schiegner: satisfying his skydiving addiction.

“It’s one of my passions. It’s amazing to me. It’s changed my life ever since I’ve done it,” said Schiegner.

Two years since his first skydiving jump, the sophomore mechanical engineering major is now the president of the Skydiving Club. After joining his freshman year, he earned his Accelerated Free Fall (AFF) level A license, which gives him the ability to jump on his own and take part in skydiving competitions.

While Schiegner goes to as many competitions as he can, the club only gets together about once a month to jump as a group. It’s purely for fun, but Schiegner hopes to compete against other schools.

“We’re trying to get a competition team for FAU right now,” he said. “It’s a collegiate sport throughout the whole entire United States, so we’re trying to get funding from FAU so we can go out and compete against all these top-notch colleges.”

However, Schiegner is the only club member with a level A license. The rest of the club is either still working on getting licensed, or content with the more common tandem jumps, in which the instructor is strapped to a skydiver’s back.

According to Schiegner, the process for getting the first level of certification can be a long one. Skydivers go through the AFF program to get their license from the United States Parachute Association. For the first license, the AFF program requires the student skydivers to perform 25 jumps and meet certain skill requirements.

“I need funding for the jumps because it’s so expensive,” said senior civil engineering major and club member David Rundio. “But once I get funding I’m definitely going to get my level A license and jump with the team.”

There are a few different ways to compete in skydiving. From formations to freestyle and even skysurfing — skydiving with a surfboard — skydiving has a lot of options. According to Schiegner, the most common style for collegiate competitions is called “RW,” which is another name for formation skydiving.

Competition aside, skydiving affects each person differently. According to club member Nicholas Shults, it just depends on the type of person you are.

“Most people think it’s going to be ridiculous, like you’re jumping out of a plane and heading towards earth and it’s going to be crazier than any drop on a rollercoaster,” said the sophomore psychobiology major. “But for me it was rather relaxing. It’s like chilling in the middle of nowhere, like going to the beach and laying out.”

Climbing Club:

Tim Raczek deals with the same stress as any other student, but he relieves it differently: He goes climbing.

“It definitely is relaxing and stress-relieving,” said the geography major, who is co-president of the club. “You really can’t be focusing on much when you’re 40 feet up in the air and you’re holding on to the wall.”

The 6-year-old club has both a rock wall, which is about 45 feet high, and a ropes course, which is about 35 feet high, located behind the track on the northwest corner of the Boca campus.

Members hold open climbs twice a week in which FAU students can come out and climb, even if they’re not a part of the club.

According to Raczek, the club has roughly 30 members and is growing steadily every year. He hopes that more students will come out to climb and experience the thrill and relaxation of the sport.

Equestrian Club:

Most Florida schools have one, but most FAU students don’t know their university has one too. What is it? An equestrian club.

Sophomore marketing major Laurel Sendach is the president of the year-old Equestrian Club. It has about 25 members who enjoy the competition of showing horses or just like riding for fun.

The competitive team takes weekly lessons with coach Amy Foster at How-Lyn Acres in Coconut Creek and goes to horse shows against other schools around the nation. It is registered with the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association for these competitions.

According to Sendach, owning a horse isn’t necessary to be a part of the club. Students can rent or borrow horses from the stables where FAU lessons are held. Club members not interested in competing can also borrow horses for riding lessons or trail rides.

“Anyone can join the club,” said Sendach. “It’s open to all levels. If anyone wants to learn about horses or how to ride we can teach anyone.”

Roller Hockey Club:

Despite making nationals its first year as a Division I team, the Roller Hockey Club is relatively unknown at FAU.

According to club President Greg Kneeves, the players are used to it, but they hope to eventually get more recognition from the school, especially after last year’s successful season.

Roller Hockey became a club two years ago and joined the National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association. After its first year of play in Division II of the NCRHA, the team moved up to Division I, where it won regionals.

The club has set a high standard for itself following last season’s performance — a standard that some players are not sure they’ll be able to reach again this year because of a high number of rookies in starting positions. Seven of the 11 players on the team are freshmen, leaving only four juniors as veteran players.

However, despite the overwhelming inexperience on the team, Kneeves said he is determined to have fun.

Click here for the UP’s 2010 season preview and schedule for the Roller Hockey Club.

Here are Some More Unexpected Clubs