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Show 111* ill* I illlliiilli. Monday, Sept. 15, 2008 ByKARLIE BRAND staff writer F R E S H M A N BROCK S H A W V E R attempts a back flip during aerials class at the Sports Academy. TYLER LARSON photo safely and learning to land on your back, stomach, hands and knees. The trampolines are also equipped with padding on all sides, so a small mistake doesn't turn into a big injury. Bill Munns, senior in agricultural education, is one student taking the class, "My favorite part is being able to push your own limits and not being scared to hurt yourself," he said. Munns, who said he was the most inacrobatic person there could possibly be, was safely landing the high front flip by the end of the third class. Besides being a lot of fun, the class can also help students practice stunts for other sports. Kinyon Martin, freshman in international agribusiness, said he planned to use the trampoline training on the slopes. "I am excited to learn more control for snowboarding flips," Martin said. Pheobald said he plans to teach ski and snowboard tricks as well as circus skills after basic trampoline flips are learned. Watching other students attempt the stunts can be entertaining, too. The class members laugh and joke when other students goof on a flip or stunt, but clap and cheer supportively when someone lands a high-flying flip they've been working on. "It's a lot of fun just to watch the others," said Martin. Of the eleven members of the class, all but two are guys. Goodall said she thinks it's cool there are so many guys enrolled in the class. "When most people think of gymnastics they just think of girls," Goodall said. "It's cool that guys would want to come out and do new things." Pheobald said that besides trampolining, he hopes to expose the students to a range of gymnastic events similar to those seen in the Front and back flips thirty feet in the air with combinations of tucks, pikes and twists. Although these may sound like complicated stunts the announcers in the Olympics would be explaining, several USU students are learning and practicing these tricks in the aerials trampolining and gymnastics class offered at the Sports Academy. Many of the students enrolled in the class said they have little or no experience in aerials, but are excited and sometimes a little nervous to be trying new things on and off the trampolines. "You have to jump way high and do things you've never done," said Tessa Goodall, junior in exercise science. "It's totally scary." The class is taught by Thomas Pheobald, gymnastics program director at High Point Gymnastics located at the Sports Academy. The class began last fall semester with only three students enrolled and has grown to just shy of 60 students last semester, Pheobald said. There are no prerequisites or gymnastics experience required, and he hopes the class continues to grow. "We'll take everybody," Pheobald said. "As many people as would like to come." The trampolines used for the class are not the same as backyard trampolines bought at Costco or Wal-Mart. Pheobald said the trampolines can't even be purchased in the United States but have to be imported from Germany. Pheobald said the trampolines have a strong string bed that won't stretch, helping athletes jump higher. "On your backyard tramp, people average five or six feet of air at best," said Pheobald. "On these tramps 30 feet is not out of the question." Because trampolines can be dangerous, Pheobald said he teaches basic safety techniques the first IM See CLASS, page 6 week of class, like how to jump Student from Sri Lanka is just one of a handful By APRIL LARSEN staff writer Utah Statesman: What part of Sri Lanka are you from? Janitha Nandalochana: I'm from the middle part. It's called Kandy. I was born and raised there most of my life. Right now my parents live in Colombo, which is the main city in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka was not well-known until the tsunami about three years ago. US: What was your family's experience with the tsunami? JN: Well, I came here in August 2004, but the tsunami hit Dec. 26, 2004.1 was up here already and my parents weren't really affected. They don't live where the tsunami hit, but they were there when it happened. My mom thought that they lost my sister, because she ran up on top of a building. They found her and they stayed up there for about four hours until the water went down. My father had some cuts on his legs. Probably a little scary for them, but I wasn't there. They Aggies around the World Janitha Nandalochana Kandy, Sri Lanka Junior Civil engineering were fine. The most scary part on my side was that I couldn't get a hold of them for about four to five days, because the phone lines to Sri Lanka were really busy. But my sister e-mailed me, telling me they were OK two or three days after but I couldn't talk to them. US: How do you communicate with your family? JN: I haven't been home in three years. It's kind of hard. I call them every weekend. My brother and I take turns and do conference talks. I chat with my sister online all the time. F$mily Owhed tnd Opinftd ISO W 2500 N • Logan, UT 84341 24 Hour Towing J7 Years Experience * Diagnostics US: What stereotypes about Sri Lanka do you encounter? JN: A lot of people are like, "Where is it? Is that a country?" That's what happened when I came my freshman year with my roommates. I used to work with this student, and she knew I was from Sri Lanka. She didn't know where it is exactly located and she told me, "Isn't Sri Lanka in Utah?" She was passing Ogden and she told me that she saw a board saying, "This way is Sri Lanka." I couldn't stop laughing. US: How do you describe your home? JN: A lot of people have the slightest idea because my skin color is brown. They suspect that Sri Lanka is in India. They're pretty close, but I explain that it's a small country below India. US: Is it cold in Sri Lanka? JN: No, it's tropical. It's close to the equator. When I first came here, I'd never [1 See SRI LANKA, page 6 JANITHA NANDALOCHANA SAID HE did not know where USU was located but heard it was a good school t o study engineering and highly ranked. CAMERON PETERSON photo Automotive Repair & Service Complete Domestic, Foreign, European, Gas or Diesel Repair, ATVs, Motorcycles, Snowmobiles and Watercraft |