Don’t Drop the Baton

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Title: Don’t Drop the Baton

General Information About Item:

  • Customary folklore
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: CH
  • Date Collected: 10/22/21

Informant Data:

  • Female, 20 years old, Born in Los Angeles, CA, Currently living in Hanover, NH
  • CH is a 100m, 200m, and 400m sprinter at Dartmouth

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: In every track meet there are individual races and team relays. During a relay a baton is passed from member to member until all four have completed the designated distance. This means only one per team is running at a time.
  • Social Context: There are usually three main relay races in every meet. The most difficult being the 100 meter relay. This is because the baton handoff has to occur in a certain zone on the track. Since the distance is so short, the speed at which the handoff occurs is extremely fast. This unfortunately makes it easy to mess up and drop the baton. Dropping the baton is an instant disqualification from the race.

Item:

  • CH described a tradition in which the relay batons are kept off the ground the entire meet.

Informant Comments/Quotes:

“The relay teams don’t let the baton touch the ground the entire day of the meet so that they won’t drop it in their race.” -CH

Collector Comments:

  • While this tradition is not Dartmouth specific, Dartmouth Track and Field has been practicing it for many years. CH does not know who started this trend, only that it has been with the team for many years. The superstition that dropping the baton before the meet could cause them to drop it in the race is very understandable considering how difficult and high stakes the hand offs can be in competition.

Collected by: Chloe Taylor

Men’s XC Cheer

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Title: Men’s XC Cheer

General Information About Item:

  • Verbal/Customary folklore
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: CD
  • Date Collected: 10/21/21

Informant Data:

  • Male, 19 years old, Born in New Hampshire, Currently living in Hanover, NH
  • CD is a long distance and XC runner at Dartmouth

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: Cross country races are both a team and individual sport. While individual performance is important, so is the team’s as a whole. These races also take place outdoors with hundreds of competitors from different schools all starting on the same start line.
  • Social Context: Since Cross country is a team sport, making sure that the team is bonded and eager to help each other is essential to placing well in a meet.

Item:

  • CD described a team cheer which the Men’s cross country team chants before every meet. The whole men’s team gathers in a huddle to perform the chant. He described two parts, person A (usually the team captain) leads the chant while the other line is shouted by the whole team in response.

Informant Comments/Quotes:

“We have the same cheer before every race.”

Person 1: “Men of dartmouth set a watch”

All: “Lest the old traditions fail” – CD

Collector Comments:

  • The team cheer seems like it really gets the whole team excited and ready to work together in the coming race. I can see how it’s extremely important to have the team get together for one final chant before it’s time to compete.

Collected by: Chloe Taylor

Women’s XC Cheer

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Title: Women’s XC Cheer

General Information About Item:

  • verbal/customary folklore
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: AJ
  • Date Collected: 10/21/21

Informant Data:

  • Female, 19 years old, born in Boston, MA, currently living in Hanover, NH
  • AJ is a mid distance and cross country (XC) runner at Dartmouth

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: Cross country races are both a team and individual sport. While individual performance is important, so is the team’s as a whole. These races also take place outdoors with hundreds of competitors from different schools all starting on the same start line.
  • Social Context: Since Cross country is a team sport, making sure that the team is bonded and eager to help each other is essential to placing well in a meet.

Item:

  • AJ described a team cheer which the cross country team chants before every meet. The whole women’s team gathers in a huddle to perform the chant. She described two parts, person A (usually the team captain) leads the chant while the other lines are shouted by the whole team in response.

Informant Comments/Quotes:

“We do a certain cheer before every race at Dartmouth.”

Person A: “Run”

All: “Fast”

Person A: “Run”

All: “Relentless”

Person A: “Run” 

All: “Ugly”

Person A: “Lone pine pride on three”

Person A: “1 2 3”

All: “Lone pine pride”

Collector Comments:

  • The team cheer seems like it really gets the whole team excited and ready to work together in the coming race. I can see how it’s extremely important to have the team get together for one final chant before it’s time to compete.

Collected By: Chloe Taylor

Runway Routine

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Title: Runway Routine

General Information about Item:

  • customary lore, personal
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: LG
  • Date Collected 10/21/21

Informant Data:

  • Female, 19 years old, Born in Arkansas, Currently living in Hanover, NH
  • LG is a Heptathalete, meaning she competes in seven track events: 100-meter hurdles, high jump, shot put, 200 meters, long jump, javelin throw and 800 meters

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: Track competitions are often as much mental as physical, especially the field events (throwing/jumping). Since track is an individual sport there is a lot of self-motivated pressure on an athlete to do well. Messing up only leaves ourself to blame so superstitions are common in this sport.
  • Social Context: During a track meet, athletes have a certain amount of time once they step on the runway to jump. During this time they prepare themselves however they want as their competitors watch. Therefore personal folklore is easily passed around as having a certain routine before a good jump may convince younger competitors to do the same routine.

Item:

  • LG has a specific runway routine (superstition) which she believes she must perform before each jump (in her jumping events) or she won’t do well. Although this is personal folklore she says that it was very common among jumpers on her high school team as well as The Dartmouth team. Her routine may be slightly unique but has shared elements that she learned by observing other athletes in jump event competition.

Informant Comments/Quotes:

  • “I rock back and forth four times on the runway before actually going. If I don’t do this then the jump feels off.” -LG

Collector Comments:

  • As a jumper myself I can verify LG’s observation about runway routines and how they are learned from others. Although it has a sense of individuality, it is also a track-wide practice, especially at Dartmouth, so I thought it was still valid to include in this collection.

Collected By: Chloe Taylor

Jersey Toss (Zack Bair)

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  1. General Info
    1. Locker room tradition
    2. Informant: Vittorio Tartara 
    3. Place of Origin: Red Bank, New Jersey
    4. Customary Lore
  2. Informant Data
    1. Vittorio is a 21-year-old senior student at Monmouth University in New Jersey. Prior to attending Monmouth as a student, Vittorio played football at Red Bank Catholic High School from 2014 until 2018. Vittorio is originally from Monroe Township, New Jersey. 
  3. Contextual Data
    1. Following Red Bank Catholic football games, the players throw all of their jerseys into a big pile in the middle of the locker room, which are later collected to be sent out to be cleaned. 
  4. Item
    1. Following every Red Bank Catholic High School football game, a large pile of dirty jerseys is made in the center of the locker room in order for the jerseys to be collected and cleaned later. After victories, the coach would come into the locker room and talk to the players. After the coach’s speech is finished and the staff leaves the locker room, older players on the team would convene and choose any player that had a particularly good game, regardless of age. Once decided, a group of players will grab the selected player and throw them into the pile of dirty jerseys and even more jerseys are thrown on top of the player. 
Red Bank Catholic (Red Bank, NJ) Athletics
  1. Informant comments
    1. “I’m not sure how it started but it was something we also looked forward to doing after every win. Obviously it sucks to be thrown into a pile of disgusting, used jerseys, it was also seen as an honor cause it meant the other players on the team acknowledged how well the selected player had done in the win.”
  2. Collector’s Name: Zack Bair

Locker Room Cleanup (Zack Bair)

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  1. General Information
    1. Informant: Conor Smith
    2. Place of Origin: New Haven, Connecticut
    3. Tradition, Customary Lore
  2. Informant Data
    1. Conor is currently a 21-year-old senior on the Yale University football team. Conor is originally from Red Bank, New Jersey and attended Red Bank Catholic High School where he played football. 
  3. Contextual Data 
    1. The Yale University football team based this tradition off of a similar tradition done by the New Zealand All Blacks, the most dominant international rugby team in history. Also, the Yale football team only elects a single captain per year, making it one of the highest honors bestowed upon any player on the team. 
  4. Item
    1. In the Yale Football team, there is a locker room tradition that after every practice or game, two players stay behind to help clean the locker room. The first player that stays behind every time is the captain of the team. The second player is one who is chosen by the coaches as someone who had a particularly good game or practice, or exhibited tremendous effort. 
Yale Welcomes 24 New Bulldogs to the Gridiron - Yale University
  1. Informants Comments
    1. “It is seen as the highest honor to be able to clean for the team which is why the captain also does it every day. It’s an honor in the sense that it is selfless and puts the team before yourself.”
  2. Collector’s Name: Zack Bair

Locker Room Prayer (Zack Bair)

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  1. General Information
    1. Informant: MJ Wright
    2. Place of Origin: New York City, New York
    3. Verbal Lore
  2. Informant Data
    1. MJ Wright is currently a 20-year-old junior on the Fordham University football team. MJ is originally from Freehold, New Jersey. MJ played high school football at Red Bank Catholic High School.
  3. Contextual Data
    1. Fordham University, a Jesuit university founded in 1841, puts great emphasis and importance in the religious aspect of the university. This religious emphasis carries over onto the Fordham football team in their locker room prior to games with the recitation of the Lord’s Prayer.
  4. Item
    1. The Lord’s Prayer is a common prayer, recited at almost every Christian mass. The prayer goes:
    2. Our Father, who art in heaven,

Hallowed be thy name.

Thy kingdom come,

Thy will be done on earth,

as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts,

as we forgive our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil:

For thine is the kingdom,

and the power, and the glory,

forever. Amen.

  1. Informant Comments
    1. The religious aspect of the university is still very important within the football team. This is something I’m used to having attended a Catholic high school where we had a similar tradition.”
  2. Collector’s Name: Zack Bair

“Ten Thousand Men of Harvard” (Zack Bair)

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  1. General Info
    1. Verbal Lore
    2. Place of Origin: Cambridge, Massachusetts
    3. Informant: Nasir Darnell
  2. Informant Data
    1. Nasir is currently a 22-year-old graduate senior on the Harvard University football team. Nasir is originally from Matawan, New Jersey and attended Red Bank Catholic High School.
  3. Contextual Data
    1. The song “Ten Thousand Men of Harvard” originated at Harvard in the year 1918. Composed by Charrles Putnam. The song is generally sung by the Harvard Glee Club at its annual joint concert with the Yale Glee Club prior to the famous Harvard-Yale rivalry game.  
  4. Item
    1. Just as the Harvard Glee Club sings “ten Thousand Men of Harvard” before games, the Harvard football team also sings the famous song following wins. The lyrics go:

Ten Thousand Men of Harvard want victory today

For they know that ov’r old Eli

Fair Harvard holds sway.

So then we’ll conquer all old Eli’s men,

And when the game ends we’ll sing again:

Ten thousand men of Harvard gained vict’ry today.

  1. Informants comments 
    1. “‘ Ten Thousand Men of Harvard’ holds an important place with not just the football team singing it in the locker room after wins, but with the entirety of the Harvard community. I remember when the band performed the song in Harvard Yard my freshman year, that was my first exposure to it.” 
  2. Collector’s Name: Zack Bair