Tag Archives: Magic superstition

Left First (Jack Cameron)

Title: Left First

General Information about Item:

  • Magic superstition, homeopathic
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: JM
  • Date Collected: 11/08/21

Informant Data:

  • JM is a 21 year old male Dartmouth student in the class of 2023.  He was born and raised in the areas surrounding New Haven, Connecticut. James is a member of the Varsity Football team at Dartmouth, playing the position of Offensive Line. Away from football, James enjoys music and is an avid fan of the old folk band Carlyle Fraser.

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: Football teams often stretch before their games and practices.  Football is known and practiced as a very combative sport, with plenty of injury and physical toll. Stretching before a game reduces risk of injury, and is often led by seniors or captains on any given team. Offensive Linemen tend to be the biggest people on the football team.
  • Social Context: This specific superstition pertains to all Offensive Linemen on the Dartmouth football team. While this is not necessarily the case for all of the positions, the interviewee was adamant that the Offensive Line face perhaps the most physical toll of all the positions, as their job is to block the defense from tackling their teammates with the ball.

Item:

A stretching routine is very common. Often led by team leaders, seniors or captains, pre-game stretching routines take place in almost all sports across the world. Each stretching routine can be different depending on the sport, but this routine has the Offensive Linemen always stretch the left body part before their right.  

Associated file (a video, audio, or image file):

Transcript:

This is me stretching my left hip flexor. Our pregame stretching superstition always starts with the left side first. Left hamstring, then right hamstring. Left calf, then right calf, etc. I think it started almost 10 years ago because it’s luckier to stretch on the heart side first, that way if something gets banged up on the right side we can always say ‘it’s a long way from the heart’ and keep on moving forward.”

Informant’s Comments:

Found this to be interesting and now found that I do lots of things in my day left side first. Put on pants left leg before the right, socks and shoes left before right and such.

Collector’s Comments:

I found this pregame superstition to be quite interesting, especially since it has since carried over into his everyday life. I think that protecting the heart side is an interesting concept that I would highly consider incorporating into my own life for a feeling of safety.  

Collector’s Name:

Jack Cameron

Dartmouth College

Russ013 21F

Prof. Apresyan and Prof. Gronas

Setting Watches for Dartmouth (Jack Cameron)

Title: Setting Watches for Dartmouth

General Information about Item:

  • Magic Superstition, sympathetic
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: SW
  • Date Collected: 11-1-21

Informant Data:

  • SW is a 20-year-old male Dartmouth student in the class of 2023.  He was born and raised in Dallas, Texas. Seth is a member of the Varsity Cross Country team at Dartmouth. Seth’s father also ran Division I cross country at Duke University before going on to complete three marathons in his 40s. Seth has also spent time on the Varsity Track & Field team at Dartmouth. Seth is a Religion major who hopes to pursue consulting after graduation.

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: Cross Country races are 8km for men, and 5km for women. All runners start at the same starting line, lined up by team. Because of this, they have ample opportunity for team bonding, last second words of encouragement and strategy all the way up until the starting gun.
  • Social Context: This specific pre-race chant was the first thing Seth mentioned when talking about pre-race superstitions. Seth said this was a call and response chant – the captain would issue a call, to which the rest of the team would shout the response in unison for good luck into their race.

Item:

  • Captain: “Men of Dartmouth set a watch!”
  • Team: “Lest the old traditions fail.”

Associated file (a video, audio, or image file):

Transcript:

  • “Men of Dartmouth set a watch, lest the old traditions fail is the last thing we say to each other before the gun. This photo is taken moments after the call and response, right before we are taking off. I like the chant, it reminds me where I am, to be proud of what I have accomplished, and to go out and make the history of Dartmouth and former Dartmouth runners proud”

Informant’s Comments:

  • I love it. It reminds me that I am part of something much bigger than myself. This has been a Cross Country team staple for decades.

Collector’s Comments:

  • I found this pre-race chant to be very interesting, especially after my informant told me that it makes him feel special to be a part of something much larger than himself, and bringing him into hallowed history of Dartmouth athletics.

Collector’s Name:

Jack Cameron

Dartmouth College

Russ013 21F

Prof. Apresyan and Prof. Gronas

White Left Wrist (Jack Cameron)

Title: White Left Wrist

General Information about Item:

  • Magic Superstition, homeopathic
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: PO
  • Date Collected: 11/3/21

Informant Data:

  • PO is a 21-year-old male Dartmouth student in the class of 2023.  He was born and raised in Schenectady, New York. Pete is a third baseman on the Men’s Varsity Baseball Team at Dartmouth. Pete has played baseball since he was six years old, and also enjoys fishing and golfing. A Government major, Pete plans on attending graduate school after Dartmouth.

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: Baseball players are some of the most superstitious athletes in the world. Baseball is a very mental sport, with preparation and focus being a big part of success – more than the physical aspect. Baseball is traditionally played more frequently than any other sport in America, often being played almost every day.
  • Social Context: This specific superstition was mentioned when the interviewee was asked about pre-game preparations. Baseball players often have regional superstitions or routines before facing a pitch that are shared with one another when players from all over the country. This particular superstition comes from the Schenectady/Troy/Saratoga region of New York State.

Item:

  • Right-handed batters tape their left wrist with white tape, and left-handed batters tape their right wrist with white tape. This is used to help remind the batter to keep the wrist locked while swinging a bat, making for more likely and more powerful contact with the ball. In this picture, we can see that Pete is a right-handed Tbatter, with his right wrist taped in white tape even though he is fielding a ball and not batting.

Associated file (a video, audio, or image file):

Transcript:

  • “I’m not sure where it started, but everyone in my area tapes their wrist of their bottom hand on their bat. We were told it helps you keep your wrist locked, but after I got stronger and didn’t need that anymore it just felt right. After a while it just became customary and made me feel more connected with the bat”

Informant’s Comments:

  • “I like taping my wrist because it reminds me of home, and it’s cool to see other players now at different colleges with the same white tape and know they’re from my region”

Collector’s Comments:

  • I liked how Pete was able to relate this regional superstition and not only bring it to college, but also use it as an indicator when he sees other people around at different schools from his region. I find this superstition to be especially effective after he said that it makes him feel more connected with the bat.

Collector’s Name:

Jack Cameron

Dartmouth College

Russ013 21F

Prof. Apresyan and Prof. Gronas

Rock and Roll and Trap Shooting (Troy Burkhart)

Title: Rock and Roll and Trap Shooting

General Information about Item:

  • Magic (Sympathetic) object Superstition, song, bullet placement
  • Language: English
  • Origin: Massachusetts
  • Informant: N.S.
  • 10/5/2021

Informant Data:

  • N.S. was born in Newton, Massachusetts in the year 1999. He participated in trap shooting at Dartmouth in the past. He described himself as a very neat and organized person. His family background is mostly European with family origins in Ireland, Poland, Germany, and French Canadian.

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: Trap shooting is an American sport that was created as a very popular alternative to using real birds which was a big factor in its widespread popularity. At trap competitions, all competitors line up in a row and signal for a single clay one at a time which gives each shooter time in-between rounds to prepare.
  • Social Context: According to Ned, many of the participants are very nationalistic and pro-America. Practices, competitions, and other events are mostly focused on competing within the team and outside, however, having after all these events the team will have socials and other entertaining events that create a team bond.

Item:

  • (Non-folklore superstition, just interesting) At trap competitions, all competitors line up in a row and signal for a single clay one at a time. They shoot and then have until all other competitors to reload their gun. During this time is when N.S. pre-game/pre-round superstition comes into practice. His personal superstition is that would always load the special Western bullet into his gun with the words facing upwards.
  • (Team folklore superstition) N.S. trap shooting team had a folkloric superstition of listening to music only by AC/DC leading up to trap shooting events. While they are in the bus or locker room, AC/DC is the only music allowed. He does not know when this folklore was started but thinks it was because AC/DC makes rock music is an American genre of music which matches the American origin of trap shooting. Listening to AC/DC hypes the team up and prepares them to shoot at competitions. Their favorite song that they always end with is Hell’s Bells.

Associated files/pictures:

Ac / Dc - Hells Bells - metalmailorder.com
A hand holding a couple of coins

Description automatically generated with low confidence

Transcript:

  • “Everytime I load my break-open shotgun, I must place the logo, that is imprinted on the brass bottom, upright in the chamber. If the logo is not upright, my shooting accuracy decreases because all I can do is focus on the fact that the bullet is loaded incorrectly.”
  • “To hype ourselves up for competitions, it is a team rule that we listen to only AC/DC’s music during bus rides or in the locker room. I am not sure where this came from, but it is very effective.”

Informants Comments:

  • He recommends listening to AC/DC’s music, as it is very catchy and popular music back in the day

Collector’s Comments:

  • The personal superstition of bullet placement is really interesting. It is very specific and precise in nature. Both of these superstitions are also very intriguing to me because I had never really heard of trap shooting before talking to Ned.

Collector’s Name:

  • Troy Burkhart
  • Dartmouth College ’23
  • Russian 13 Fall 2021
  • Professors – Gronas, Apresyan

Tags:

  • Trap Shooting
  • Dartmouth
  • Music
  • AC/DC

Yale Superstitions

Title: Yale Superstitions – Addie Burton

General Information about Item:

  • Customary Lore, Magic Superstition
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: Addie Burton
  • Date Collected: 11/08/21

Informant Data:

  • Addie Burton is a 19 year old female from Orono, MN. She is a female student-athlete in the class of 2024. She went to a private school in Minnesota before going to the University of Minnesota, which she transferred from this year to attend Yale. At Yale she is on the women’s ice hockey team and is in an acapella group.  She has 2 superstitions that she follows strictly before games.

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: The cultural context is that putting on gear in a specific order is common amongst hockey players, and re-taping your stick is a very common action that hockey players perform before games. 
  • Social Context: The social context is interacting with people who also re-tape their sticks before games, and interacting with others who put a certain side of their gear on before the other side.
  • The magic substance in the superstition about taping her stick is stick tape. 

Item:

  • This item is a customary type of folklore under the genre of magic superstition. Addie performs these before each home game. 

Transcript:

  • “I re-tape my hockey stick and put the blade in the air so it does not touch the ground until game time, and when I get dressed I put my right skate on before my left.”  

Informant’s Comments:

  • Addie described the feeling of dread and disdain if her stick touched the ground after she re-taped it, needing it to stay in the air in order to play well. She 

Collector’s Comments:

  • I was very intrigued by Addie’s superstitions because while some of her superstitions are common amongst most players, she has a spin on them such as keeping her newly taped stick in the air, something she told me she started doing after watching her older teammates do it. 

Collector’s Name: Currie Putrah 

Yale Superstitions

Title: Yale Superstitions – Grace Lee

General Information about Item:

  • Customary and Verbal Lore, Magic Superstition
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: Grace Lee
  • Date Collected: 11/15/21

Informant Data:

  • Grace Lee is a female student-athlete at Yale University and is in the class of 2023. She is from Colorado and is currently 21 years old. She is living in Connecticut and is currently out of the lineup of her team due to a hamstring injury. She plans to pursue a career in business after college. 

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: The cultural context is being part of a group that participates in the chant that is passed down from team to team.  
  • Social Context: The social context is chanting with a group of girls and saying the same words at the same time. They collectively put their arms around each other and say the words in unison. 

Item:

  • This item is a customary type of folklore under the genre of magic superstition, and also includes verbal folklore. Grace performs this superstition before each home game. 

Transcript:

  • “My coach calls each line into the hallway for a line meeting before each game, encouraging us to work together and we do a small cheer to bring up our energy levels. This allows us to feel motivated and have a positive attitude while working on communication.”

Informant’s Comments:

  • Grace described being part of group superstitions rather than individual, commenting that she recommends expanding groups to feel inclusive and more part of a team. 

Collector’s Comments:

  • I thought it was unique that Grace only described this superstition and did not mention and individual ones, placing emphasis on how the meeting and chant created a uniqueness to her team that she has never felt before and if they met and did the chant together they had complete trust in each other and would play well. 

Collector’s Name: Currie Putrah 

Dartmouth Superstitions

Title: Dartmouth Superstitions – Lotti Odnoga

General Information about Item: 

  • Customary Lore, Magic Superstition 
  • Language: English 
  • Country of Origin: Hungary 
  • Informant: Lotti Odnoga
  • Date Collected: 11/16/21

Informant Data:

Lotti Odnogais a 22 years old senior defenseman on the Dartmouth Women’s Ice Hockey team and also plays for the Hungarian National Team. She was born in Gyor, Hungary on January 19, 1999, she went to play for Vermont Academy in Vermont in her sophomore year and has been living in the US since then. 

Contextual Data: 

  • Cultural Context: The cultural context in Lotti’s superstitions is that many players among the Ivy league schools put their gear on in a certain order or listen to music before a game to get them ready to play.
  • Social Context: The social context of Lotti’s superstition is that when she rings the bell she sends the whole team off to have a good game. If she doesn’t ring the bell it results in a bad start therefore a bad game for her team. 

Item: Putting on her gear in a specific order and listening to the same songs is a customary type of folklore that falls under the genre of  magic superstition. Lotti performs her rituals before every game.

Transcript: “I have to listen to the same three songs before every game. Those songs get me dialed into the game. If I don’t listen to them my thoughts are all over the place and I can’t focus on the game and therefore my performance will be bad. The only superstition I have when I am getting dressed is that I have to tie my left skates before my right and then I have to step on the ice with my left feet first. A tradition that was passed down to me from a previous DWIH player is that before we step on the ice for the first time in a game I have to ring the bell that is on the way to the rink from our locker room. I am not really sure when this tradition has started, but I am pretty sure it has been more than 10 years. This superstition sends the team on the ice with good luck and to have a great game.”

Collector’s Name: Lotti Odnoga 

Dartmouth Superstitions

Title: Dartmouth Superstitions – Gabby Billing

General Information about Item: 

  • Customary Lore, Magic Superstition 
  • Language: English 
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: Gabby Billing 
  • Date Collected: 11/14/21

Informant Data:

  • Gabby Billing was born in Fergus Falls, Minnesota on October 18, 1999, however, she has lived in Corcoran, Minnesota her entire life. She is currently a senior on the Dartmouth Women’s Ice Hockey team and therefore a member of the graduating class of 2022. 

Contextual Data: 

  • Cultural Context: The cultural context is that putting on gear in a particular way is a common superstition among many hockey players in many different leagues and cultures. 
  • Social Context: The social context is that Gabby shares this superstition with some of her teammates. The magic portion of the superstition is that if she does not put her gear on properly she will play poorly. 

Item: This is a form of magic superstition which is a genre of customary folklore. 

Transcript: “I always have to put on my gear in a very specific order. I put on my left sock, then my right, followed by my left skate, then my right. After that I put on my hockey pants and my left shin pad, followed by my right shin pad. This trend continues on with putting my left gear on before the right until I am fully dressed. 

Informant/Collector Comments: 

  • If I do not put on my gear in this specific order I feel like my pads are not on correctly which in turn makes me think I will have bad luck during the game and play poorly. It also serves as a distraction throughout the game, so if one of my pads doesn’t feel like it is on correctly I will be thinking about that instead of where I should be passing the puck or shooting. 

Collector’s Name: Gabby Billing 

Dartmouth Superstitions

Title: Dartmouth Superstitions – Currie Putrah

General Information about Item: 

  • Customary Lore, Magic Superstition 
  • Language: English 
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: Currie Purtrah 
  • Date Collected: 11/14/21

Informant Data:

  • Currie Putrah was born in Faribault, Minnesota which is where she played hockey at Shattuck St. Mary’s high school. She is now a member of the 2022 graduating class at Dartmouth where she plays forward on the Women’s Ice Hockey team. 

Contextual Data: 

  • Cultural Context: The cultural context is that putting on your gear in a specific order is a common superstition among hockey players. Most of the players on DWIH have a specific way of putting on their gear and that is how they’ve gotten dressed their whole lives. It helps them feel balanced and ready for the game, and if they don’t dress in their respective ways it can throw them off and make them play badly, as it serves as a distraction. 
  • Social Context: The social context is that Currie is only one of many people on the Dartmouth hockey team that puts her gear on a certain way. The magic involved in this superstition is that if she does not put on her gear from left to right she will feel off and play badly. 

Item: Currie putting on her gear in a specific order is in the genre of magic superstition which comes from the category of customary lore.  

Transcript: 

  • “I always have to put on my gear in a very specific order. I put on my left sock, then my right, followed by my left skate, then my right. After that I put on my hockey pants and my left shin pad, followed by my right shin pad. This trend continues on with putting my left gear on before the right until I am fully dressed. 

Informant’s Comments:

  • Currie told me that if she does not put on her gear in this specific order she feels like her pads are not on correctly which in turn makes her think she will have bad luck during the game and play poorly.

Collector’s Comments:

  • I was able to resonate with Currie’s superstition because I do the same thing but in a slightly different order. This is also a common superstition among hockey players. 

Collector’s Name: Gabby Billing 

Dartmouth Superstitions

Title: Dartmouth Superstitions – Annie King

General Information about Item: 

  • Customary Lore, Magic Superstition 
  • Language: English 
  • Country of Origin: Canada 
  • Informant: Annie King 
  • Date Collected: 11/06/21

Informant Data: 

  • Annie King is 19 years old and is a member of the 2024 class at Dartmouth college. She is in her second year of being on the Dartmouth Women’s Ice Hockey team, however, due to COVID this is the first season she is actually playing with the team. She is from Regina, Saskatchewan Canada where she was born and raised. 

Contextual Data: 

  • Cultural Context: The cultural context is that gatorade is a common sports drink among athletes. The Dartmouth team even has gatorade on the benches during their games and gatorade has been promoted by many professional athletes in commercials. 
  • Social Context: The social context is that Annie is one of many people who drink gatorade before the games. The magic component in this superstition is drinking the gatorade in ¼ increments and if she doesn’t do this she will play bad. 

Item: This is a magic superstition that comes from the category of customary folklore. 

Transcript: “I Always have to wear a purple under armour sports bra under my gear. I drink the gatorade in specific ¼ increments so ¼ before warm ups, ¼ before the first period, ¼ before the second period, and ¼ before the third period. 

Informant’s Comments: 

  • Annie also told me that if she doesn’t drink gatorade before warm ups she will have an off game. She also mentioned that these two superstitions brought her sister good luck when she played hockey, so she passed them down to Annie hoping that they would bring her luck as well. 

Collector’s Comments: 

  • This is one of the most specific superstitions I collected, but it is nice how Annie has kept her sister’s superstitions alive by bringing them to college hockey. 

Collector’s Name: Gabby Billing