General Information about Item:

• Ritual/ Superstition 
• Language: English
• Country of Origin: USA
• Informant: JT
• Date Collected: 11/14/19

Informant Data:

• JT is a ‘23 on the Dartmouth Track & Field team from Houston, Texas. She has been on the team for three years and participates in the throwing events, specifically shot put and discus. She began competing in track and field in the fifth grade at her middle school.  

Contextual Data:

• Cultural context: Many athletes are very superstitious and have lots of pre-meet rituals that they participate in,  believing they will help them perform well. These ritual superstitions can be anything from an clothing item, to a song they listen to, to an action they perform. JT stated that they participate in this ritual because it makes them feel calm and in control before a competition and it puts them in a mindset to compete well. 

Item:

• JT says that before every meet she does her makeup a particular way, paints her nails, and wears a fun pair of socks. This began as a personal ritual that she picked up from teammates in high school, but has now spread to other members of the track team as well.

Associated File: 

*Informant did not feel comfortable being recorded. 

Informant’s Comments:

• JT has continued to do this same ritual before every meet since they were in high school because it makes her feel confident and in control. She enjoys going into a competition feeling and looking her best because the positivity often translates into her throwing that day. 
• She has never completed without doing this tradition before a meet since she’s been in college, and when asked if she ever would, JT was hesitant and said probably not, because she’s had such great results with it. 

Collector’s Comments:

• As a varsity athlete myself, I definitely have heard of many of my past and current teammates who have a similar ritual/superstition for themselves. While I don’t currently have a ritual and steps I go through before a meet, I can see how doing the same thing before every meet could have a positive psychological effect on an athlete. 
• This would fall into the categories of material and customary folklore, since it includes something physical the athlete wears on meet day, like the makeup and socks, but it also is a ritual because of its particular steps that represent a transition from everyday life to incorporation into the competition mindset . Additionally, it is a sign superstition in the form “If I do A, then B ” because JT believes that doing this ritual makes her perform better. 
• While this isn’t a Dartmouth team specific tradition/superstition, this is just one example of the many athletes on the team who have similar superstitions. 

Collector’s Name:

• Madyson Buchalski