With a double concentration in Asian studies and philosophy and the added work of founding a new club on campus, you'd think Hank Weintraub '09 of the men's water polo team wouldn't have time for much else. But when approached by Head Coach Felix Mercado and asked if he wanted to write a blog for NCAAsports.com, Weintraub found the time.
Somewhere in his busy schedule of "food, class, food, practice, food, homework, food, sleep" - a typical day, as he depicts online - the first-time blogger now represents his team, his school and his sport for a new audience. Detailing the life of a student athlete and the "trilemma" all players face of trying to balance academics, sports, and social life, Weintraub weaves humor and reality into his weekly updates.
"I like it. It's interesting to see my thoughts on paper," Weintraub said.
When Mercado was contacted by the NCAA through Brown's sports information department about having one of his players write for the blog, he thought it would be a good way to give outsiders an idea of what the team goes through.
"Hank does a good job of representing the team in the right way," Mercado said. "It's funny, entertaining and informative."
In one entry titled, "To play, or not to play," Weintraub discusses the decisions of players to either go to a top water polo school - such as the No. 4 University of California, Los Angeles, whom the Bears recently encountered in California - or to a school, well, anywhere else. The dilemma arises because on the top teams only the best players get significant playing time, while Weintraub argues that on the East Coast, water polo can be a part of an athlete's life without taking over.
"Just don't go to Harvard," he adds at the end.
Even without Weintraub's quips, the Bears' unique situation this year of being without a home pool after the demise of the Smith Swim Center and adjusting to a new head coach has drawn some attention as well. Despite its unenviable position, the team boasts a 5-1 record in divisional play and a 12-7 mark overall.
Teammate Grant LeBeau '09 said Weintraub not only sheds light on the life of a student athlete, but is an incredible writer as well.
In other entries, Weintraub discusses more lighthearted topics, such as moving into the dorms while also getting ready for school and wrapping up pre-season: "And like third grade chicken pox, school snuck up on me," he wrote in his first entry.
In his second entry, Weintraub touched upon the unique individuals Brown is known for, citing exceptionally distinctive players from his team.
"Discovering new accomplishments and qualities of my friends is a regular occurrence for me. I just found out last week that Mike (Gartner '09) is an incredible pianist. Here's the catch: He was my roommate last year."
Corey Schwartz '11, another teammate, particularly liked this entry as well. "It shows how our team is so diverse and that we have things going on other than water polo," he said.
Weintraub paints this picture well, telling his audience of a neuroscience major gifted in Akkadian, a classicist who is going to be a veterinarian, a Commerce, Organizations and Entrepreneurship concentrator who is exceptional at ultimate frisbee and a personal trainer who won the Mellon-Mays grant for his work in Native American ethnography. One player is even a pre-med student with an aviator's license.
Weintraub proves to be just as remarkable as his teammates. He spent last summer in Italy with the Brown in Bologna program and has spent the last six years studying Chinese. Additionally, he recently started a new discussion and support group for lesbian, gay, bi, transgender, queer and questioning athletes.
Who says there isn't enough time to do it all?
