Senior, Tony Caldwell

- Kyle Dunaway

†

KD: So, you took a year off from swimming competitively. What made you decide to come back for your senior year?

TC: I missed the structure and I love to compete.

KD: Best part about college life?

TC: Freedom to make your own good and bad choices. College is the perfect time to learn from your mistakes and from your successes. You have a small window of opportunity that you can take advantage of before your “real” life kicks in.

KD: Give me your favorite sports franchise.

TC: Atlanta Braves.

KD: Have you always been a Braves fan?

TC: Well, I used to watch them on TBS all the time, and after our family trip to the 1996†Olympics my love for Turner Field and the Braves was secure

KD: What do you think about the Braves this year? Any chance for a miracle?

TC: Bobby Cox is the greatest manager in all of baseball. They are only 4 1/2 games out of the wild card and I think they can pull it off.

KD: You are from Iowa, right?

TC: Yup. Washington, Iowa.

KD: What is there to do in Washington, Iowa?

TC: There is really not much to do there, but everything I do when I am home centers around friends and family.

KD: What made you want to come to Wabash from Iowa?

TC: I wanted to get out of the state, and Coach Casares was obsessively recruiting me. …I think I got one letter, but I felt like a million bucks!!

KD: 24 or Grey’s Anatomy?

TC: Grey’s Anatomy is probably the only show that I do watch aside from Sportscenter Meredith is my favorite character, but I tend to sympathize with George because I see a lot of myself in his character.

KD: So you consider yourself to be shy around women?

TC: A little bit, because I do not spend nearly the time around them as others.

KD: If you could live the life a celebrity, who would you be?

TC: Well, my favorite celebrity is Jessica Simpson —that doesn’t mean I would want to be her. I just think†she’s gorgeous, and I am convinced she has some level of intelligence within her.

KD: Does that mean you are a Dukes of Hazard fan?

TC: I never watched the old, but I did love the new movie.

KD: Give me your dream job.

TC: Family Practice Physician. I think that job is rewarding both personally and professionally—being involved in community affairs and in the lives of those that seek/need your abilities.

KD: Have you always wanted to be a physician?

TC: For about the past four years.

KD: Last concert you attended?

TC: Dave Matthews. Seven of my pledge brothers were there, so it was a good get-together in Hartford, CT. He puts on an awesome show with great live music—not too deep, just fun.

KD: Favorite movie?

TC: The Sandlot. Greatest movie of all time! It reminds me a lot of what I did as a kid.

KD: So, what exactly does it remind you of?

TC: I always used to be the nerdy, non-athletic kid when I was younger (“Smalls”), but athletics provided me with a way to meet friends, have fun, and travel.

†

Posted by Peter Casares at 06:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Wabash Swimming and Diving Pre-Season (By Spolaria ’08)

1. Time to pay up – Freshmen: we’ve all invested a lot of time and energy into being nice to you for during the recruiting process. Your turn to pay us back. We do not haze here, but you will be asked to carry bags and other light work. Don’t be mad about this. Earn your stripes; the upperclassmen already had to earn theirs. So pay up both in and out of the pool.

2. Mr. Nice Guy – Get as much “nice” time out of coach as possible. This is the point in theseason where he’s most relaxed. The freshmen have infinite potential, and the Red Sox are not statistically eliminated from playoff contention (yet). Seriously, around conference time any loud noises freak out coach so bad that a mere “Hello” could turn into a 1000 fly (Not really, but he does freak out).

3. 6 AM in college is not 6 AM in high school – I came from a high school where morning practices started at 4:45. 6 at Wabash equals 3 in the real world. When you are up all night reading books, writing papers, or spending the evening playing XBox, 6 AM can be a time you really do not want to know exists.

4. Literacy is cool – Learn to read practices. Coach has an insane way of writing practices, so spend the preseason learning how to decipher his East Coast gibberish. Guys in your lane will kill you by January if everyday you ask what 8 x 100 Fr SD 1-4 Red to Orange means.

5. I want to ride my bicycle – The triathlon is not fun. In fact, it sucks unless you’re a masochist like Manker, Ben Hewitt, or Kasey. Train for it, or it will hurt…bad.

5b. – Swimming Ranger Day is returning again as an excuse to watch people hurt themselves off the high dive, run obstacle courses, and flip canoes. A word of advice from someone who has taken an involuntary swim in the lake: bring a change of clothes

6. Training for the Tigers – No joke here; this is dead serious. We have not beat DePauw in a duel meet in four years. If you haven’t yet noticed, the duel meet has been moved from January to November. So let’s keep the bell one week and send DePauw away from our pool with a loss a few weeks later.

7. Little kids pay for trips to Florida – Some of us enjoy giving lessons, some despise it, but all know they will do it. Freshmen: expect to have two lessons. Seniors get first call of having only one lesson. Remember: these lessons keep coach funded enough so we can spend more money on a breakfast bill then the hotel bill. Conveniently enough, the surgeon has forbidden me from being in the water.

8. I pledge allegiance – Declare your sports affiliations early and often. The one thing this team loves to talk about besides swimming (and making fun of each other) is sports.

9. Prioritize – How Wabash works: 1. School 2. Swimming 3. Living Unit. Don’t like it? Too bad. There are no freebees for athletes here. This is an academic institution. We are serious about our sports, but education is why we are here.

10. Don’t bring the weak…stuff – This team fights back through adversity. Problems come, and problems go, but we work hard day in and day out no matter what situation comes our way.

Posted by Peter Casares at 05:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)