STUY KEY CLUB Caring, our way of life. 345 CHAMBERS STREET NEW YORK, NY 10282 Official Newsletter of Stuyvesant H.S. Key Club/New York Division 11
The Locksmith Special June-July Issue! On behalf of all of Stuyvesant Key Club, we would just like to say...
Disclaimer: Gavin Huang and Victor Ma were not involved in the production of the front page.
Happy birthday to all you other Key Clubbers whose birthdays are in July! (:
Relay for Life Inside this issue: Relay for Life
2-4
NYRR Father’s Day Races
5
Events of June
6-7
Important Key Club Information
8
Relay for Life Jensen “Flyingbluejensen” Cheong
WOAH! Watch out, I could’ve run you over! Why are you on the track in the first place? There is a relay race going on! You want to know about Relay for Life? But the event isn’t even over yet! What do you mean I’m writing this in present tense!? O.K. fine, since the other three are still back there, I can give you a quick summary of today. So I got to Relay-for-Life early because I just took my NYSSMA exam, didn’t feel like going home, and realized that they might need some help there. Besides, I was bored. The day was beautiful. (Remember that phrase “DAY WAS BEAUTIFUL”.) It was sunny, warm, and I just wanted to lie down and daydream. “What a Day for a Daydream.” Yeah, that’s how great it was. So when I got there, I saw Gavin helping out. He came over to me and I got my first assignment of the day. “Watch the stuff on the bench.” It was a cooler and a box full of
candy. Anyway, we later moved the stuff to our table on the side of the track and set up there. It was still pretty early in the day but the sun was melting the Pocky sticks and the rest of the chocolate. When Gavin picked up two chocolate bars, they flopped helplessly. “Can’t sell those,” he said. Then I got the point. We weren’t eating it, we were selling it! O.K. So he left to do something, leaving me with the stuff and soon, volunteers arrived. So later, after the volunteers settled and Gavin came back, it was time for the games! When they announced our team, I heard a gasp of fear as if we were going to beat the adults in these athletic events. But the lady up stage assured them, “Don’t worry, they’re only highschoolers”. EXCUSE-MOI? HA! That motivated me and the rest of Stuy KC to win these events! But then, looking at the strong and fast adults on the other teams, who were we kidding? :/
Relay for Life So our first challenge was the tug of war, an easy game that Sharif, Kevin M, Anna, and I participated in. We were matched up against a team that surprisingly lost to us. We won the tug-of-war. Points for Stuy KC! Next event was the three-legged race. Our two partners were clever enough to tie a tight knot so that they could slip it on and off quickly. We won that too. Nice job, guys!
Then came the relay race. We had to race a team that was equal to us in points but much stronger, bigger, and faster. The situation was hopeless. But we never gave up. Jacqueline might have fallen behind to the other team but she kept up with him the entire first lap.
Then she passed the baton to me and I dashed off in hope of catching up with the other two runners. Before the first turn, I heard a loud voice. “Stuyvesant Key Club moves into second place.” That’s a good thing. A couple of steps later, it was the last time I saw the backs of the two runners. I passed the first turn and according to the rest of the club, I created a lead the stretched a least a half lap. That felt good! Kevin and Frankie ran after I finished my lap and kept our lead safe and sound.
We came to the event not expecting to win events. But now if we won the tiebreaker, then we would get $800 to donate under our name. After winning the contests why not try to get the prize after all. The tiebreaker would be……a potato sack race—the only contest we lost. Still, it was decided that Kevin and I should race the other team. IT IS SO TRICKY AND HARD TO GET OUT OF THE SACK! We lost because I couldn’t get out! I didn’t realize that taking off my shoes would have been a better idea! Oh well, there’s always next year. So we didn’t win the prize but hey, we made a message that day. Stuy KC is a competitor next year. And with the experience we gained that day, we will do better next year! What a great afternoon it was.
The potato sack race was a challenge for us. We lost that to the team we beat in the relay race. It was so close but it was tricky to get out of the potato sack. So in the end, there was a tie between us and that team.
Time for the dumpling eating contest! Man, I didn’t want to be in this but three of our Key Clubbers did. The dumplings were…..green and stuffed with veggies. Lets just say that next year, we’ll let the incoming freshmen do that contest.
Relay for Life Thomas, however, ate about 20 dumplings! Still, we were nowhere close to the 37 eaten by another team.
“OH WHY? CAN THE DAY GET ANY WORSE?” I cried as did everyone else. Yes, it just kept on raining. Even when I left at eight, it just kept pouring. My shoes weren’t dry until the week after. Man, let’s just say that when I finally sat down with dry clothes at home, I made a checklist for myself.
Things to do next year at Relay for Life • Win the contests and the $800 I think the best part (or the worst) came when it started raining. It started pouring and we just stood under a tent for a while. It was raining so hard that once I stepped out for a second, I was soaked. But yet, I was in such good mood I danced in the rain for a while only for it to rain harder. Our two Key Clubbers, Sharif and Jacqueline, bravely risked their lives (and good health), to go to each tent and sell the muffins, drinks, and whatever we had left to sell. It was great!
• Bring a set of clothes • And an umbrella, bring an umbrella! O.K. I’ve said enough, I have to win this race! What do you mean, I just said I won!? I’m still running! Move it man, talk to you after the race! And he went like a speeding bullet…event sound fun? Then come next year everyone! Jensen’s gotta dash! Bye!
Relay for Life Jacqueline Yeung It all started with what seemed to be a sunny and beautiful day. Everything was setup with the traditional white tents. However, this is the first time I've seen the event have a spot where Key Clubbers sell food! I was amazed that we get to participate in selling muffins, cold drinks, and candy. I came a tad bit late, only to find that we all had to wait some more before the event started. Luckily, before the contests began, there were some special performances. The one that caught my eye the most was the magic show. I know it might seem a bit childish; however, this show caught the attention of a lot of the Key Clubbers. The best act in my opinion was the animated card trick! Sharif was chosen as a volunteer.
He had to help the magician chose a card. In the end, the magician chose the correct card and made it 'appear' on a piece of paper.
Relay for Life It literally slowly appeared. I can't seem to find the hidden trick to it. (It was sooo amazing, you should’ve seen the act!) That's why I think this is the best trick! But this isn't all there was to Relay for Life. There was a tug-of-war, threelegged race, potato sack race, relay, and dumpling-eating contest. Many of the Key Clubbers joined around three contests each. For me, I volunteered for the three-legged race, relay, and the dumpling-eating contest. The three-legged race was so much fun, even though I didn't really prepare for it. It was scary, since I was afraid of messing up. I guess luck came upon us. We ended up winning that contest. The relay was so hard since I noticed that two teams decided to put their fastest runner up ahead.
Sadly, I had the experience against those runners. I think I managed to keep up with them. Thanks to my partners, we beat those two teams in the relay! (Whoo!!!!) The final contest for me was the dumpling eating contest. Guess what color the dumplings were? Guess!
If you're thinking green, you're right! I can't believe I had to eat it. I didn't really imagine green dumplings for a contest. The thing is that since I already signed up for it, there was no backing out. When it came to eating, I really wanted to puke after my fifth one, but I ate nine instead! Sharif managed to gulp down seven of them. We both had a limit of one minute, giving the last person two minutes. Thomas ate 21 of them. He didn't look so good afterwards. In the end, we all managed to get 37 in total. That's good for us high school-ers. The thing is that this event lasted until 8:30, so only five of the Key Clubbers stayed until the end. For those who stayed, we didn't exactly experience good weather. It rained like eight times. It would come and go. As time passed, the rain got harder and harder. EVERYTHING was soaking wet! EVERYONE ran to the tents. It was like an immediate thought that everyone had. After a while standing, Sharif and I sort of wanted to get out into the rain. We decided to sell some of our remaining food to neighbors trapped under the tents. We got two umbrellas and traveled to each tent. The umbrellas were kind of useless since our bodies were soaking wet, from top to bottom. Luckily, in between rains, we played badminton.
We're really lucky the president even brought it out, to think hours spent doing nothing would have been boring. Not only that, there was a NERF ball.
As time passed by, we were preparing for the night ceremony in remembrance for those who have been through cancer. The glow sticks were so pretty. The people in charge put one glow stick in each bag circling the park. Later, everyone gathered to break their own glow sticks. This was the night ceremony. It was beautiful with everyone holding a glow stick. That was until, it started to rain again. The rain really didn't ruin the day. It actually made it the best event since it was fun getting wet!
NYRR Father’s Day Races Running Among Giants Jensen “Flyingbluejensen” Cheong It was a very humid and sticky day in Central Park. I didn’t think it was unbearable, I thought it would cool down later. I was wrong. It just got more humid and hotter that day. As I made my way over to the number pick-up table, I thought, “It is hot today. Can I make the five miles?” I remember at the Adidas Run for the Parks where the weather was perfect, I was able to run three miles non-stop before tripping. But there, everything was perfect, weather-wise. Here I had to go an extra mile in a sticky atmosphere. I still didn’t see any fellow Key Clubbers around to hang out with so I decided to warm up. I didn’t realize I got there a little late and wouldn’t have much time to warm up. At Adidas, I was fully warmed up including running a quarter mile to get ready. Here, I barely stretched and ran about two city blocks as my warm-up. I thought I was ready to go. Unfortunately, I was not. 1560. That’s my BIB number. It was red. That meant the second corral. Woah, I thought. The blue corral was in the front because they were supposed to be the fastest and could get out of the way for the rest. The next corral was the red where I was. I went there are felt really small when everyone around me looked like they ran in a full
marathon. I had no clue why they put me there, but I decided to stay. As the start time neared I thought, “Can I run the five miles?” The start-gun sounded and unlike Adidas where the back corrals walked to the start line, I was at the start line so I started running immediately. My goal was to keep a steady pace that my body could keep for the entire race. The problem was, with guys that take much longer and quicker strides, keeping up was a problem. I had choice to make. Either I blow my energy now trying to keep up or fall behind to the green and yellow corral. Falling back would mean I can keep the steady pace but lose the people in my corral. O.K. I’m going to regret what I decided to do. I decided to keep up with them. I was able to do so without falling back and actually caught a glimpse or people from the blue corral until the end of the second mile. There, I slowed down because the humidity was really unbearable. I slowed down and watched many red corral members pass me. Then I moved to the side of the road to let quicker-paced runners pass me without turning. When I saw the mark of the end of the second mile, I stopped running and started walking. I realized that keeping up with the red corral was way too hard and I shouldn’t have tried. Soon members of the green and yellow corral appeared but there wasn’t much I
could do to keep up with them. I walked the entire third mile and almost half the fourth. Then I started running again because the green and yellow corral members disappeared just like red ones did. Also, it was a nice downhill trip which I liked. S there I started running again. Then on the fifth mile, I started speeding up in hope of seeing so green and yellow corral members. Soon, I did see then and passed some of them. I never slowed down on the fifth mile, even though there was a difficult last hill to run over. When I finished, I felt pretty good even though I only ran a little over three miles and only two nonstop. What I saw next made me happy. It was a sprinkler since it was so hot. I walked there and danced in it for a second before letting another runner have it. In the festival area I saw members of the red corral talking. I wish I could be the red corral runner looking at the boy seeded in the red while finishing among the green and yellow, instead of the other way around. Still, it felt good to finish the race and I improved since Adidas in some categories. I finished #37 of my age category but at Adidas I finished over 50th of my age. I was happy with that. But next time, I think I would run with people my pace rather than run with giants!
Past Events Unfortunately, your Locksmith Committee didn’t get many articles for this issue. However, that doesn’t mean that there weren’t many events! Here are some pictures from various events for June. =D Special thanks to Jacqueline, Jennifer, Jensen, and Victor — These pictures all belong to them:]
These events look fun? Sign up for events similar to these on stuykc.org!
Feastin’, Not Working
Again, special thanks to Jensen—you rock!
Yeah… This was a fun event!
She was reported to be last seen on June 26th and this Locksmith committee head [me] is quite interested in where she may be (: -BN
Important Key Club Information Key Club Board (2008-2009)
The Cabinet
Antara Afrin & Rebecca Chowdhury (Advocacy) Snigdha Das and Brenda Nguyen (Art) Amy Lin & Shayra Kamal (Fundraising) Bette Ha & Bryan Nguyen (Locksmith) Amanda Cheng & Helen Luo (New Projects) Christine Ha & Peiyu Lin (Public Relations) Jensen Cheong & Chris Yeung (Web) Helen Song and Donna Koo (USACF)
Gavin Huang President
Victoria Tsang Vice President
Kenny Yu Secretary
Adeline Yeo Treasurer
Victor Ma Editor
stuykc@yahoo.com