UCSD Recreation says farewell to Sports Clubs Icon: Scott Berndes

After 34 years at UCSD, Scott Berndes is officially stepping down from his Sports and Recreation Clubs Director position and getting ready to enjoy the retired-life in beautiful San Diego. Scott completed his undergrad at UC Riverside while competing on their intercollegiate baseball team, and became Intramural Sports Director at UCR. However, when the Assistant Intramural Sports Director positioned opened up at UCSD, he quickly snagged the job to return back to his beloved hometown. He has been flourishing in the department, and had the opportunity to ascended to the Sports Clubs Director position in 1993, and has been there ever since. 

Out of the many accomplishments that Scott has achieved here at UCSD, he is particularly proud of his efforts that helped expand the Sports Clubs department. When he first started as a director, there were only 8 sports clubs teams, and the program has grown to 28 sports, including a full-time assistant and two full-time athletic trainers. Scott has also contributed to the creation of many campus traditions such as the UnOlympics, Welcome Week's main event in which the six college compete for the bronze shoe and some bragging rights for the rest of the school year. Other fond memories that Scott recalls are: Recreation Casino Nights on campus, the creation of the Fall Festival on the Green for student organizations, all-night volleyball tournaments with Intramural Sports and plenty more. 

Although Scott has had so many accomplishments from his position, he says that his friendships with his co-workers has been one of the highlights of his career at UCSD. He has the upmost respect and praise for Mike Hipp, his supervisor, friend and mentor, and also the Director of Intramural sports. He has enjoyed working with students by helping them organize and run their sports clubs, and is also so proud of the participants, who have no scholarships or subsidized costs and play at their highest level for the love of their sport. 

Scott will continue to share his love for sports and fun, even after he leaves UCSD, as he plans to stay involved with the Hickman Youth Athletic Areas in Kearny Mesa and promote youth sports in the community. Recreation will miss him so much, but we know that he will continue to touch the lives of many with his passion and drive for the love of the game! Thank you for all your hard work and dedication to our department, they will not be forgotten as the traditions will stay for many years to come.

Summer full of Adventures!

As the year is winding down, and the school year's last trip is close to being done, Outback Adventures has still got some trips up their sleeves to keep the thrill for your summer!

Wilderness Orientation 2012

Also known as WO, Wilderness Orientation is the best way for incoming students to prepare for UCSD and for all that the greater San Diego area has to offer. Since entering a university is journey within itself, what's a better way to embark to the unknown than a brand new adventure that you have never even thought of trying before? There are a variety of trips that range from 4, 5 and 8 day trips and no experience is required to participate. All trips take place between August and September, which is the perfect time to jump start your first year and establish friendships before you even step foot onto campus. Here is a list of the trips being offered and be sure to visit the Wilderness Orientation site for more information on pricing and registration.

August 28 - September 4 (8 Days)

• Sierra Nevada Backpack
• Sea Kayak Baja California
• Surf Safari - 8 Days

September 14 - 21 (8 Days)

• Sierra Nevada Backpack
• Sea Kayak Baja California

September 7 - 11 (5 Days)

• Surf Safari - 5 Days
• Black Canyon Kayak

September 13 - 16 (4 Days)

• Catalina Island Adventure

Hawaii Yoga Adventure

Monday - Saturday, September 10 - 15

Hear the sound of the calming waves, absorb the warmth of the beautiful sunshine, feel the state of being and balance within yourself as you experience a yoga adventure in paradise on the Island of Hawaii. Spend 6 days of yoga and fun on the Big Island with master teacher Arturo Galvez at the Kalani Retreat Center, which is bordered by a lush tropical rainforest, and the Hawaiian coastline. Even though the focus of the trip resolves around the ideal balance of yoga and play, you definitely will have time to explore on your own and enjoy the gorgeous beaches and the relaxing resort.

The base rate is $1,150 per person and includes 5 nights lodging at the Kalani with a shared room and bathroom, use of the facility, and all meals and yoga classes. Come and rejuvenate yourself after a long year and find the balance from within to soothe your body and mind. For more information, go on the Hawaii Yoga Adventure site and learn more about registration and details for the trip.

Last Chance!

Outback Adventures is just about finished with the trips for this quarter. If you still haven't satisfied your need to explore, hurry and sign up for our last trip of the 2012 school year: White Water Rafting down the Kern River. Kick off your summer with this amazing trip in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California during which you will get to experience the Kern River and it's class III and IV rapids (class I is the easiest, class V is the hardest). This is a never before trip offered with Outback and it is sure to be a blast! Not only will you enjoy the immense beauty of the Sierras during your time with us, but you will also be challenged and thrilled as you raft down the river. All transportation, gear, food, and trained guides is included in the price. Sign up as soon  as possible as spots are filling up!

For more information, visit our website here:

https://recreation.ucsd.edu/outback-adventures/trips-and-classes/whitewater-rafting.html

Live well, Live GOOD!

If you haven't heard about the Good Life Festival yet, then thank goodness you've come to this page!On May 4th, experience "the good life" with UC-San Diego's Well-Being services and the Zone. From 5-9pm, come to Matthews Quad and the Towne Square to experience all the joys of a massive street festival. The crew here at Recreation is particularly excited about the human hamster balls (yep, you heard that right) and the beer-goggle kart races.

In addition to silly activities like hamster balls and go-karts, the festival will also offer henna tattoos and chair massages if you'd like to enjoy a more leisurely evening. Free food, cold drinks, and good prizes will be plentiful, and our DJ is guaranteed to be downright awesome. In case you need to take out some pent-up aggression, there will be an inflatable jousting activity, or if you prefer a more relaxed de-stresser, check out the public art wall and exercise your creativity!So come out and enjoy the good life with all of us here from UCSD Recreation, and capture your memories with our fun photo booth. We will personally be giving out cliff bars and other treats to ensure that you're well-nourished during your evening of fun, friends, and free smiles.


 RSVP on Facebook for more info!

Destress and Decompress!

Is this quarter stressing you out or what? If it is, we hope you remember that recreation offers a wide variety of activities intended to help you de-stress and decompress after midterm week 1… and 2… and 3… well, basically every week.


For example, did you know we have massage services available? Located at Main Gym, the Massage Center offers a wide variety of services, such as heated stone massages, sports massage therapy, and even group massage options.


If you'd like a little more hands-on (heh heh) experience, then you should definitely check out the massage workshop available in the next month. On May 12th, take part in FitLife's Couples Massage Workshop. You do not need to have a romantic partner — your roommate or best friend will be just as awesome. This workshop will teach you fun, safe, and easy massage techniques to guarantee you don't have to worry about that pesky soreness anytime in your near future.


Even if this workshop won't work out for you, keep in mind the Massage Center as a really great way to keep your body and mind truly healthy. Relaxation is important, and listening to your body is always important. If you feel soreness and pain, take steps to take care.

Sunset and Moonlight Activities

Sometimes it's hard for all of us to cram an active lifestyle into our busy days. Thankfully, UCSD Recreation's Outback Adventures team realizes that, and they're not letting that stop you! Outback Adventures offers awesome sunset and moonlit excursions in the upcoming weeks: the Moonlight Kayaking in Mission Bay and Sunset Hike at Cowles Mountain.

On Friday, May 4th, join Outback guides as they kayak through Mission Bay and explore a different side of the bay through the calm, beautiful waters under the water. No prior experience? Don't worry about it — there will be a short skill lesson before you paddle off into the moonlight. 

On Saturday, May 19th, embark on a 3-mile hike on Cowles Mountain through Mission Trails Hike while the sun sets. This is the perfect way to fit in a beautiful hike with a bit of an unusual twist, and there promises to be many panoramic views of the skyline to gaze upon during a few hours away from campus. 


Take this opportunities to experience the beauty of a San Diego night and see the scenery from a new perspective. There's even one more perk: it doesn't matter if you forget your sunscreen!

Guide Training to the EXTREME!

This weekend, Outback's newest set of guides went out on their Spring Quarter training retreat. Eager to have some back-woods fun, the guides drove up to the Laguna Mountains in search of a campsite. Unfortunately, they were met by mounds and mounds of snow. This meant that while they were able to run around in the pow pow for a while, they also had to to turn around and search for a lower location, afraid they might get stuck in a blizzard.

Hoping to find a site still in the mountains but at a lower elevation, they went to Cuyamaca State Park. As they turned into their campground, however, their van got stuck in snow. Not wanting to risk being buried overnight, the team was dug out and headed off to a polar-opposite climate: the desert.

Anza Borrego was the location the guides ended up in for the remainder of their trip. There the set up camp and spent the night, teaching experiential learning lessons, playing on a nearby swing set, and improving their overall team-building skills. They also made a heaping Dutch Oven of Lasagna, one of Outback's specialties.

The following day, the troupe hiked the Palm Canyon Trail to a gushing oasis where they saw frogs and swam in the cool, clear water of the river. Afterward, following an old Outback tradition, they zipped over to Julian to eat some well deserved, freshly made pie.

Having completed their training, experienced two extreme climates, re-routed plans gone haywire, and eaten Julian Apple Pie, the guides-in-training are now official Outback Guides. Look for these new warriors on our Spring Quarter trips starting this week!


Lost in the Desert: A Lesson to Us All

On Easter Sunday, Guillermo Pino, a prior UCSD student, went out camping near the Arroyo Tapiado mud caves in the Anza Borrego Desert with his family. Leaving his shoes and water behind, he walked into the desert by himself and was not seen again.

A search party has been trying to locate him for two weeks, however, unable to find his body, the search was called off this week.

Let this man's case be a lesson to us all. Never go out into the desert without copious amounts of water. A person needs to drink a gallon a day to survive and more if they are exerting themselves. Also, never travel alone in an area that is unfamiliar to you.

Always let someone know where you are headed when you go out on an adventure and use caution, even if you have been there a thousand times. It only takes one mistake for a disaster to happen.

A Spectacular Spring Break!

All the Spring Break trips are back from their week-long adventures!

The Catalina Island Service Trip spent their vacation kayaking, snorkeling, and hiking around the island in addition to pulling up the invasive fennel plants that thrive in the area. They developed their team-building skills on a high ropes course and got to experience the tumult of the ocean on a ferry ride to and from the mainland port.

The California National Parks Road Trips had a blast traveling through three different climate zones on their ventures. They camped in the rain in Bug Sur, hiked in the snow in Yosemite, and baked under the sun in Death Valley. These lucky travelers got to see some of California's most magnificent places, as well as a comet that blasted over the sky in Death Valley.

Grand Canyon Backpack hiked 45 miles through the Grand Canyon, gazing in awe at the wondrous enormity of the layers of rock and silt of the canyon walls.  These troupers spent their days traveling from oasis to oasis, exploring caves and fighting thirst, and spent their nights gazing at the beautiful desert star-scape. They too saw the enormous comet that the Death Valley road-trippers saw.

This year's Spring Break trips were truly unforgettable. May next year be just as great!

Spring Break Awaits!

It seems like it's been months since UCSD last had a vacation! And well, it has. But not to worry, Spring Break is just a few measly days away! You hear that? DAYS I tell you! While studying for finals may be bogging everyone down at this point, the promise of a week-long break is certainly enticing...

...Especially for the Guides at Outback. This Spring Break, we are hosting
four trips - 2 road trips visiting Yosemite, Death Valley, and Big Sur, 1 Grand Canyon Backpack, and 1 Catalina Island Service trip. The demand from people at UCSD to go on these trips was so immense that we had to open up a second road trip (originally, we only had one).

Outback is looking forward to sending off our Guides and participants at the end of March and hopefully hearing good things about their adventures when they come back.

Winter Wrap-Up

The Guides had their last meeting of the winter quarter this past Monday.During this time, they discussed all of the wonderful (and not so wonderful) aspects about the trips and other happenings around Outback.

One of the most outstanding pluses of this quarter was that the number of people signing up for trips was amazing! (Keep it coming UCSD!) Out of the 20 trips we offered this past quarter, all but 2 filled up completely. This is what we like to hear about! The fuller our trips are, the more people we know we are getting out on adventures to experience new things in this wonderful place we call California.

Outback is always happy to receive compliments and suggestions as to how we can better serve our community. Please feel free to contact us if you have something to say. You can drop by the Surf Shop on Library Walk, the Rental Shop behind Pepper Canyon, or call us at (858) 534-0684.

We look forward to having a a better and fuller Spring!

Work hard, play harder!

As an intern for the UCSD Recreation marketing department during the Fall 2011 quarter, Jane Hinderson is the epitome of the adventure-seeking and hard working student/employee! Jane is an international student at Extension, and carried her love for traveling all the way to San Diego from Sweden. As a participant of the Business Essentials program at the UCSD Extension, she has enhanced her marketing skills here at recreation while experiencing the fun and excitement offered here at the department as well.

In addition to practicing her English skills, Jane has had the chance to create new friendships with other students here at UCSD by partaking in the Outback Adventures horseback riding trip in Mexico. Since she had the background of riding horse back home in Sweden, Jane was ecstatic to be able ride again. As she states, 

"I had not ridden a horse for more than two months, love riding and so was happy to find out about this trip. On arriving at the ranch, my first impression was that it was very beautiful, surrounded by hills, and when you take a deep breath into your lungs, you feel calm and free. The tours on horseback were even better. Can you imagine riding on top of a giant hill with a huge dip on your left side, just because you want to enjoy the most amazing view you've ever seen on your other side? That is when a rider and a horse become a team. You trust you horse and your horse will do anything for you to be safe on the trail."

Even when Jane was thousands of miles away from home, she able to pursue her passion in traveling, studying, and engaging in an unforgettable trip. Jane definitely learned a lot from her position in the marketing department, but even more so, from her journey to unfamiliar places and finding herself along the way, through fitness and through life.

FitLife Frenzy!

As we endure through the last two weeks of winter quarter and finals, there's a light at the end of the tunnel with spring quarter approaching! Since the sun will (hopefully) be out and shining, there's no question that many of us are starting to work hard to show off our beach bodies just in time for beach season. In that case, FitLife has got all the resources necessary to get into shape and more importantly, maintain the good habits to a healthy lifestyle. 

WELLNESS PROGRAMS 

FitLife offers FREE Personal Wellness programs for students and faculty/staff in which a selected number of participants must commit to a eight week program that focuses on creating an individualized plan to maintain personal health and wellness. The program includes an initial physical fitness assessment, entrance interviews with UCSD Recreation wellness instructors, small group fitness training, and a follow-up fitness profile. This is a perfect opportunity to evaluate yourself and see what habits you need to change or establish in order to feel good all the time!  For more information and to register, visit the FITLIFE WEBSITE.

FITFEST

Still unsure of what FitLife is all about? Come and check out what the entire program has to offer by attending one of the FitFest sessions in the beginning of spring quarter on:

Wednesday, April 4: 12noon-1:30pm -- MAIN GYM 

Thursday, April 5, 4:30-6:30pm -- RIMAC 

There's nothing better than having more FREE classes, FREE private pilates sessions, FREE chair massages, in addition to raffles and giveaways! It's definitely a good idea to take advantage of the opportunity of asking our top notch Personal Trainers and Dietitian exclusive questions and finding out more about what you can do to enhance your fitness experience here on the UCSD campus. And don't forget about the snacks and prizes...just another incentive to get up and going for a fitness-filled spring quarter!

Kundalini Yoga with Diana Bergen

      The practice of Kundalini Yoga allows one to achieve a balance by utilizing a spectrum of yoga modalities including asanas meditation, breathing, chanting and mantras.

      You can incorporate these practices into your own lifestyle right here on UCSD’s campus. From beginners to expert yoga practitioners, all students willing to embrace the methods of Kundalini will experience its benefits.

      Diana Bergen, a UCSD Kundalini instructor, encourages students and staff to prepare for the day through morning exercise.

      “The study and practice [of Kundalini Yoga] is to get up in the morning, right when the sun is coming up, because there is this magical power,”

Bergen said.

      Bergen, who is a Landscape Architect on campus, has been practicing yoga since her third year in college. Just three years ago, Bergen signed up for her first Kundalini Yoga class in an effort to build good lifestyle habits.

      “I’ve been taking yoga since I was 22, and I had never experienced yoga like this,” Bergen said.

      This class inspired Bergen to become a certified Kundalini Yoga Instructor.

      “My job is to pass on what’s already been documented by Yogi Bhajan. How else do we learn, but from others?”

      The teachings of Yogi Bhajan emphasize awareness and consciousness of oneself and one’s surroundings. According to Bergen, “Kundalini is very effective. You do certain movements for a specific outcome.” Kundalini Yoga involves the practice of pranayama, which are breathing methods, mudras, which are hand positions, asanas, which are postures, mantras, which are chanting techniques and meditation, which is the practice of visualization.  Such techniques are used to awaken and rejuvenate our central nervous system.

      “There are a lot of people who gravitate towards Kundalini Yoga because it’s the yoga of healing. It’s the yoga of awareness,” Bergen said.

      UCSD FitLife will be offering two Kundalini classes during the upcoming Spring Quarter. One will take place on Thursdays at 7am with Diana Bergen, and the other class with take place on Fridays at 8am with Sasha Briskin. For more information please visit http://recreation.ucsd.edu/fitlife or call (858)822-2313.

A Blast from the Past

Over President’s Day weekend, Outback resurrected a trip that was last run a few years ago: Black Canyon Kayak and Hot Springs. This trip took participants kayaking up and down the Colorado River: the border between Arizona and Nevada.

After a small hiccup on the road involving a dead battery in the van, the crew set off on a lengthy drive East through California and into Nevada. The difference between the geography of California and its next-door neighbor is vast – Nevada is almost completely flat and covered with nothing but dust and a smattering of palm trees. Houses stretch out for miles across the abyss and right smack in the middle of them is the Las Vegas Strip. That night the participants and guides camped out under the stars in a campground near Lake Mead.

The following day, the kayaking crew drove down to their launching point along the Colorado and set off upstream. They travelled around seven miles that day and camped at the side of the river in a canyon. This is where the fun started.

At the back of the canyon was a spring. The farther up this spring one walked, the hotter the water became. Eventually, if one walked far enough, they would reach a waterfall and a latter leading up it. Beyond this were natural hot springs pooled amidst the crags of the rocks. This is where the crew spent a majority of their time while back at camp.

The participants spent their weekend on the water, paddling during the day and visiting numerous hot springs along the way. These steaming pools and caverns riddled the canyon walls; each one hotter than the next. One particular hot spring dubbed “The Sauna Cave” was a long tunnel dug into the side of a cliff. The walls were lined with mineral buildup and the air was heavy with steam. The hot springs were definitely a reward to the participants who paddled arduously upstream in the heavy current of the Colorado.

On the last day of the trip, the crew floated back downstream to their starting point, loaded up the van, and set off for home. After a few pit stops to see the Hoover Dam, to change a busted tire, and to eat dinner at In-N-Out, the gang found themselves back in San Diego after sundown.

The Black Canyon Kayak and Hot Springs trip was definitely one to remember and hopefully Outback will be hosting another one in the near future.