Students using the IBC Student Recreation Center must show more consideration for their peers.
There seems to be quite the epidemic spreading across the workout facilities on Main Campus.
Before you panic, I’m not referring to any new disease or crazy fungus but rather, a wave of rude behavior. People should understand that, because the machines and facilities at the IBC Student Recreation Center and elsewhere on Main Campus are for everyone, proper etiquette must be employed at all times.
Naturally, not everyone is lacking basic manners, but the few who are can ruin a workout for others.
The facility with the highest rude people per capita has to be the indoor track. There, some people – whether directly or indirectly – seem to go above and beyond to annoy fellow runners.
One individual, who was completing a sprint workout, made it a point to get in the way while I did a leisurely distance run. He would blow by me, cut into my lane and then stop. But he did not top another visitor, who walked in the jogging lane against the flow of traffic. For four laps I was forced to pull spins straight out of “Madden” to avoid colliding with her. 
Large signs and arrows at the track explain which lanes to use and which ways to move, and purposefully ignoring those signs has to be the ultimate example of poor workout etiquette. It’s important to remain aware of your surroundings, especially at a shared facility like the track.
Take the workout machines for example. If you want to work up a sweat, you shouldn’t leave it behind when you move on to the next machine. And yet, some, such as Robyn Peel, a freshman kinesiology major, have seen others leave machines without thinking twice
“A girl was sweating profusely,” she said. “She was wiping her hands on her face and then touching the machine. She didn’t clean it when she was done. It was raunchy.”
Peel’s complaint has a simple fix – disposable wipes are provided for cleaning the equipment – and should be a matter of common sense for the offender, yet it is still an ordinary occurrence.
For those who can secure a machine that isn’t coated in sweat, they may have to deal with people who inconsiderately prowl. Derek Beyer, a sophomore political science major, described his experience with this behavior.
“After five minutes [on the treadmill] another guy walked into the room,” he said. “He signed in and proceeded to sit on a bench and stare at me as I ran. Unfortunately for him, this was the only treadmill that worked.”
According to Beyer, this particular offender lingered until Beyer was finished with the machine, “toy[ing] with the machines surrounding the treadmill [and] trying very hard to look as if I was upsetting his day,” he said.
It’s unfortunate when someone is using the machine you want, but that’s no excuse to pester the person who’s occupying it. Either work out by doing something else, or sit patiently.
The racquetball courts present a different problem. Many people, such as myself, call ahead and reserve a court before they arrive. Others take their chances and try to grab an available one when they walk in. Naturally, the reservations take priority, and most people know and respect this. Every once in a while, though, there’s a hothead who insists he or she had the court first. Typically, those individuals will throw a tantrum until a faculty member sorts it out.
Facilities, such as the racquetball or basketball courts, are finite. Without a reservation, you risk getting kicked off or not getting one at all. If that happens, visitors have to suck it up; yelling menacingly won’t accomplish anything.
If everyone shows a little consideration and practices some common sense, horror stories of poor gym etiquette could be wiped out – like the sweat on a treadmill.
Zachary Scott can be reached at zack.scott@temple.edu.
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