Ben Guska Update

By Ben Guska

Well its official! I just finished my last final which happened to be in Political Science which oddly enough I really enjoy! College has been a whole new world to me. It has involved a lot of discipline, hard work, and late nights to make it through. I can honestly say I haven’t had more exhausting days from lack of sleep than I have here! Anyways, I thought I’d update you all on what has been going on lately!

Kayaking
I have not been able to get on the water lately. The last time was when I was helping teach a class with the Outdoor Program here at Mesa State College. In a way it is nice to take a break, but I have really been itching to get on the water. I headed to Glenwood Springs the other day, where we had the Ground Breaker for the Whitewater Park. I have been waiting for that day for 7 years! There will be an Update on Worldkayak.com here soon on the whole story so keep your eyes posted. I will be assembling a kayak team from Mesa State for the Collegiate Nationals come spring! We will be training in Glenwood Springs in hopes of bringing home some medals!

Hockey:
Hockey has been a huge part of my life. It is a great crossover sport that involves so much out of you mentally and physically! I am a part of the Mesa State College Hockey Team, which is in the ACHA D-3 Club team. However our standards are the same as any varsity level as far as academics. We must hold a 2.5, and be enrolled in at least 9 credit hours, or about 3 classes if you will. Our practice schedule has been crazy this year. We started out with Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at 4:40 A.M. This was really hard with work, on top of school! It was actually the hardest point as far as trying to catch up on sleep! I’ve never been so exhausted! Right now I am second leading in points, which I am very proud of. But what I am most proud of is my grades. I should be right around a 3.0, or 3.5 this semester which in my world is a huge! I am hoping that that will continue! Our team is super young, and is ever expanding which is nice. It gives us really a lot of time to build as a team. We are getting 5 new players next semester which should only help us along our way! I hope to bring the hard training, and work to kayaking this coming spring for an excellent 2008!

School:
Well for most people who know me, school was never my “talents” in life. It’s kind of funny looking back at the last four years, and reminiscing on what I’ve learned from experience. The last four years have really intensely opened my eyes to a lot of reality! Business sense, plus business ethics, hard work, and experience are what drive me to do well in school! I will be applying for Mesa State Colleges Radiology Technician Program next spring. With hopes of entering, it will allow me to live a very reasonable schedule, and help people. This of course when I decide to grow up! Haha… Right now I feel I have taken on quite a load. Hockey, Work, Kayaking, and School! Balance in life has always been a goal of mine. This might be taking it to an extreme, but as always striving for the best, I wish I do my best in school such as I try with kayaking!

Spring:
This spring I will be training hard in Glenwood Springs for the competitive season. I will be headed to Reno for the Collegiate Nationals, as well as the Reno Pro Invitational competition. Reno has been my favorite even since the first day I was there. I am hoping this year I can move up in the rankings with hard work and discipline! I will tour around Colorado for the remainder of June, and hope to head to Canada, the promised land as I put it, come late summer!

What I’ve learned:
As with any mistakes, what you learn is the true value of it. But as with success, what you learn is also very valuable. This has been a very successful year for me. I am ever so grateful for my choice in college. The fact that I can still kayak, and do both only makes it better. I feel that college has so far really helped me with choices that I will make in life. I am looking forward to the next five weeks off, but also learning a lot next semester! Again balance in life is key to me! I feel that I have struck a very good balance, and hope to continue my efforts towards my degree… and life changing goals!

Cheers
Ben Guska