Dancers' survival skills differ through marathon

Dance marathon is the ultimate test of one's endurance. It's survival of the fittest, and preparation is the key to survival.

No caffeine and no cigarettes for 48 hours may seem like an insurmountable task to some people, but dancers in the 1997 Interfraternity Council/Panhellenic Dance Marathon learn to fight the urge and stick it out.

"You have to go in with the morale that you can keep up your spirits. Those who go in with doubt in their mind end up struggling," said Tony Lombardo, overall rules and regulations chairman for dance marathon and a former dancer.

Part of preparing is slowly lessening your addiction to caffeine and nicotine for at least the 48 hours before the marathon, Lombardo said.

"You need to be level. Caffeine makes you feel great for awhile then it drops you off a cliff," Lombardo said. "Those are the people who have to go to (Emergency Medical Services)."

Alvin Wang, a second-time dancer, said he was having little trouble making it through the trials and tribulations of the 48-hour test.

"It's easy to get through when we remember why we are all here," said Wang (senior-civil and environmental engineering). "If everyone does that, we could all go 96 hours at 'Thon."

Healthy eating, cutting down on caffeine and sleeping more are the preparations Wang attributes to his success. But the real key to success is being mentally prepared, he added.

"Ninety-five percent of it is mental and 5 percent is physical. You have to want to do it," Wang said. "When I remember what people like Martin Luther King and Gandhi have done in the past and what they and their people have endured, it gives me the strength to make it."

Dave Dulabon, a first-time dancer, said he had a shaky start but soon found his true path.

"I was scared, I admit it. I was nervous and after the first night I felt horrible. I didn't know if I was going to make it," said Dulabon (junior-economics and history). "I hit a weird level and then I broke out of it."

His change of fortune can be attributed to his mental endurance and the atmosphere of dance marathon, Dulabon said. He added that he doesn't need stimulants to keep him up and running.

"Everything here gets you excited and keeps you going. And everyone helps each other out when they're struggling," Dulabon said.

But what really keeps him going is the kids.

The stories of afflicted children who take medication which makes them stay awake for long lengths of time helps Dulabon put it all into perspective. He relates his dance marathon experience to the trials some children go through.

"If these little kids are going through that their whole lives, I'm sure that I can go through the whole weekend," Dulabon said.