For the past fifteen years, Proctor’s Mountain Bike team has been at the center of the sport’s boom at the high school level in New England (read more about the rise of mountain biking in New England here). Now with nearly thirty teams from Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, and Massachusetts competing weekly, the Northern New England Mountain Bike league has become a mecca for high school cyclists in the Northeast with more than 400 riders competing each week. At Saturday’s league championships hosted by Gould Academy, Proctor earned second place overall as a team and garnered a number of first place individual honors.

Growing up I had never considered myself a runner. Sure, I ran all the time as I played sports as a kid, but never thought of running for the sake of running let alone competing. During my freshman and sophomore years at Proctor I was a member of the JV soccer team each fall, and managed for the varsity soccer team the next year. Running never crossed my mind. The idea of running cross country was first introduced to me after the Spring 2016 On Your Mark 5k race after I had a strong finish. Someone had asked me, “Why don’t you run cross country?”, Later that day I asked myself that same question, and became a runner.

With over thirty afternoon activities and athletic teams available to Proctor students, it is hard to provide equal coverage to every team on campus. For a group of soccer diehards (some completely new to the sport) whose daily home on Emmons Field naturally keeps them out of the spotlight, we thought it was time to give Proctor’s JV2 Soccer team the attention it deserves.

On a hot, Wednesday afternoon when all other teams are racing or competing in games, Proctor’s varsity football team heads to Farrell Field to run through scouting reports, refine their offensive and defensive schemes, and continue to prepare for a Friday night road game at Cushing Academy. Coming off a come from behind 37-29 win over perennial power, New Hampton School, last Saturday, the Hornets are confident, yet measured as they look ahead to Cushing and the remainder of their Evergreen League schedule. We caught up with head coach, Casey McCormack, and captains Lance Crate ‘18, David Johnson ‘18, and Ezra Jenifer ‘19 this week to hear their thoughts on team culture, their recent win over the Huskies, and the season ahead.

We all know the Harry Potter series, and most are familiar with the beginning of the school year at Hogwarts when new students find themselves placed in houses like Gryffindor or Slytherin with all the attending alliances and associations, reputations and personalities. The “Sorting Hat” places the new students at Hogwarts. The choosing is not their own. And in some way a similar process has played out across Proctor this week as afternoon team activities ramp up and coaches work towards roster decisions.  And now, at the end of the week, cuts have been made, and teams have started to coalesce. Roles have been determined. It's not quite the Sorting Hat, but it can feel that way.

Friday and Saturday evenings, Proctor’s theater department presents Beauty and the Beast in the Wilkins Meeting House. The Disney classic adapted for the stage features well known songs, plenty of drama, and wonderful comedic timing by members of the cast. For seniors Cope Makechnie (Belle), Jay Piere (Lumiere), Addie Lindley (Babette), Grey Bechok (Maurice), Cyrus Davis, Matt Arruda, Drew Childs, and Jacqui Morris this weekend provides one final opportunity to share their talents on stage!

As a Proctor student I have done a number of things in the community, some of which involved stepping out of my comfort zone. I have gone to Guatemala on a Summer Service trip, played varsity football, helped the varsity basketball win a championship in England, and spent a term abroad in Segovia, Spain. Traveling has always been easy for me, so they weren't necessarily risks, but going out on Wilderness Orientation was a huge step out of my comfort zone. As was running for school leader and putting myself out there last spring. However, I never thought I would participate in the musical. I have always attended previous productions, but never thought that I would one day be up on stage. That all changed this spring.

The loud mechanical whirring of the splitter starting up is a nuisance to some but music to others, it is the tell-tale symphony of spring. The clunk of the log being put on the splitter, the hydraulics powering up, the first crack of wood against the wedge and then comes the complete split and the sputtering of the cylinder. Finally, the dropping of the log in the metal truck bed, which adds a hint of percussion to the melody.