Pilots share their pre-game rituals

“Before a race I like to have a coffee and sandwich about two hours before I warm up. I listen to upbeat music and try to visualize the entire race from start to finish, in my head. Before I race I do my same stretching and warmup routine as I always do and I never forget to cross myself and do a quick little prayer for a good race when I am on the line! But no crazy socks or rituals in that sense, just a consistent preparation routine.”

 - Dylan Hite, women’s cross country

“I always put my right sock on before my left sock. And I always listen to the same songs in the same order.”

 - Erik Edwardson, men’s soccer

“We will do a ten minute individualized visualization meditation, depending on positions. Then we will all come into the locker room and just play music really loudly and dance around just having some fun and getting loose before game time! Forty-five minutes before the game starts, we will go out into the gym to start warm ups. We all come in as a team before we leave the locker room, cheer, then run down the hallway from our locker to the gym banging on all of the walls getting pumped up.” 

- Morgan Robinson, volleyball

“I pray. Like fifteen to thirty seconds before they blow the whistle, every time.” 

- Brandon Zambrano, men’s soccer

“I shower before every game, before warming up. And then also, fifteen minutes before we go out to warm up, I take out my headphones and start listening to music.”  

- Edu Calvo-Salinas, men’s soccer

“My routine before games is to just be as alone as I can so I can be engaged when game time comes. I like to listen to music and lay in bed with my legs up. And some rituals are that I pray before my game and I kiss my shin guards because they have my family on them.” 

- Rey Ortiz, men’s soccer

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