by Mehreen Hoque

Written by: Ella Rubenstein

With the end of THON Weekend approaching, dancers may be feeling tired and may need a pick me up to finish their weekend strong. Slide of Strength (SOS), put on by OPPerations (OPP) Committees and Captains is the energy booster that dancers inside the Bryce Jordan Center need. Mats are rolled out onto the event level as OPP members cover the surface with baby powder and wait along the sides for dancers. The best part of SOS is that dancers are able to get off their feet while OPP committees give them full body massages. With music blasting in the background, dancers and volunteers take turns sliding across the mat awaiting their dose of baby powder and a well-deserved break.  

What is Slides of Strength? SOS takes place three times during THON weekend, and it provides a small opportunity for dancers to take a break off their feet. The dancers will run across the mats and slide until they reach a committee member, who will then give the dancer a 10 second full-body massage. Standing OPP captains and committees members will shake baby powder over the dancer and everyone or everything around the matt. It is a fun time for everyone involved as baby powder is thrown at people and laughter can be heard all around the event floor. After the 10 seconds, the dancer gets up and can either get back in line to go again or continue participating in other activities.  

As this was the last SOS of the weekend, dancers needed a fun motivator to help them finish out the 46 hours strong. As spectators watched from the stands and event floor, the energy from dancers and committee members continued to grow with each slide down the mat. OPP committee members and captains love working on this special event because of the brief moments of relaxation they can provide the dancers and hopefully start a positive reset in motivation. It is an important mission for all THON volunteers to ensure that spectators and most importantly dancers get the best experience possible and create long lasting memories. Slides of Strength plays a big part of THON weekend because it is a lighthearted experience that helps takes some of the exhaustion out of the BJC and brings the whole floor together.