Fox Field of Trash

I attended the Foxfield Horse Races in Charlottesville yesterday. I had an absolute BLAST! It was my first time in attendance and myself and a few good friends set up shop in the outer field and watched the races while illegally placing $1 bets on the horses with the coolest names. A good time was had- I mean we had beer, gambling, sandwiches, friends and horses- how could it not be awesome? However about halfway through, my friend told me that we had to venture to the inner field because I couldn't go to Foxfield without seeing what it was like. What I saw inspired me to write the following letter. The JMU student newspaper, The Breeze, shut down for the semester due to finals so I didn't have a chance to try to get it published. Therefore I've decided to post my Letter to the Editor on my blog.


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Fox Field of Trash

The Foxfield Races on April 26 provided a great excuse to wear our fancy clothes, drink a beer at 11:00 a.m. and socialize with family and friends. As a JMU Alum I was excited to walk from my plot on the outer field to the inner field where the colleges flew their flags and the Greek life was in its zone: popped collars, big hats and mimosas. However I was severely disappointed at the absolute disrespect the people on the inner field showed for themselves, each other and the environment.

I could not walk two steps without crunching an empty beer can. The "no glass" rule was apparently disregarded as I avoided broken shards while weaving through the passed out girls seemingly "sunning themselves" on the lawn. I even watched as a drunken daredevil hopped the fence of the outer field and ran across the horse track- do you not realize you could have ruined the races for everyone? While staring at the acres upon acres of litter strewn about I was reminded of the ASB trip I took my Senior Year at JMU. We went to Biloxi, Mississippi to clean up after Hurricane Katrina. One day, myself and the other participants walked around a large sports park picking up litter that the Hurricane had tossed around so carelessly that children could no longer play there. The Foxfield inner field was 10 times worse than what Katrina did to this sports park. For the first time in my life I can say that I was ashamed of JMU for flying their flag there.

I understand that JMU wasn't the only college acting up at Foxfield- but we should be the first college standing up for what's right and representing ourselves well. So here are some tips, from me to you, Foxfield attendees of JMU:

There are HUGE trash cans everywhere. Use them! It's despicable, at this time in our life, to think littering is okay. Foxfield should have recycling but in the mean time: throw away your trash.
1. If you're going to fly your Sorority or Fraternity flag on your truck, I recommend not standing on top of it chugging a bottle of liquor.
The Police aren't there to hassle or arrest you. That's more paperwork for them. If they come up to speak with you- just comply and you'll probably be alright.
It's really inappropriate to booty dance and grind to country music at 2:00 p.m. At least wait until it's dark so no one can see you.
If you're going to rock a JMU hat, cozies or flip flops, don't look like a drunken idiot. That just fuels the fire that JMU is a "party school". We do have awesome parties, but we shouldn't act like fools.

For those of you who were in the inner field, behaving and being respectful, I applaud you. Please feel free to find my group on the outer circle next year and we can chill. You can actually see the horse races from there! For those of you who acted so offensively: I hope your parents, after reading this letter, instantly regret funding your "education".

Respectfully,
Meghan
Class of 2006