They represent a part of me. I call myself a San Franciscan, a Harvard student and a reporter for each of my teams. To say I like covering them is the wrong concept; that's like saying that I like to breathe.

I love to go on the road. On the highway, hills and valleys and trees rise out of the earth; once I step out of the car or bus, I breathe air that is different than at Harvard--not good air or bad air, but just different.

And then the game starts. The curiosities of the vacation are over as I am awakened by fervor and excitement; the athletes' fiery determination is proven by the sweat dripping from their brows.

Why do I go on road trips? All the elements are there.

* * *

I was starting to get short of breath.

Fred Scott '95 hit a basket to put Harvard up 56-55, and then power forward Darren Rankin '96 banked in a three-pointer with the shot clock near zero. Penn still couldn't bring Harvard down to earth.

Yes, the Crimson was on fire. Harvard could feel that it was close, could smell Penn's tentativeness, could hear the screaming fans.

I was a mess. There was a whirlwind of emotion around me, and I was in danger of being swept up by it, to be flooded over by the tension. I couldn't take much more.

But suddenly, there were less than 15 seconds left in the game, Harvard was down by one and Campbell was slowly dribbling the basketball upcourt. I could hear myself think, "No! It's not supposed to end this quickly!"

* * *

A well-fed reporter is a happy reporter. And for four years, I've been very, very happy.

It is impossible to describe how much food Bob and Caroll Clark bring to field hockey and women's lacrosse games. They once came in a full pickup truck. The bag lunches that football reporters get in the press box--well, let's say that those writers should envy me.

The Clarks are not the reason I first covered their daughter's teams, nor are they the reason I continued. But they are part of the reason why I am giddy when I bike across the river on Saturday afternoons.

Yes, there is a Cheers-like atmosphere at Cumnock, Lavietes and Ohiri--everybody knows my name. The coaches, the players, the trainers, the parents, the sports information people. It's like another home.