Nudity in college sports: a question

[averagepat]

Hotshower you just described the norm.

Swim team members don't remove their suits in shower?

 

[averagepat]

At my college dorm, we had a bank of showers that we removed the curtains and hung them at the entrance to the shower room. Then turned on all the showers to the hottest they'd go and create a steam room/sauna. There were 30 of us on the floor and most would cycle in and out. Girls from other floor downstairs would come and join us in their bathing suits/bikinis.

Very difficult to hide a stiffy in that situation

 

[hot showers]

bump

 

[auto90403]

I'm older than most people here. My dad was an Army lifer and I grew up on military bases in US and Europe during the Vietnam years. Army schools, Army gyms, Army hospitals. Communal showers, even communal toilets. (2 rows of five toilets so when you crapped you faced a man looking directly at you. I remember my dad conducting a meeting while taking a shit, his junior officers standing around no big deal. My mother, however, did not like important family discussions taking place while dad crapped.) Army pools did not require trunks during all-male swim hours -- lots of bad jokes from the well-hung that they were at competitive disadvantage during races.

New England prep school and college were more or less the same. Toilet stalls finally had doors. Locker room nudity was no big deal. Or if you thought naked men changing clothes and showering was a big deal, you had outed yourself as a weirdo/freak. Every day for four school years I saw my best friend naked in a team locker room and I have no idea what his cock looks like. For all I know, he's hung like a Ken-doll.

Once I started working in NY and Chicago, I joined several men's clubs known for their discriminatory membership policies and bad food. Again, lots of casual nudity in the locker rooms, showers and pools. One club posted a sign saying clothes were required in the weight room.

So I found this thread curious. I have never seen anything untoward take place in a locker room or shower. (And I have had and continue to have a wild sex life that approximates your average college boy's fantasy life.) Locker rooms, to me, are among the most asexual places I've ever seen. Naked men with guts, surgical scars, old war wounds. Plus a few super-fit men who are often world-class athletes. Yes, younger men are perhaps a bit more prissy about wearing a towel as they walk between locker and shower but I chalk that up to their own issues. Not a generational thing

Or maybe it a cultural thing. Men from English-speaking countries, Germans, Scandinavians and Japanese are usually very casual about nudity. Still, the topic is not one I ever paid attention to. As I said, this is one peculiar thread. Had no idea lots of men here think twice or thrice about letting other men see their dicks in the locker room.

 

[622675]

In a brief radio broadcast, one of the most antigay religious leaders of the last 30 years laments the phasing out of public school showers. He points the finger at today’s public school and it’s fear of any kind of sexual accusation.
http://drjamesdobson.org/popupplayer?broadcastId=69dd5d6e-6215-4357-9fc5-2c6215fc02be

(My comment) So guess what the public school is teaching through their actions or lack of them. They are reinforcing immature body images, taboos, and feelings.

 

[NEJS]

Yes, there's a lot of really interesting things to chew on. The identity that men have within a locker room and with teammates is a really unique one and I think that's why these conversations keep coming up.

This thread is about college sports teams, and I think the camaraderie that forms in being on a team, and competing, and winning, lends itself to a trust and bond with your teammates. Getting naked can often be an important part of that. You're giving your whole image--good, bad and ugly--to your shortterm brothers, and they in turn are doing the same for you. It's part of becoming a better athlete and a better confidant. Auto makes an excellent point about the atmosphere too: it's not all about perfect bodies and sculpted muscle. In fact it's rarely about that. Being naked with your team reminds you that none of you are perfect in your own way or in your team's way--scars, wounds, fat, loss of hair, too much hair, small dicks--the point is no one is perfect and we're reminded of that on the team and we get on with it anyway. That's a good thing, it both motivates us to work harder and it reminds us that whatever image we have being Perfect simply doesn't exist. But we can still be damn good teammates and damn good sportsmen.

Jim Dobson is a scary dude and I don't agree with his teachings/talkings whatever you want to call it. But Levi brings up a great point about all of this. What I think Dobson is lamenting is this notion of masculine bonding that many of us gain, conscious or not, when we're on a team or in a locker room. In some ways it's empowering and reassuring. For as well as it can support a team behavior and team camaraderie, it can also support a self image of the masculine. And in some ways that's good.

But I'm sure some of the things Dobson would like men to believe, or empower themselves of, is not so good. The straight male being better than the gay male, or the straight male empowering himself in the locker room then going home and asserting (or worse, assaulting) his girlfriend or roommate. Shit like that in my opinion is not good. Though I can see how some images, and self-powering images of masculinity can form to create the wrong self-impressions.

Auto says it straight and let's face it: most men on teams don't go this deep philosophically when they're kicking a ball or stripping in a locker room. You just Do It. But the psychological team building that happens through the actions of sports I now look back on fondly. When I was in college I played sports, pushed by body hard and I stripped naked with my team. We were a better team because of all of those actions and one fed right into the next.

One of the things that Dobson is really short-sighted on, and one of the topics he is going to loose on, is people accepting each other for who they are. Michael Sam and other gay athletes are clearly really good athletes and really good teammates. The fact is there are good men out there who swing for the same sex and are great athletes and who exhibit great masculine athleticism and support team bonding while on their college and pro teams. They're not looking to pork anyone. These guys are their brothers not their boyfriends. I think it's a great example of the team image, sportsmen still being the vital and bonded teammates they are, sexual preference has no bearing on their performance or their bonds with their teammates.

 

[622675]

Well said. ^^^

I also find it quite ironic that Dr. Dobson is making this speech in support of the good old days when boys took showers after PE. Much of his professional career has been focused on sexual guilt, especially for gays. In fact, he may have had as much to do with poor male bonding and adolescent behaviors in today’s locker room than just about any other guy. I am surprised that he is not taking credit for his work, or at least acknowledging that schools-without-showers are unintended consequences of his efforts.

 

[cloverleaf]

Yes, there's a lot of really interesting things to chew on. The identity that men have within a locker room and with teammates is a really unique one and I think that's why these conversations keep coming up.

This thread is about college sports teams, and I think the camaraderie that forms in being on a team, and competing, and winning, lends itself to a trust and bond with your teammates. Getting naked can often be an important part of that. You're giving your whole image--good, bad and ugly--to your shortterm brothers, and they in turn are doing the same for you. It's part of becoming a better athlete and a better confidant. Auto makes an excellent point about the atmosphere too: it's not all about perfect bodies and sculpted muscle. In fact it's rarely about that. Being naked with your team reminds you that none of you are perfect in your own way or in your team's way--scars, wounds, fat, loss of hair, too much hair, small dicks--the point is no one is perfect and we're reminded of that on the team and we get on with it anyway.

Auto says it straight and let's face it: most men on teams don't go this deep philosophically when they're kicking a ball or stripping in a locker room. You just Do It. But the psychological team building that happens through the actions of sports I now look back on fondly. When I was in college I played sports, pushed by body hard and I stripped naked with my team. [/QUO

Exactly right. Nothing to hide. Common goal. Mutual respect. Out of many, one.

 

[shoparound]

People will get very theoretical in this issue, and especially the some people will have longer explanations on what is happening.
But if you want the short truth of the answer, just look at my post in page 1.

 

[NEJS]

People will get very theoretical in this issue, and especially the some people will have longer explanations on what is happening.
But if you want the short truth of the answer, just look at my post in page 1.

Yup. Right On, my friend. Sometimes you can get so philosophical about all this you forget about what the question was in the first place. Still I think the philosophical stuff is good conversation, but when we get back the question? Right on. Thanks.

 

[hckyfan03]

Finally, an answer to the question I actually asked. Thanks. I guess I hadn't realized team sports were this "naked." To be honest, it's fuckin beautiful to see they are that comfortable among themselves. It seems like a real brotherhood that goes on in the locker room.

This vid was a college wrestling situation (a meet or practice, etc.) - looks like they are trying to make weight. One guy had a Univ of Michigan shirt. One guy had a Notre Dame shirt - so this might be a meet.

College team sports - players are much more comfortable with being naked. Wrestling and swimming maybe the most but all of them - the guys shower, change, etc. with each other. Just the nature of what they do.

High school team sports - not so much at all. Believe me - not even close.

Rec sports - nothing.

School locker rooms after gym - no one showers. I don't know why it's changed so much like some of you old-timers mentioned. Maybe the over exposure to everything sexual and everything judgmental. People are scared to get judged and talked about. The internet has mad everyone so aware of someones cock size, etc. Sad really.

Now - military? Basic training - guys are naked together for weeks in the barracks. We had a guy that cut hair naked and guys would be naked getting theirs cut (trimmed up, not really cut).

 

[hckyfan03]

I can't help but wonder if younger guys are getting more comfortable in open showers with other guys because it is being shown more commonly in the media lately. For example, I watched Stalker last week and there was a hot junior coach using the open shower (alone though) in the beginning of the show. This show airs on regular cable television. Also, I have started watching Blue Mountain State on Netflix, and in the first episode, the new college football players have to shave their team mates ass in an open shower with other guys as part of their initiation. Later in the episode, the team mascot is outed after being caught masturbating in the trophy room to a team photo. He is later seen crying on the floor in the open shower. We tend to define what's normal by what we see in the media. I'm glad this is happening because to me and most guys from my generation, showering communally with other guys is as normal as breathing. Just an observation. Has anyone else noticed open showers in television and movies becoming more common again like they were in the 80s and early 90s in movies such as the original Footloose and School Ties? It seems like they disappeared for awhile and have been making a comeback in those forms of media. I first started to notice it's comeback in the movie The Covenant.

That's TV dude. It's all made up and very homoerotic.

 

[NIMBUS]

School locker rooms after gym - no one showers.

I don't know whether it's changed in recent years but at my school (in the UK) the decision to shower was not optional. I understand the same from friends & colleagues who attended other schools. You did gym (physical education in my day), you stripped, you went through the shower, you dressed and you went to your next lesson. That was compulsory and rigorously enforced by the member of staff taking the session, unless you had a medical reason or health issue (such as a verruca) which made it unhygienic to do so - in which case you weren't allowed to participate in the gym session anyway.

 

[hot showers]

When I was in grad school about 10 years ago, it was definitely still open showers. I had many a shower when a whole naked team would pour in.

 

[champrider]

I was in high school at the end of the 60s and we were strongly encouraged to shower after PE which everyone did. I was late developing and was very self conscious. I was short, a little over weight with a small dick. Seeing other guys junk just made me feel more insecure. Being gay didn't help either. But I did it like everyone else.
Today its possible some guys are reluctant to strip off because of cell phone with cameras.
Do any of our Canadian members know if the not showering or doing the "dance" is common in Canada?

It is common at the community centre. They make you wear a bathing suit in the hotub which is located in the mens locker room. I went naked in the hot tub and a guy told me I have to wear a suit. The young guys work out and don't shower either. At Franchise gyms guys seem to be more open about naked in a steam room or hot tub but still some guys cover up. In the 80's, guys were naked in the locker room (sauna, hot tub or shaving at the sinks). If you covered up you looked odd.

 

[sophomore19]

i played varsity baseball and D1 in college. showering after practices/games was second nature. i think the OP video is a bit outside of the norm unless you're a wrestler. a) i think wrestlers are a bit off anyways, but there is a lot of nudity around weigh-ins. wrestlers want to weigh as little as possible during the weigh-in so that they can be put into a lesser weight category for an upcoming meet. that way, when it actually comes time to wrestle a few weeks later, they can bulk up, eat, etc. and actually weight MORE than they did when they originally weighed in.

i think nowadays weigh-ins are a bit more "closed door" than they were back then. i don't wrestle and have never wrestled, but i knew a couple of them.

for other sports (mine included), showering was no big deal. if anything, we used it as a time to goof off, give each other shit, talk shit about the opposing team, talk about pussy, etc. nothing weird ever happened, despite what the gay pornos may tell you.

now a frat house, that's a different story... haha

 

[keenobserver]

i played varsity baseball and D1 in college. showering after practices/games was second nature. i think the OP video is a bit outside of the norm unless you're a wrestler. a) i think wrestlers are a bit off anyways, but there is a lot of nudity around weigh-ins. wrestlers want to weigh as little as possible during the weigh-in so that they can be put into a lesser weight category for an upcoming meet. that way, when it actually comes time to wrestle a few weeks later, they can bulk up, eat, etc. and actually weight MORE than they did when they originally weighed in.

i think nowadays weigh-ins are a bit more "closed door" than they were back then. i don't wrestle and have never wrestled, but i knew a couple of them.

for other sports (mine included), showering was no big deal. if anything, we used it as a time to goof off, give each other shit, talk shit about the opposing team, talk about pussy, etc. nothing weird ever happened, despite what the gay pornos may tell you.

now a frat house, that's a different story... haha

Exactly - to add to your wrestling segment - a wrestler may go a day or more eating little to nothing to make weight. He can under the rules be completely naked. AFTER he makes his weight he can eat and drink anything. A lot of wrestlers sweated the weight off and may take on 5 or more pounds in water after the weigh in to stay hydrated during their match. Weigh ins are a few HOURS before the meet - at the latest - not weeks or days. The weigh in shown in the clip is not too far removed from what happens now AT A MEET. Usually all weigh ins are with all teams present so a gym or open locker room with lots of space is needed.

 

[At.your.cervix]

I don't see the dig deal here. Don't all these dudes see each other nude all the time in the locker room and showers?

 

[223790]

It is common at the community centre. They make you wear a bathing suit in the hotub which is located in the mens locker room. I went naked in the hot tub and a guy told me I have to wear a suit. The young guys work out and don't shower either. At Franchise gyms guys seem to be more open about naked in a steam room or hot tub but still some guys cover up. In the 80's, guys were naked in the locker room (sauna, hot tub or shaving at the sinks). If you covered up you looked odd.

At my Y, everyone uses the hot tub and steam room naked, and many guys shave naked at the 3 sinks. There is also a large open shower. Check out your local Y if that's what you prefer.

 

[champrider]

At my Y, everyone uses the hot tub and steam room naked, and many guys shave naked at the 3 sinks. There is also a large open shower. Check out your local Y if that's what you prefer.

I used the Y in North York and it seemed to be relaxed about nudity but not flaunting it. A couple of times I was in the one on College and it seemed to be the old style where guys went nude in the hot tub, steam and shower and relaxed about it all.