Inside the Locker Room The Campus gets the feed from alpine skier Clayton Reed '08

Author: Brooke Farquhar

Alpine skier Clayton Reed '08 went to bed at 11 p.m. the Saturday night of Winter Carnival Weekend. He finished seventh in the men's slalom earlier that day, despite being sick, with a time of 1:34.28. Unfortunately, because he felt so under-the-weather, he was unable to stay awake past 1:34 a.m. later that night, turning in early and missing out on the night's festivities.

The junior from Stowe, Vt. developed his skiing skills in his hometown at Mount Mansfield Ski Academy. His brother and teammate, Jack Reed '10, said Clayton always uses the phrase "I annihilate the steeps," when referring to skiing, and that when people ask Jack how Clayton is doing, he usually says, "Oh, he is out saving the environment one tree at a time."

While his brother can certainly tell you a lot about him, so can Clayton's teammate Andrew Everett '07 and suitemate Sabra Davison '07. Davison sets the odds steeply in her favor, at least judging from her answer to the question of what kind of chapstick Reed uses. Davison replied with incredible detail: "Chapstick Lip Moisturizer SPF 15 Breast Cancer Edition."

Over a period of three years, between practices and carnivals, Everett has spent a lot of time with Reed on the ski team, but is it enough to compete with his roommate from the Atwater suite?

Davison barely dodged Everett in this week's competition. While both knew the type of skis Reed uses, neither knew where he would take them if he could ski anywhere. Perhaps Davison had an unfair advantage living with Reed when it came to the question of what time he went to bed the Saturday night of Winter Carnival. But one would think Everett would have a handier hold on which ski team Reed enjoys hanging out with most after Carnivals. After landing the first question, for Everett this competition was a slippery slope.

Reed is majoring in Environmental Studies and Economics, but he should probably consider taking some Film and Media courses. It appears he has an innate feel for popular entertainment, at least when it comes to Seinfeld. His favorite episode is "The Contest," which matches the opinion of some half a million other people according to an AOL poll of the best Seinfeld episode.

In all, Reed is really definitive of the classic Midd-kid. As Jack Reed will tell you, his brother is in no way limited by his skiing. "He works hard on and off the hill," said the younger Reed, "doing a variety of things: environmental stuff, playing the guitar and staying active."