3C
SPORTS/®[ie CJarUitte 3Po«t
Thursday, February 12, 2004
Colege spending on spots under Are
Winfred
B. Cross
Test
Drive
Ralliart a
sporty
winner
For those who can’t afford
Mitsubishi’s tire ' smoking
Evolution, may I direct your
attention to the next step
down, the Lancer Ralliart.
The Ralliart looks much
hke the vanilla Lancer, but
with a bit more attitude and
standard equipment. The
biggest difference is the 2.4-
liter engine. At 165 horse
power, it has more punch
than most in the class. There
is also a generous amount of
torque, which also puts it a
step ahead of the class.
This is not an Evo, but the
difference in horsepower and
price tell you that at the
start. What it is, is a great
gap car. The Ralliart gives
enough thrills on a budget.
Just turn the key and you feel
that the car has some guts. A
light tap on the gas and the
engine skips the verses and
goes straight for the chorus.
The exhaust note is deep and
the engine growls.
On the highway, this car
wants to run. The stiff sus
pension and aggressive 16-
inch 205/50 series tires allow
you to play junior racer. Toss
it, throw it, or just hammer
straight ahead and this car
pleases.
There are two flavors. The
four-door sedan and a sport-
back. I generally like sport-
back (or small wagon) ver
sions better because of the
room to put stuff. My yellow
test car did not disappoint in
that respect, but it was sad
dled with a clunky four-speed
automatic. It shifted smooth
ly, but slowly. The gearing
seemed to be too tall. Passing
felt a bit precarious. Some of
this may be due to the car’s
weight - it’s a little heavier
than the sedan - but playing
with the shift points may
solve the problem. No, it’s not
driver adjustable. I’m speak
ing to Mitsubishi.
My ruby red test sedan did
n’t have that problem. The
five-speed manual was a
complete joy. Throws are
short and sweet, the snick,
snick kind. I was better able
to put the car’s power to use.
Cruising at 80 mph in either
car was easy, although he
engine did whine a bit. But
who buys a car like this for
quiet.
Actually, the car is a lot qui
eter than some in its class
and the ride is much more
comfortable than you might
think. Bumpy roads were a
pain, but in general, both
cars’ ride were pretty tame.
The sedan clocked in at $19,
972, $200 more than the
sportback. That’s because the
sportback had no options but
was still well equipped with
everything you need, includ
ing ABS and air conditioning.
The sedan’s $17,997 base
price was upped by a $1,400
package that included a sun
roof and a 315 watt upgrade
to the stereo system.
If you don’t need the space,
take the sedan. The five alone
is worth the price of admis
sion. Either car will make
you happy.
By Julia Silverman
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
EUGENE, Ore. - The new
$3.2 milUon football locker
room at the University of
Oregon - complete with plas
ma screen TVs,
PlayStations, and a bronze
plaque honoring Nike chair
man and rabid fan Phil
Knight - thrilled the play
ers, the coaches and the
team’s boosters.
But professors were less
than enthralled: For them, it
was the latest sign that col
lege spending on athletics
was out of control.
Their calls for more faculty
influence on sports spending
have helped spark a nation
wide movement already
endorsed by faculty senates
at schools such as Duke,
Michigan, Stanford, Tfexas,
Alabama, Nebraska,
Mississippi, Arkansas, Iowa
and Oklahoma State.
“From a professor’s point of
view, athletics is a sideshow
that has taken on a life" of its
own and become dangerous
and counterproductive to
education,” said James Earl,
a professor of medieval liter
ature at the University of
Oregon and co-chair of the
Coalition on Intercollegiate
Athletics.
The coalition’s roots go
back to 2000, when Earl and
other Oregon' professors
were infuriated by the uni
versity’s plans for a multi-
million-dollar expansion of
its football stadium, even as
academic budgets were
being cut. Their movement
spread and now includes fac
ulty leaders from other uni
versities with big. Division I
sports programs.
Its members are now ask
ing faculty senates at other
Division I schools to vote on
a resolution that calls for
more restraint on spending
on sports and a brake on
“creeping collegiate commer
cialism.” The resolution also
asks that professors be given
more influence over spend
ing decisions at their univer
sities and with the NCAA.
The faculty senate at
Oregon held a vote on it on
Wednesday.
It is unclear how much
effect the coahtion will have.
At the University of Texas,
for example, the faculty
council approved the intent
of the reforms in January,
but former council chairman
Michael Grunof told the stu
dent newspaper, “What we
will be doing with this is still
very unclear.”
And the proposal is sure to
encounter skepticism from
higher-ups.
“I am glad that the faculty
take a genuine interest in
institutional issues,” said
Dan Williams, vice president
of administration at Oregon.
“But their primary area of
expertise is academic affairs.
I have a problem when the
faculty take on responsibihty
for administrative matters.”
Student athletes, too, said
they were skeptical about a
greater role for the faculty.
“I completely oppose the
idea of faculty members
being included in the process
of deciding where spending
should be done,” said Jared
Siegal, a 22-year-old football
player and business major at
Oregon. “It is inappropriate.
They don’t have any sort of
authority.”
Others, though, said the
faculty’s words about sports
spending run amok deserve
to be heeded.
“It kinds of sends a mixed
message, vrith tuition and
book prices going up, to also
be building new arenas,”
said Adam Petkun, a 21-
year-old political science
major at Oregon.
Supporters of college ath
letics counter that college
sports are big business, like
it or not.
Moneymaking sports like
men’s football and basket
ball often underwrite other
college athletic teams, from
squash to soccer. And univer
sities say fancy stadiums,
arenas and locker rooms
help them recruit star ath
letes and attract fans and
donors.
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(704)393-1109
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Charlotte, NC 28216
(704)333-8448
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(704)377-0870
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