First person is a new MagnessMayhem feature for DU players past and present to share their insights into life inside and outside of the great game of hockey. Redshirt junior Brad Hawkinson takes the first shift by sharing about his summer spent studying abroad. Thanks to Brad for not only writing this but for sharing some spectacular photos from his trip.

Getting out of the routine

When you think of a typical college hockey player’s summer, spending a few months in the Russian Federation studying likely does not immediately come to mind. Not specifically training for hockey – simply getting down to the academic grind and soaking up the experience like a sponge.

As bizarre as it sounds, my summer was spent doing just that.

A ton of questions came pouring in before the trip. Why Russia? Are you going to be safe? Hope you can at least pretend to enjoy it.

The questions may have been warranted, but my entire college education had been geared toward this opportunity, and I was going to make the most of it.

It is not normal for a hockey player to be able to do something like this. Although the University of Denver is among the country’s leaders in study abroad participation, the rigors of a collegiate hockey schedule typically shut out the possibility for going abroad to study. No DU player had done it yet, but luckily the circumstances I was faced with allowed me to break the mold and experience something that is once in a lifetime.

The circumstances  were extremely unique. One of the reasons I chose to play at DU (aside from the fact that DU is one of the most storied and successful college hockey programs, and that it was THE place I dreamed about playing as a kid) was the fact that it is home to one of the best International Studies schools in the world. If I was able to complete my goal of obtaining degrees in International Studies, Russian language, and History from a school with such a reputation, I knew that somewhere down the line it would pay off. Luckily for me, all three of these majors required me to go abroad for various reasons.

Why did I choose to pursue those three majors? There are a few reasons. Long story short, my dad was an Air Force fighter pilot, so my entire life, almost up to this point, has been spent in close proximity with the military. Then the events of September 11th, 2001 also had an enormous impact on me and my future. From that day on, it would be my goal to do my part to stop those intending to harm the United States of America. It was, and still is, my dream and ultimate goal to serve this nation’s national defense.

So there I was in June, in the heart of a country which British Prime Minister Winston Churchill once called “A riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.”

Transition game

In the part of St. Petersburg where I stayed and studied, almost nobody spoke any English. Going to get food, metro passes, gym memberships, or anything else  tested my Russian language skills and my patience. In Russia, if the person trying to help sees that you speak no Russian, they do not have time for you. It was an adjustment to say the least, but ultimately it was a rewarding opportunity to test my ability to communicate.

An average day looked something like this. Since there is no ice available in St. Petersburg during the summer months, I brought along some tuned up roller blades (thanks to Nick Meldrum for helping put those together for me) that mimic the feel of ice. The gym was a mile away down a paved sidewalk, so before class I would skate to the gym and get a workout in, in accordance with the lifts that Shawsy (Matt Shaw, our strength coach) would give us. Skate back, attend Russian language and history classes (taught 100 pecent in Russian) for about 6 hours, then have the rest of the day to get out and see the city.

Both St. Petersburg and Moscow, where I zipped down to a few times, were extremely beautiful and historical, and being infatuated with the history and culture of the country, it was extremely gratifying for me to put names to these famous faces. The Kremlin, the Lubyanka, Red Square, Peter and Paul fortress, the Hermitage- the list of amazing places goes on and on.

Being able to see the places I have read about for years was unbelievable. As a bonus, I got to spend almost a week in London as well.

Pair the months in Russia with helping my family to move into a new house on the  opposite side of the globe from Russia, and it was a hectic summer. It moved me closer to my end goal, of being able to serve this country after college life, which is unfortunately coming to an end much too quickly. This summer’s experience reinforced my desire to continue along the career path I chose long ago, which is a promising sign.

With that being said, all of the focus now is on helping our team this season reach our ultimate goal. We have a great group of guys, all of whom are extremely motivated and intense in reaching our goals one step at a time. Put the intensity and drive of our players together with the focused approach and hard work of our coaching and support staffs, and hopefully we start out the season on the right foot and take it from there.

We are looking forward to a great year for DU hockey, and I’m extremely excited to help however I can.

вперёд Денвер!