Students raise money, ‘sweat’ for vets

He came to spin at “Sweat for a Vet” not just to get a great workout or support a great cause, but to honor his family.

“I come from a long line of military service men on both sides of my family,” said Abe Leal, a vocational student at Cal State Long Beach. “Just yesterday I took my granddad out for breakfast for Veterans Day.”

The Student Recreation and Wellness Center raised $1,152 for the cardio fundraiser “Sweat for a Vet” on Saturday. The national campaign, sponsored by Project VisAbility, raised more than $100,000 for disabled veterans.

According to Maureen MacRae, fitness coordinator for the SRWC, 52 participants worked out on the spin bikes, krank cycles and rowing machines from 6:30 to 9:30 on Saturday morning.

“We had a great turnout from the fitness majors here on campus,” MacRae said.

Instructors at the main workout at the Tysons Sport and Health club in Mclean, Va. kept the mood upbeat with pop music and inspirational words via a live video link.

Ayla Donlin, kinesiology lecturer and spin teacher at CSULB, led the workout from Virginia for the first hour of “Sweat for a Vet.” Donlin gave a special shout out to participants at the SRWC about 25 minutes into the workout.

“You know what it’s time for?” Donlin said. “To give a shout out to my peeps at CSULB. On three, ‘Go Beach!'”

Each participant received a raffle ticket. During the three hours of the fundraiser, the SRWC gave away 12 raffle prizes including SRWC water bottles, “Sweat for a Vet” t-shirts, Nike backpacks and fitness major books.

The SRWC experienced some technical difficulties with the live video, but it was expected, according to MacRae. When the video froze, instructors at the SRWC led the workout.

Marci Acevedo, a senior nutrition major and spin teacher at the SRWC, came to the event because she said she wanted to support the veterans in her life.

“I’m really good friends with the spin teacher who coordinated it, which is Ayla Donlin. And I love her,” Acevedo said. “And I really like the cause too because I know a lot of people who were in the army or the marines… plus I love spin, so why not?”

MacRae said the event was “hugely successful.” She went on to say that nearly every piece of equipment was being used for the first two hours and they raised more money than expected.

“We plan on having this as an annual event here at the SRWC,” MacRae said. “It’s a great cause and all the participants seemed to really enjoy the event.”

Part of the money that was raised at CSULB will be used to buy a krank cycle for the SRWC.

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