SPORTS SHORTS

A high-school basketball team in environmentally conscious Vermont has traded in its shorts for thermal underwear. 

The switch was made due ot growing disenchantment with the amount of energy that must be utilized to keep the gymnasium warm enough for the players to be comfortable in shorts, especially during cold New England  winters.

“Don’t get me wrong,” Chris Ferrell, the team’s star center said. “I like to play in shorts as much as anybody.  But when you think about the amount of greenhouse gases we’re pumping into the air just to keep the gym toasty, you realize it’s time for a change.  I mean, the thermal underwear took a while to get used to, especially on warmer nights, but now I like playing in them.”

Ms. Melanie Comfort, the school principal and a leading Vermont environmental activist who is the force behind the change, says, “When I suggested the idea of long underwear to the coach, I thought all I’d get is ridicule.  I’m really proud of this team.”

The coach, Myron Wilcox, confided, “The way I got the team to accept the longjohns is, I told them, ‘Just think of it as never taking off your warm-up outfits.'”

We inquired if any members of the team had suffered from heat exhaustion. He said, "Only at away games, when the host team refuses to turn off the heat."

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