Every day in Booth Commons, a different meal is served, a different soup is prepared, and new sandwiches are laid out. But one thing remains constant: the beverages section. Having remained constant for 2 years, thirsty kiddos have quenched dry throats day in and day out on three choices of milk, eight juices, and from the soda machine, Vitamin Water, a crowd pleaser, both sweetened and unsweetened iced tea, Minute Maid Lemonaid, for those with a sweet tooth, and of course, sparkling and still water. But on October 16, students entered the dining hall and discovered something incredible. In the space of flat water is now electric blue Powerade.
This has been the first time the dining hall has brought in a new drink since August of 2021 when Covid restrictions were lifted in the Booth Dining Hall, so what was the cause of this sudden change? And more importantly, what does the Cate community think of this switch?
First of all, Amy De Witt, the Director of Dining Services, speaks about how the Powerade landed into people’s cups. The dining team decided to choose this new beverage “based on the needs of student athletes and performers to hydrate with electrolytes”, which include sodium, potassium, calcium, and magnesium. Instead of just having the standard orange Gatorade jugs that have been seen earlier this year on the especially hot days, De Witt says that the team chose Powerade as an option to have year-round in light of constant heat records.
However, when speaking to the students, there’s a clear divide. The people either absolutely love it or despise it. On one end, some are happy about this new addition, with one student even saying, “I love the Powerade in the dining hall. It reminds me of my childhood and I find it comforting.” In fact, on average, most people drink Powerade 2.5 times more regularly compared to most other beverages (excluding water, which is the most consumed by far). In many high exertion sports like cross country, energy drinks have been a staple for a long time. While there is a general acknowledgement that it won’t do much to actually improve performance, cross country runners enjoy the drink on average much more than the average student does. Some also drink alternatives. Miles Williams ‘26 buys his own Pocari Sweat, an Asian brand that costs about $1.70 a bottle. He says that he “would drink one of these after a long, hard run as it's simple sugars that are easy to process and help me recover.” For many, drinking Powerade after practice has become routine. While it may not be a conscious decision for the sake of performance, there are studies that suggest that electrolytic deficiency can lead to finding salty foods more enjoyable. While almost nobody considered it a perfect 5 on the scale, at 27% of respondents, more people responded with a 4 than anything else.
Despite this, the vast majority of the people who responded to the (admittedly unscientific and probably heavily biased) poll reported negative feelings towards the beverage. A third of respondents haven’t even tried it because it is “too blue,” (look up “horseshoe crab blood,” and then try to drink the Powerade). At the end of the day, one thing has become very apparent. The Powerade dispenser has been installed in the same slot as flat water. Now, every time someone wants to get plain water, they end up with just the lightest essence of blue. This scourge has led to infuriation among the populace, many of whom enjoy the beverage, but would give anything for just a sip of untainted liquid. Some even commented that “the Powerade lowkey looks like some toxic substance from Neptune” and questioned “do we really want to be drinking something bluer than Cillian Murphy’s eyes? I do not.” This has led to the suggestion of many to build a “two-dispenser solution.” One alternative to this is to remove one of the two lemonade dispensers, which the community believes are redundant. Should the sweet one or the pulpy one be removed? Wait for the next issue to find out! With an open spot available for both the Powerade and Water, all would once again be at peace.
At the end of the day, the addition of Powerade to the soda machine has brought into question all of the selections available when for years these {condiments? Beverages (overused)?} have enjoyed regularity and low expectations. There are, of course, limitations. One such factor is that all drinks must be made and distributed by the Coca Cola Company. Another is that the school would like to “avoid serving soda products for nutritional reasons.” The community has spoken, and one solution which fits the criteria and is popular would be to add more flavors of Vitamin Water. But any additions will require the removal of other flavors…
Overall, this Powerade drama has brought up the question of what drinks should be brought into the dining hall, or if the beverages should be changed at all. The community has spoken, and many want to see a selection of different vitamin waters available. As much as some students have asked for soda products, Cate won’t be expecting them any time soon since they “avoid serving soda products for nutritional reasons,” as De Witt mentioned. Then again, the beverage machine was considered sufficient before the Powerade came online. So, what do you think of the new addition of Powerade?
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