Aggielife
SOIf;
tudent senate
yle Field tobj
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Fhe Texas A&M Students
■ard the student boi
'nt candidates
ednesday night an
iced three bills,
fhe Senate passed a
)uld ask the facilities
of Kyle Field and otheis^j
5 venues to ban
lokeless tobacco
essy nature,
wo other bills on the ip
;re referred to coiniti
ie would create
rking along Coke
! Corps of Cadets resit
Is in the area,
he other would
ip kiosks around campus
ijunction with bus opera
i the visitor's center, h
uld also redesign the prrsi
npus and bus route maps
The
mp
ornadoes
mtinued from page
troved in Worth Coi
npkins said damage wnl
he millions of dollars.
In Mitchell Count),
ster carved a quarter-
nh of damage soi
nilla, knocking dowp I
destroying buildings.
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trnado struck on Valei
2()(K), killing 11 peo
nilla. It was one of In
dly twisters thal ripp
iugh the region beforedai
ng 20 people in all.
' It's a mess, but not pi
as last time,” said Ca
er department empht
:ph Willingham, whoiJ
ed that 25 homes were
I and five destroyed.
)ontressia Williams'I
wilt after the 2000toiiisi
and that had been to
ire then — was one
royed Thursday. Sheai
ar-old daughter survive!'
ng refuge in an
n.
By Shena Bausch
THE BATTALION
With a Disney flick hitting the
small screen Friday, Erica Enders
is one step closer to topping 330
mph and fulfilling her dream of
becoming a Top Fuel dragster.
Enders, a freshman business and
marketing major at Texas A&M,
began drag racing when she was 9
years old, winning 37 titles
throughout her junior level career,
including Driver of the Year in
1995. In 2000, Enders advanced to
the Super Comp level when she
was 16 to become the youngest
national event finalist in National
Hot Rod Association history, los
ing to world champion Jimmy
Lewis by only 0.003 of a second in
the final round.
Enders went on to win five
races that year and NHRA named
her Rookie of the Year.
Tonight, The Disney Channel
will air an original picture based
on Enders’ junior drag racing
career up to her rookie season.
“Right on Track” will premiere
at? p.m., followed by encore pre
sentations of the two-hour movie
during March and April.
Enders said a few things were
added to make the movie more
interesting for younger viewers,
but Just Singer Entertainment,
Salty Pictures and Disney did a
good job.
Enders does the stunt work in
the movie, and Beverly Mitchell of
The WB’s “7th Heaven” plays her
character.
Enders met the actress last year
while filming in Salt Lake City.
“I got to hang out with her for
three weeks while we shot the rac
ing scenes,” Enders said. “She’s
awesome. She’s not stuck on her
self like you would think most
actresses would be.”
Enders and Mitchell have
become good friends since then.
Enders and her boyfriend visited
need
Mitchell during spring break, and
Mitchell visited Enders’ hometown
of Houston twice.
Annette Mumolo, a media rela
tions spokeswoman for ABC Cable
Networks Group, said Disney did
the movie because Enders is an
ordinary teenager doing an extraor
dinary thing.
“She’s an inspiration for young
women,” she said. “And young
men, too.”
Mumolo said Mitchell’s recog
nition by young teen audiences and
her personality is what landed her
the role of Enders.
“Mitchell has a certain inno
cence, but exuberance that we
thought would creatively portray
Enders in an accurate and com
pelling way,” Mumolo said.
Other actors include Brie
Larson (“Raising Dad”) as
Courtney Enders, Erica’s younger
sister and fellow drag racer. Jon
Robert Lindstrom (“Port Charles”)
plays their father Gregg Enders,
and Jodi Russell (“Twice Today”)
plays their mother Janet Enders.
Marcos Toji (Disney Channel’s
“Movie Surfers”) stars as Randy
Jones, the Enders’ crew chief.
Enders said seeing her life por
trayed on screen was hard to
adjust to.
“It’s kind of surreal,” she said.
“I see Disney’s advertisements for
the movie and I hear my name,
but I don’t know if it’s really hit
me yet.”
Enders said she hopes publicity
from the movie will get her the $4
million sponsorship she needs to
fulfill her dream of competing at
the highest professional level.
“I can’t wait to see what rolls
after the movie,” she said.
The Tonight Show with Jay
Leno and Live with Regis & Kelly
have already contacted Enders to
appear on their shows.
“I think the publicity is good for
The Battalion
Page 3 • Friday, March 21, 2003
for speed
PHOTO COURTESY OF GREGG ENDERS
Beverly Mitchell (right) will play Erika Enders in the Disney movie “Right on
Track” tonight at 7p.m. on the Disney Channel.
my dream,” she said, “and it’s
good for the sport.”
Now 19, Enders can go from 0
to 100 mph in one second in her
Super Comp Dragster or Super Gas
Corvette. She said she wants to be
able to go faster.
“It’s kind of addicting,” she
said. “I just want to go faster and
faster.”
Super Comp and Super Gas
competitors typically exceed 185
mph.
Enders said she grew up around
the racetrack and was inspired by
her father’s love of cars.
“I remember going to the race
track with my dad when I was a
little girl,” she said. “Racing is in
my blood; I wouldn’t think about
doing anything else.”
Enders said her father has always
supported her, but not all males
have been supportive.
“A lot of criticism comes from
racers who are older,” she said.
“Some competitors get mad that
I’m a young girl in the sport who is
halfway decent.”
Enders said she’s heard com
ments like, “You’re a girl, you don’t
need to be racing,” or “Why don’t
you do the sport a favor and quit?”
The best advice Enders said
she can give to other women and
girls who want to pursue a male-
dominated sport is: girls can do any
thing guys can do.
“If it’s a dream of yours, gender
See Enders on page 10
Jars of Clay to
perform Sunday
By Lyndsey Sage
THE BATTALION
Ten years ago, four boys who lived in the
same dorm at Greenville College came togeth
er to share their appreciation for music by
writing songs “for the fun of it.” Within the
span of these 10 years, they have moved from
their dorm rooms at the Illinois college to the
center stage as the multi-platinum, three-time
Grammy Award winners Jars of Clay.
“Literally, a lot of our friendship was born
out of our appreciation for the same kind of
music,” said Steve Mason, guitarist for the
band.
The band is also composed of Dan
Haseltine, singing vocals. Matt Odmark on
guitar and Charlie Lowell on the keyboard.
Not only do they share similar musical inspi
rations, they are also united by the faith in
which their music is based.
“We see our faith as an integral part of
what we do, being followers of Christ and
songwriters,” Mason said. “First, it shows the
gospel has application and relevance to every
thing in life. Second, it shows that anything is
within the realm of writing.”
Mason said Jars of Clay writes its own
songs, which are usually developed from lyri
cal ideas or a musical phrase.
Describing the band’s style as “acoustically-
driven alternative pop,” Mason said the music
takes a different angle through the way they
try to make it appear.
“This show is a reflection from our most
recent release, furthermore, in that it is inti
mate,” he said. “It draws on the acoustic sound
and relies heavily on the audience to accept
the invitation to join in.”
For the band, music is a means of expres
sion, and even though they did not envision
reaching the degree of success it has accom
plished, music is something each of the mem
bers planned to continue on some level had
they not pursued it as a career.
Recording its first song, “Fade to Gray,” for
credit in a recording class, the band performed
See Jars on page 8
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&M student to pick up a single#!
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■ i "VKtctacf l<vt
Broke After
Spring Break?
Aggie Nights is easy on the waiieti!
the.
Sr
, ' r ^
; v <viV s
10-5W
10pm in
Rudder
Auditorium
In the basement
9pm till 1am
GommUm Shew* Free Bowling
starring Kamran Hamid Free Bim-rds
with opening acts Percussion Studio and newcomer
comedians Ryan Franks A Nick My cock
Come lose yourself in the moment as
MSC Film Society’s Aggie Cinema Series Presents:
Free Dance
Dance Revolution
8 Mile
7:30pm and 10pm
in Rudder Theatre
Free Foneorn
&Soda
Only SI with
wristband
midnight drawing for $250
must be present to win
come experience
Special
MIDNIGHT SHOWING
in MSC 201
Presented by
MSC Cepheid Variable
For Malurc Audienct’S Onl> '! as port ofAggieCon 34
F 9r ii m i ft.rg..ia,fQrmijitiQ.n.intact „8,45-
Must
Show
A&M ID
at
Check-in
locations
around the
MSC
Friday Night
March 21 In the MSC