I submit that the historical set of players on a team only because of they can rent a car is about equally male/female. Warm-body girlfriends probably outnumber warm-body boyfriends, though I've known of both. Dan Beshear wrote: /* In the early- to mid-90s, many women were on a team because they were the only one over 21 (rental car) or they had a boyfriend on the team also. Julie Stalhaut is a notable exception, being a driving force behind Western Michigan and now in NAQT. The era of the "token female" is over. */ As of about a decade ago, the Texas Star National Academic Championship (high school) required all teams from co-ed schools to include at least one girl. The result was a lack of respect by competitors for those "token females" who were obviously on particular teams only because they were female. Meanwhile, those teams who had a female player make the team on her own merits were at an advantage because they got contribution from four seats instead of three. =) Of course, many opponents wrongly assumed that the *good* female players were merely "token females." Mind that this attitude would enrage the good female players (justifiably!) and generally lead them to play all the better. Matt P.S. Data point: Boston University has sent a 15-passenger van to each of the past three Penn Bowls. The male-female ratio within the van was 5-10 two years ago and 7-6 this year. I'm drawing a blank on exactly how many game officials went in 1999 but the people I do remember lead to a 7-5 ratio. Now, the 10 from 1998 include a chaperone and her niece (necessary under BU rules to rent that year) but otherwise, none of the women were required for rental and the only "girlfriends" would have been on the trip anyway.
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