Dartanian lay on the surgery table, former student Brian Beach leaning over him, smoke billowing over the stage. The comic dart figure disappeared from view as the stage went black. From its ashes arose a new hero, a new representative of the renowned Davis High School–Dartman.

This robocop-looking brainchild of Beach was presented to Davis High during the farewell assembly in 1991. The transition from the old Dartman to the new came with the vandalism of the original costume. Dartman, as the school mascot, was originally part of the cheerleading team. The cheer room, where the costume was kept, was broken into and the Dartman uniform was ravaged.

“It was totally destroyed. After that, Dartman kind of faded into the background. You didn’t see him at games or anything,” said Dave Miller, SBO advisor. It wasn’t until the 2011-12 school year that Wade Purdy, an SBO, decided to bring Dartman back. It was then that Dartman became an official Student Body Officer, a position that students are now able to run for.

This year’s Dartman is Bryson Day, who, according to Miller, is “the spirit bicep of the SBOs. He already owns the title. He has the enthusiasm and the audacity to be Dartman.”

Day, who came up with this year’s theme, “dare to be a Dart,” said that his job is to “preserve the traditions that have already been established and to establish new traditions that everyone will love to participate in and honor.”

The transition from Purdy to Day was a big one–the costume needed altering in order to fit Day, and he wanted to leave his own signature on the look. “I liked the [old] helmet, but I wanted something new and unique. [The new helmet] doesn’t look traditional. I think different is definitely a new improvement,” said Day. He has struggles, though, in that many people mistake the uniform for a skirt and tights, but he had no comment to what they actually are.

Day has embraced his title. He said that his favorite part of being Dartman is “having the position of an SBO and being an equal, but having a different office and title that makes me different. In electing me, [the student body] trusts me to be there not only for sporting events but for individuals.”

This idea is the essence of The Dartman Creed, written by former SBO Landon Cook. “[The Dartman Creed] is a verbal representation of the spirit of Dartman and how he represents the tradition of Davis High,” said Miller. “It encourages everyone to believe Dartman is within all of us. Everyone is part of the whole–part of making Davis High great.”

The SBOs worked hard throughout the summer to do just that. Day said that “it’s hard to be given so many obligations and responsibilities, but I do it with the best attitude I can have and I do it with pride. I wouldn’t give up the opportunity to be Dartman for anything in the world.”