I wasn't trying to toot my own horn. I was simply pointing out that a 12 hour course load, in and of itself, is not that difficult. And, yes, I do know how hard it is to balance class with long practices and competitions all across the country. Your friend was definitely right, practice does tend to replace the time you get to sleep/eat/do anything else with your life.
You do make a valid point about my not being in his class. I was mostly generalizing that lower-level classes tend to be easier and not take up as much time outside of the classroom. About the curve, though, my upper-level classes tend not to curve as much as the lower-level ones. That could just be my professors, though. I know I usually get better grades in them because I work harder in them.