From: durrant@mentor.cc.purdue.edu (unknown)
Subject: alt.folklore.college
Keywords: Purdue, nude, party!
Organization: Purdue University
Date: Wed, 16 Dec 1992 04:29:24 GMT


yes, we here at Purdue are very proud of the Nude Olympics.  Hell, we live
in Lafayette, Indiana, what else do we have to do?  The Nude Olympics has been
a tradition here for at least twenty years--I know of several families where
running has become a family tradition.  First the father, then the sons, ect.
The police usually don't interviene anymore, they just observe to make sure
no one gets hurt.  But the University usually has to discipline anyone they
can identify to show they do not condone this kind of student nonsense.  But
the University staff are usually the ones who cause the problem.

Case in point, the last year I attended ( I couldn't go this year because I
had a 20 page paper due the next morning) everyone was peaceful and happy until
the idiot RA decided that he would tackle one of the runners onto the very
cold concrete.  Of course, chaos soon ensued as 50 or so students jumped the
RA.  This is what the University says gives the Nude Olympics its bad name.

Of course, this is from a university that used to have a sanctioned brawl
between the upperclassmen.  In 1896, the numbers '89 were painted on the steepleof the old Ag building.  The staff protested and demanded action.  A few years
later, the city of West Lafayette built a water tower at the top of Salisbury
Hill.  When the freshmen class put their numbers on the new water tower, it
was a challenge to the sophomores to remove them.  They beat each other up
nightly until it was decided to hold a annual "scrap" on the second Friday of
the fall semester.

The battle started around 7 PM with the freshmen lining the bottom of the hill
and the sophomores surrounding the tank.  The sophomores would charge the 
freshmen and the battle began.  The winner was the class that tied up all the
members of the other class.  They would then strip the losers, cover them with
paint, and parade them through the town (and they think the Nude Olympics is
bad now?)  The scraps continued until 1913 when Francis Walter Obenchain, a
sophomore from South Whitley, IN, was found dead due to a broken neck.  A few
days later, the classes voted to discontinue the scrap.

Actually Purdue is a university rich in tradition and folklore and one I'm
very proud to be attending.  An entire book has been written on Purdue's
tradition and folklore--_Purdue Traditions--Past, Present, and Future_ which
is produced by the Purdue Reamer Club.  If you're at Purdue, and would be
interested in topics like this, I'm afraid the book is out of print.  We are
currently working on expanding and correcting the book and third edition will
be out ?????.  The Reamers are always looking for interested people, however,
and if you would like more information please contact me by e-mail--I'd be
happy to send it to you and give you an invitation to our callout next
semester.  (Sorry for the plug, but it's something I feel pretty strongly about.
Christine

		My teen angst bullshit has a body count.
			--Heathers

Xref: sparky alt.folklore.college:3312 alt.folklore.urban:31360 alt.fan.lemurs:219