Subscribe Sun Ad. When Kate Miller hit the bars at 8 p.m. Thursday night, she had every intention of staying till closing time. And of getting every one of the 10 drinks she had coming. Miller was one of more than 1,300 participants in Gator Stompin', the semester's-end pub crawl that takes University of Florida students to popular bars along University Avenue.
Participants get one free drink at each of the bars.
After two alcohol-related events during the fall semester of 1998, UF and city officials created an Alcohol Abuse Prevention Committee to study ways to curb student drinking. That committee's recommendations led to the creation of the Gainesville Police Department's Party Patrol and UF's decision not to let football fans step out of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium for halftime drinks. The committee also condemned local bars for promoting events that encourage binge drinking. Bryan Edelstein said the event has been changed to make it safer. Participating bars offered free food and soft drinks for designated drivers, and emergency medical technicians were on hand to deal with people who had too much to drink.