Ah, The Joy Of Watching Your Kids Chug Pitchers Of Beer ... And Other Bizarre College Traditions
By John P. Lopez
My son chugged a pitcher of beer in about 40-seconds. My daughter did it in a bit over a minute-and-a-half. Neither hurled. Neither looked unaccustomed or afraid of the daunting task. Both handled the rest of the night with aplomb.
And I didn't know whether to beam with pride or hang my head in shame. I beamed with pride — mostly because earning their Senior Rings got them both one step closer to getting off Dad's payroll.
If you are unaware, the event was Aggie Ring Dunk, an Aggie Baptism of sorts and a tradition that began when I was in school in the 1980s. It usually happened the day you picked up your Aggie Ring. But what began as a few friends heading to the Dixie Chicken to order a cold pitcher, then drop their ring to the bottom and chug until you could grab the ring with your teeth has turned into an elaborate array of elaborate parties.
But while it certainly makes the list of bizarre college traditions, is it the most bizarre? You decide. College students are, after all, stupid.
Here's one man's list of the most bizarre traditions you can see on college campuses:
1) North Carolina State's Krispy Kreme Challenge. Every year, hundreds of students line up on campus and run 2.5-miles to a Krispy Kreme store. There, they must eat an entire dozen Krispy Kremes and run back to campus — all in under an hour. I'm guessing the Vomit Factor is much higher than even Aggie Ring Dunk.
2) Aggie Ring Dunk. There's this look every Aggie dunker gets shortly after chugging the last drop and snagging their ring. It's a blank, scared, petrified look that's a cross between, "Don't vomit. Don't vomit. Don't vomit" and, "I shouldn't have had those nachos." It's usually followed by nacho-vomit.
3) Massachusetts Institute of Technology Pumpkin Drop. Every Halloween, thousands gather around the tallest building in Cambridge, Mass — usually with their bellies full of beer, vodka and dozens of chocolate bars — and watch other students drop pumpkins from the top of the 21-story building. Because, you know, science. The collateral damage can be anything from scraping pumpkin shrapnel out of your skin to, yeah, more vomit, this time that delectable vodka-chocolate variety.
4) Yale University Naked Library Walk. During Finals week, up to 100 Yale seniors walk (not run, because that would be just wrong) through the library buck-ass naked, handing out candy. You know that girl you've had a crush on for four years? They're real and they're spectacular. And that guy you thought was, you know, a stud? Not so much. BTW, if there's a hair in your candy you probably don't want to eat it.
5) Ohio State Naked Jump into Mirror Lake. It happens before the Michigan game. In November. Often in sub-freezing temperatures and snow. Kids ... well, I'll leave it to this OSU kid to explain: "Everyone is completely wasted and usually in bikinis or as little clothing as possible. There end up being tens of thousands of people. It's completely illegal and totally awesome." He failed to mention that usually dozens of kids fall victim to hypothermia. Sure, sign my kid up for that!
