Pirates compete in bicycle scavenger hunt

Photo by Sara Crosthwait

Brother and sister Kurt and Laura Rosenberger (above) won first in the male and female scavenger hunt competitions. Participants dressed according to the pirate theme.

Pirates on bicycles invaded EMU over the weekend. On Friday night, Oct. 14, several students from EMU planned and participated in a Scavenger Hunt Bicycle Race featuring a pirate theme. Nearly 25 people participated in the hunt, which took about ten to organize.

Participants, some dressed as pirates, were given a list of tasks to complete. They then took off on their bicycles to complete them. The list consisted of tasks such as "walking the plank" over the campus fountain, finding out the name of the observatory on the top of the hill, and obtaining an MVP card application form from Food Lion.

Participants met at 9 p.m. at Stone House. A one-dollar entry fee was required to pay for some of the expenses of organizing the event. Local business such as Eastern Bicycle Academy and the Shen Bike Club donated prizes consisting of water bottles, arm warmers, bike bells, a hydration pack, energy bars and various other prizes for bicycle enthusiasts.

Kurt Rosenberger took first place for the men's competition and Laura Rosenberger won for the women. Kurt had ridden in a similar race in his hometown, and was excited to experience the same thing at EMU.

"It's great seeing so many people out on bicycles on a Friday night, being active, acting silly and just being kids again. It was really energizing to see so many people out," Kurt said.

Julian Wiebe-Johnson set up the race route with Matt Styer. The event was a direct response to that trend, and Wiebe-Johnson is pleased with the results. "I think it was highly successful, as we had 35 people involved in a first time event. That's a fairly decent turnout for something new."

No advertising has been done for the event, but interest has grown nevertheless. Wiebe-Johnson commented that there has been much curiosity about the weekend event and details on the next one. Due to the success of this first race, and an interest by JMU and Bridgewater students as well, another Bicycle Scavenger Hunt will be held in two weeks. This race will be held in downtown Harrisonburg on Nov. 5. For more information contact Kurt Rosenberger or Julian Wiebe-Johnson.

"Everyone at the end felt that the experience was a positive one and had excitement for the next one in a couple weeks," Wiebe-Johnson said.

"I would like to see the line between EMU, JMU and the other schools in the area be broken down through another hunt," Kurt said.