Robert Simmons, an arborist with Landscape Services, has been bringing wood to Fall Fest for four years. The wood he carries into the Quad every year is used to make hamburgers, hot dogs and other delectables for an estimated 25,000 students to eat every year.
In his four years of working on Fall Fest, Simmons said it was getting a little crowded.
“It might one day have to be moved to the Parade Ground because of the sheer amount of people,” Simmons said. “A couple years ago, it took me an hour to get a truck full of wood 75 feet.”
Usually held on the Friday before the first football game, Fall Fest was pushed back this year because of scheduling conflicts with the UL-Monroe game.
This end of summer/beginning of autumn festival brings promise of free food, loud music and for some, frustration.
Philip Kearny, a mechanical engineering sophomore, attended Fall Fest 2002 and enjoyed it, but he said it was a little crowded.
“I liked the notion of it being free,” he said. “But it was pretty crowded. I had to stand in line for an hour just to get a hamburger, there were so many people.”
Missing from this year’s Fall Fest is the Student Organization Fair.
Michelle Lowery, assistant director of the Center for Student Leadership and Involvement, said the student organization fair moved because of a scheduling change that would not benefit the fair, not because of the crowds.
“Many student organizations also said they didn’t like being behind a table while all the fun was going on,” Lowery said. “The student organization fair has only been with Fall Fest for three years, so it wasn’t a big deal to separate.”
Randy Gurie, director of special events for the University, said the 10-year run of Fall Fest has created a tradition in the Quad, and being crowded is part of the tradition.
“Part of the uniqueness of it is the location; it’s part of the experience,” Gurie said. “If you moved it to the Parade Ground or somewhere else, it would be like putting 12 people in Tiger Stadium.”
Gurie, who created Fall Fest to improve the enthusiasm of students at the beginning of each school year, said complaints from students taking tests or having class with the clamor outside were addressed as much as possible.
“We allow professors to move classes if they need to,” Gurie said. “Normally there aren’t many exams or tests because it’s so early. We also try to time the band coming in between classes.”
John Sullivan, a geography senior, said he thought people complaining about Fall Fest were not seeing the whole picture.
“If you moved it to the Parade Ground, people would die of heat exhaustion,” Sullivan said. “You might have to sacrifice comfort for heat, but there’s nowhere else to put it.”
Simmons said the Quad does have a certain atmosphere for the festival.
“The younger kids like it,” Simmons said. “Because it’s under the live oaks, it’s tightknit.”