2008 Woodie Awards
The "Adventure" of a Lifetime
Caryn Connolly
Issue date: 9/14/06 Section: Campus Life
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None of the students attending the outdoor adventure canoe trip this past weekend expected the ride to Indian Head Canoes & Rafts to turn into a real life "adventure." The trip began in a very inauspicious fashion with the bus parked down on Hudson Street by Davidson Laboratory. After getting up so early on a Sunday morning, the last thing the students wanted to do was trudge down the hill.
The bus pulled away from the curb about 15 minutes late and proceeded to make a right turn onto Fourth Street. There was no rhyme, reason or explanation for the driver's actions---and of course, the bus could not fit down the narrow street with cars parked on both sides. One of the people on the trip who was assisting John Maurizi, the director of campus recreation, had to get off the bus and help the driver to back up into oncoming traffic, in the hopes that an accident would be avoided and the bus would leave Hoboken. Looking apprehensively out the windows as the Academy bus passed within inches of parked vehicles, everyone was asking themselves why this decision was made.
For a very short while, the trip was uneventful, but the student's luck did not hold. Several students who did not usually experience motion sickness admitted to a feeling of nausea and headaches. By this point, the bus was way up north, climbing into the mountains. It was also speeding, taking the twisting switchbacks at speeds that were not only nauseating but unsafe. The drive was compared to a roller coaster, the only difference being people choose to ride roller coasters. Amazingly, some of the passengers seemed completely unfazed by the erratic driving.
Evidently, the students were not the only ones who noticed the driver's behavior. The bus was pulled over by a police officer up near Sussex. Though some of the passengers seemed oblivious to the ramifications of the traffic stop, others realized the danger. No one on the bus knew precisely what happened or whether a summons was issued. Even right after the traffic stop, the bus was going 48 m.p.h. in the 35 m.p.h. zone. Eventually, the bus slowed, but the adventure was not quite over yet.
The driver did not know the area, and drove past the canoe rental company. He continued to go up the mountain, clinging to the edge of the cliff. At one point, the river could barely be seen; it was so far below. The bus drove up a narrow road between two buildings and climbed steadily, pulling further away from the river. No one knew quite what to think when the bus made a K-turn in the middle of that narrow road. It meant another trip back down the winding mountain road-except this time it was downhill.
Shortly after another K-turn in an equally unsafe spot, the bus arrived at its destination. Everyone piled out of the bus, happy to climb down from the instrument that had delivered such a wild ride. Thankfully, after that point, the only "adventure" came from the rapids on the Delaware River.
The bus pulled away from the curb about 15 minutes late and proceeded to make a right turn onto Fourth Street. There was no rhyme, reason or explanation for the driver's actions---and of course, the bus could not fit down the narrow street with cars parked on both sides. One of the people on the trip who was assisting John Maurizi, the director of campus recreation, had to get off the bus and help the driver to back up into oncoming traffic, in the hopes that an accident would be avoided and the bus would leave Hoboken. Looking apprehensively out the windows as the Academy bus passed within inches of parked vehicles, everyone was asking themselves why this decision was made.
For a very short while, the trip was uneventful, but the student's luck did not hold. Several students who did not usually experience motion sickness admitted to a feeling of nausea and headaches. By this point, the bus was way up north, climbing into the mountains. It was also speeding, taking the twisting switchbacks at speeds that were not only nauseating but unsafe. The drive was compared to a roller coaster, the only difference being people choose to ride roller coasters. Amazingly, some of the passengers seemed completely unfazed by the erratic driving.
Evidently, the students were not the only ones who noticed the driver's behavior. The bus was pulled over by a police officer up near Sussex. Though some of the passengers seemed oblivious to the ramifications of the traffic stop, others realized the danger. No one on the bus knew precisely what happened or whether a summons was issued. Even right after the traffic stop, the bus was going 48 m.p.h. in the 35 m.p.h. zone. Eventually, the bus slowed, but the adventure was not quite over yet.
The driver did not know the area, and drove past the canoe rental company. He continued to go up the mountain, clinging to the edge of the cliff. At one point, the river could barely be seen; it was so far below. The bus drove up a narrow road between two buildings and climbed steadily, pulling further away from the river. No one knew quite what to think when the bus made a K-turn in the middle of that narrow road. It meant another trip back down the winding mountain road-except this time it was downhill.
Shortly after another K-turn in an equally unsafe spot, the bus arrived at its destination. Everyone piled out of the bus, happy to climb down from the instrument that had delivered such a wild ride. Thankfully, after that point, the only "adventure" came from the rapids on the Delaware River.
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