Skate Event | Photo by Aaron Cline | The Wright State Guardian
On Wednesday, March 27, the Residential Community Association held the Neon Skate Jam, a roller skating event featuring glow-in-the dark skates, free food and raffle prizes.
The event
Students registered for the event near the parking lot for the Woods community halls, where they were offered one raffle ticket, free drinks and even a voucher for free food from El Cardenal Taqueria if they arrived early enough.
The food truck offered tacos and quesadillas with a variety of meat options for attendees to snack on before they began to skate.
Down the nearby stairs or ramp led to the Woods basketball court, which held the main attraction: the skating rink. The foam field allowed for roughly a dozen people to skate comfortably, though the number of people actually on the field fluctuated throughout the night.
Overall, the number of people skating proved the event had a good turnout, as those ranging from beginners to professionals took the stage to show off their skills.
The court was well decorated with fun lights, colorful decorations and plenty of seating for those needing to change in and out of their skates. The skates themselves came in a variety of sizes and even had neon wheels that were revealed as the night continued on.
Throughout the event, students could get free t-shirts with custom airbrush decorations as well as three raffle prizes that were called out in intervals. Some of the prizes that students could win included a record player and a projector with a screen.
The participants
The event was a huge success for RCA, and the attendees had positive things to say about it. KeSean Minor, a Computer Science major, is a skilled roller-skater and has about 10 years of experience.
“The makeshift rink itself [was] good for beginners in skating, which [was] the majority of people showing up, and for someone like me, it was a bit limiting but fun nonetheless,” Minor said. “I would love to see more events like this. They expose you to people you usually [would not] interact with because of your major. It brings people together.”
Students were able to bond over their shared experience of skating together, even if the experience was a bit embarrassing for those who fell.
Paige Patterson, a Marketing major, shared similar thoughts on the event.
“While it was a bit chilly outside, the weather [did not] seem to deter students from having a great time,” Patterson said. “I met some individuals who looked like professionals while also meeting people who have never heard of roller skating but were eager to try it.”
Patterson also has experience with roller-skating; in fact, her parents own a rink in Springfield, Ohio, called the USA Skate Center.
The people behind the event
The event would not have been possible without RCA. Varshitha Thanam, the president of RCA, was excited to host this new event for students to come and explore the joys of skating.
“[It is] clear that people had a lot of fun and were encouraged to unleash their inner child. As event organizers, we took pride in seeing everyone enjoy the Neon Skate Jam,” Thanam said.
From the food truck to the free t-shirts to the skating itself, students were excited to explore everything they could do and very much enjoyed the event. The large amount of people both on and off the rink showed this as well.
Of course, setting up this event took tremendous effort from many people who Thanam wanted to thank.
“I want to give a special shout out to the hard-working team: Nijah Echols, Ashonti Nixon, Ryanne Cimatu and Anuja Alluri and our advisor, Nickole Watson, for putting in so much effort so that this event [was] a success,” Thanam said.
Future RCA events
For those interested, RCA is holding an event with the Asian Student Association on Friday, April 12. They will be playing the movie “Joy Ride,” and students will be able to enjoy free food and even more raffles.
Students can also view RCA’s page on Engage.
