As temperatures dipped below freezing, the last Paternoville weeklong campout came to sudden halt Thursday night.
Campers were required to leave the Gate A campsite at 9 p.m. Thursday but are allowed to return at 9 a.m. today. Paternoville Coordination Committee (PCC) public relations representative Dan Saxton said he believed the university made the right call.
"There were two big factors: temperatures and the wind," Saxton said. "We felt it was appropriate to do what we did last year for the Michigan State campout and send people home for the night. In the morning we'll resume as usual."
Temperatures last night dropped down to 30 degrees with a wind chill factor in the mid-twenties. It is university policy that Paternoville must shut down when temperatures reach 32 degrees.
Like Saxton, PCC vice president John Tecce wrote in an e-mail he thought the decision was made in the best interest of the students.
"The athletic department definitely wants to make sure that we are healthy and in good shape for the game Saturday," Tecce wrote. "With temperatures dropping below the 32 degree limit, it [made] sense to let the campers sleep in their own beds."
Despite having to shut down for the night, campers' spirits remain high, Mat Kovalich (senior-secondary education) said.
"It's Ohio State," he said. "The weather isn't going to stop us from having a good time."
With 94 tents and 740 registered campers, Gate A is nearly as populated as it was for this season's previous weeklong Iowa campout. Given the weather, Tecce said the turnout was greater than expected.
"I thought 80 [tents] was going to be where we'd be at," Tecce said. "But I'm pleasantly surprised to say we're at 94 tents and I've had a couple groups express interest in coming out [today] so the weather wasn't as much of a factor as I thought."
Included in the group this week was Penn State Altoona student Jake Harr. Harr joined a group of old high school friends at the campsite and has missed all of his classes for the week.
"It's awesome," Harr (freshman-political science) said. "The atmosphere is great. I'm already excited to camp out for the Alabama game in 2011 when I'm here as a student."
Cory Ingram joined Harr in his tent. However, Ingram, the uniform manager for the Penn State Blue Band, is not camping out for front row seats. Instead, he is simply there to help his friends and take in the experience. He has slept at Paternoville every night this week.
"Coming from working with the Blue Band, there is a lot of high spirits there," Ingram (sophomore-actuarial science) said. "There is a lot of high spirits here, too. The school spirit is phenomenal and people are just so excited for Ohio State. This week has gotten better and better."
Better for some at least. A few campers have dealt with unfortunate circumstances throughout the week. Taryn Wem (freshman-journalism) was battling bronchitis as she camped out.
"I stayed out here Monday night and got sick with all the cold weather," Wem said.
Despite her illness, Wem said she had no plans to stop and get some rest.
"I've been doing Paternoville every week," she said. "Out here it's like a family. Every time I go to class I'm like, 'I've got to go back, I've got to go back.' "
While Wem might not be the only student feeling under the weather, another student awoke Thursday afternoon in unique circumstances -- her tent had collapsed on her.
"I woke up and the tent was on top of me," Kathy Jones (freshman-biology) said. "I was really confused and kind of like, 'What the hell happened.' I had no idea how to fix it and everyone I called was in class, so I was pretty much screwed."
