A student’s relationship with his parents as well as his level of popularity can directly affect how he responds to peer pressure, according to an ongoing study conducted by Psychology Prof. Joe Allen and Assoc. Family Medicine Prof. Claudia Allen.

The Allens have been following 185 students enrolled at a Charlottesville middle school for 10 years, focusing on how a student’s home life affects how he deals with peer pressure. The study’s results suggest that the way in which parents talk to their children can have an impact on their children’s ability to resist peer pressure, Mr. Allen said. Children who communicate successfully with their families are more likely to deal positively with peer pressure, the study’s findings suggest.

“It turns out that teenagers learn whether or not they can get voices heard by other people in their families,” Mr. Allen said. “If they get their voices heard in families, they’re more assertive in peer groups.”

The study also found that students who are more popular among their peers are more likely to give in to peer pressure than less popular students.

“They’re popular because they’re attuned to what matters in their peer group,” Mr. Allen said, adding that although popularity can positively influence a student, “it also means that if a peer group expects [a student] to do things like drink or shoplift, [that student] is also attuned to that.”

Bruce Boling, director of the Southwood Unit of the Boys and Girls Club of Charlottesville/Albmarle, said he has witnessed popular students give in to peer pressure. He also noted that he believes age can play a key factor in whether a child will submit to the whims of popular demand.

“Older kids are very influential on the younger kids,” he said.

Mr. Allen said he hopes the study’s finding will help parents better guide their teenagers dealing with peer pressure.

“We’re trying to change the way parents think about how [they] prepare teenagers to enter adult world,” he said. “Instead of parents thinking about protecting their kids, how do we teach people to thrive and master potential dangers and challenges?”

The Allens’ study will be published next month in a book titled “Escaping the Endless Adolescence.”

Members of the Blue Ridge Mountain Rescue Group practice erecting a radio tower. Photo courtesy Michael Holroyd.

Early in the summer of 2008, a young boy went missing in the woods near Madison County. First to respond to the crisis was the Blue Ridge Mountain Rescue Group — a member of the Appalachian Search and Rescue Conference and one of the University’s many student organizations.

“It was the first mission I ever commanded,” BRMRG President Evan Koepke said.

Through the BRMRG’s and the local sheriff department’s efforts, the 9-year-old boy was found uninjured, walking alongside a road.

“It’s a high like no other,” Koepke said. “It’s absolutely wonderful to see a mission turn out well.”

The Blue Ridge Mountain Rescue Group was founded 30 years ago in response to the growing need for search and rescue teams in the Appalachian area, Koepke said. Feeling that local police were not meeting the need of rescue teams, several independent groups formed, modeled after rescue teams in the Rocky Mountains. Even today, Virginia has no state-run rescue organizations, Koepke said, and relies on independent rescue groups like BRMRG to find missing persons and aircraft.

Most of BRMRG’s 30 to 40 volunteers are University students, although the group is trying to build up its Charlottesville membership, Koepke said. All members vary in their time commitments. Some members come to meetings just often enough to stay qualified while others get “devoured” by it, staying involved for 10 or more years, Koepke said.

To become “call-out” qualified and participate in missions, members undergo training in advanced outdoor skills such as rock-climbing, clue awareness and land navigation. Members also learn basic medical attention techniques and how to extract a person from various situations. After becoming call-out qualified, a member can advance to the level of field team member, field team leader, incident staff and incident commander. All require more intense and detailed training.

Third-year College student Jeff Strong joined BRMRG this summer and recently became call-out qualified. So far, he has learned wilderness survival tips such as how to search for clues and communication techniques.

The group holds one-hour meetings every Wednesday evening, and Saturdays consist of in-the-field training. A few weekends ago, Strong and other new members “got lost” in the woods to learn how to use a compass.

Another skill members learn is how to tie knots, such as the figure eight, bowline, girth hitch and the double fishermen’s bend — all of which are useful for many different situations during the search and rescue process, including raising a radio tower, pitching tents and securing injured parties.

“I didn’t know very many knots before I joined the group and I learned 10 or more knots within a couple months,” said Greg Stronko, the group’s vice president and a University staff member. BRMRG “caught my attention. It gets you into the outdoors more, helps people and you learn skills like knots and repelling. And it’s not just fun stuff but a service to the state and community.”

The group is on-call 24/7, 365 days a year. Once a member is call-out qualified, his name is placed on the roster and the group notifies him when a mission comes up via e-mail or text message. Although members are encouraged to participate in as many missions as possible, they are not required to go on all of them.

Sometimes, if a member is unable to go on-location, he can work dispatch instead, Stronko said. Working dispatch consists of manning the phones for the rescue conference, keeping track of the members during the search and relaying to other groups any equipment needs, Stronko said. A rescue cannot function without a dispatch unit, and the job can be done from anywhere as long as the dispatcher has a computer and phone, Stronko noted.

Every task, no matter how small, contributes to the mission’s success. During Koepke’s first search and rescue, all he did was paperwork at the base camp.

“The next day, though, I found out that the tasks I had written helped in the success of the find,” Koepke said.

When a mission arises, the Virginia Department of Emergency Management or a local sheriff contacts BRMRG, Koepke said. Other times, the Appalachian Search and Rescue Conference notifies the group of a mission. The frequency with which the BRMRG is called upon to aid in a search and rescue varies from year to year. On average, the group participates in 20 to 30 missions a year, most of them during the summer, Koepke said.

Once the call goes out, the BRMRG responds as quickly as possible. Some missions are as easy as finding someone and walking them out, while other rescues are more complicated. Most search and rescue missions involve missing elderly persons, alzheimers patients, small children or lost and injured hikers.

“Sometimes there is nothing you can do,” Koepke said. “But you always get a good feeling from contributing to the mission and seeing a loved one returned okay or for a family to get closure.”

Not all missions, however, end successfully. One such mission occurred about a year ago when a hunter went missing on the border of Shenandoah National Park. He suffered from hypothermia and did not survive the night, Koepke said.

“Even though he wasn’t alive, the family and whole community said thank you to us, and it means so much to them just to have that closure,” Koepke said.

Recently, the BRMRG has been facing changes to its training because of new regulations. Usually, all the group’s training and certification is done “in-house.” Lately, though, there has been a move by the federal government to make the states more involved in search and rescue training and call-out qualification, Koepke said.

Despite these new requirements, the Blue Ridge Mountain Rescue Group will continue to do what it does best: teaching wilderness safety and conducting search and rescue missions.

“It’s about growing, learning skills, having fun and applying those skills to something very worthwhile,” Koepke said.

To kick off my column, I thought it would be best to explain to you the significance and reasoning behind my choice for a title. I was afraid that if I left you to interpret it all by your lonesome, you would remain utterly, utterly confused for the duration of its existence. Following the wonderful suggestion of a friend, I have decided to christen my new column, “250 West,” which some of you might recognize as University Avenue or the road that passes through the Corner. The title may seem obscure, random and perhaps even a feeble attempt at profundity, but I think that once you discover the inspiration behind the name, you will find it to be an appropriate representation of what I am trying to do.

The title of the column was inspired by an excursion taken on none other than Route 250 West. It all began when my friend and I decided that it would be beneficial to take a day trip and get out of Charlottesville. I think it’s important to escape once in a while, to see things other than professors, textbooks and front yards littered with beer cans. If for no other reason, it’s important so that you can fully appreciate what your environmental science professors talk about all semester.

“The Country” was where we wanted to explore. We chose to go there because it is relatively close and nearly impossible to miss. I don’t know a lot of specifics about the names of towns that we passed through but I know for sure that it was “The Country.” Our only explicit plans were to stop at a few antique stores and buy some fresh produce at a by-the-road vegetable stand, if the stand happened to inspire us.

So we set off, driving into who-knows-what. We began our expedition with a trip to Crozet, a little town just 12 miles outside of Charlottesville. The first thing we saw upon our arrival was a thrift store that we discovered was “Open to Jesus” — and of course, we had to go in. I have to admit that there is not much to Crozet, except an amateur wall mural depicting Native Americans encountering the original settlers of the town. We left Crozet relatively shortly after we arrived, off in search of breakfast.

Always a fan of home cooking, I was quite ecstatic — and relieved — to discover Weasies Home Cooking somewhere near Waynesboro. I am surprised that there is not a greater number of country diners around this area. As a matter of fact, Weasies was the only diner that we came across in 50 miles driving on 250 West, and more importantly, it was the only one we saw that was actually open. When taking 250 West through the mountains, we did come across one abandoned diner, which the owner had obviously left in a hurry: the 25-year-old mints were still in the dispensers in the front entrance. The sight of those mints got my stomach grumbling, so we hopped back in the car to find sustenance, finally arriving at the good Ol’ American dining establishment of Weasie’s Home Cooking.

I had been craving biscuits and gravy, but unfortunately Weasie’s had been “so busy lately” that they had run out. A likely explanation for a place in which the mean age of a customer is 72, and they serve something called “Red Eye Gravy,” which is basically ham dipped in coffee. I ultimately settled on homemade biscuits and home fries with onions. Not the most sanitary-tasting meal I’ve ever enjoyed, but it was an experience to remember nevertheless.

The day progressed in a similar manner, walking along quaint small-town streets, driving over the Shenandoah Mountains, stopping in Staunton — the home of the American Shakespeare Center — and feeling generally so very far away from Grounds. The day ended on a perfect note, relaxing and delving into long conversations at a scenic overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway.

It was a lovely day, and more fun than I’ve had in awhile. It was spontaneous, the scenery and weather were beautiful and I had wonderful company. There were garrulous farmers, potent lavender, a $1 green pepper, a tank of gas, a $4 crystal bowl and a $5 vintage Aigner purse.

I recommend taking a drive off to “the Country” very soon. Set off on Route 250 West, I-64, Route 29, whichever road you prefer and just drive. I assure you that you will find adventure. Ultimately, the title of my column represents me taking an alternate course and seeing what else, besides fraternities and football games, exists for University students. I hope you enjoy the ride with me.

Sarah’s column runs biweekly Fridays. She can be reached at s.matalone@cavalierdaily.com.