Bid Night -- a night surrounded by high expectations and scandalous stories from years past -- once again provided a unique experience this year for all students involved.
For some, Saturday night was a chance to bond with new brothers and sisters, a first step toward lifelong friendship. But for others, it wasn't notably different from any other weekend on Rugby Road, nor was it a cause for partying at all.
Second-year College student Sam Ennis saw Bid Night from the perspective of someone already in a fraternity.
"I'm in Sigma Pi, so I was helping with facilitation of beer distribution," Ennis said.
He said that despite the high attendance at his fraternity, the only problems they encountered involved Charlottesville residents.
"A bunch of townies showed up really late and punched the door until their hands bled, but then they left," he said. "Other than that, the night was glorious."
Although Ennis conceded that the Sigma Pi pledges had a great time, he said he was unable to give any details.
Some pledges, however, were willing to share their experiences. Like fraternity pledges, sorority pledges said they also spent time with new sisters on Bid Night.
First-year College student Molly Harris said she began her night having dinner with her new sisters in Chi Omega before spending time at a fourth year's apartment and then going to various fraternity houses.
Harris said sisterhood bonding continued at the parties as sober sisters watched over the girls, making sure they had a fun and safe night.
She also said there was a noticeable difference between Bid Night and most other nights on Rugby, an observation she attributed to fraternity pledges.
"It was their night to be crazy," she said. "It's their last night before it isn't so fun anymore."
Harris said she is looking forward to next year when she will be a sober sister for a new pledge.
"I'm excited because I want to show the pledges a good time, but it will be hard to be around a lot of crazy drunk people and not be drinking myself," she said. "It will take a lot of patience."
First-year College student Sara Barton, a new pledge at Zeta Tau Alpha, said she also felt sober sisters were beneficial and plans to be one next year.
"I want the pledges to have as good an experience as I had," Barton said. "My night was basically worry-free. It was good because you always knew someone was there in case you got in trouble or felt overwhelmed."
She said her night began with a meeting at the house during which the pledges were reminded about safety and ate dinner together before going to a sister's apartment.
"We got to know each other a lot better," Barton said.
She and her sisters then had a mixer with "Pi Kap" before going to other fraternities.
Barton said the most obvious difference between a regular Saturday night and Bid Night was the number of people.
"I have never seen so many people," she said. "It was like the whole student body shifted themselves off of Grounds and onto Rugby Road."
She did, however, have a personally defining moment that set Bid Night apart.
"Me falling down some stairs wasn't out of the ordinary," she said. "But some guy caught me [on Saturday]. It was like a scene out of a movie."
Many non-Greek students also said they participated in Bid Night.
First-year College students Steve Hromada and Aaron Martin said they went to fraternities with friends despite never having any interest in rushing.
"We don't get along with the frat boys too well," Hromada explained.
Instead, they were motivated to go out for other reasons.
"Girls and the dancing," Martin said.
"Girls dancing," Hromada corrected his friend, receiving a nod of approval.
"I just went out and danced all night," Martin said as Hromada agreed.
Although neither thought Bid Night was extremely different from a typical night on Rugby, they did notice a slight difference.
"We saw a lot of drunk people, but that's nothing new," Martin said.
"More than usual though," Hromada observed. "The girls were drunker."
First-year College student Nick Barnes said he also didn't rush but went to the frats with his friends after a stop at Little John's. Like Martin and Hromada, Barnes said he had heard about the hype leading up to Bid Night, but decided that it wasn't much different from a normal weekend.
"It was supposed to be a huge night with parties everywhere," he said. "I wasn't disappointed, but I wasn't really impressed either."
Second-year College student Chad Ellis also said he and his friends had a fairly typical experience on Rugby.
"There were really drunk, wasted people, but that's pretty standard issue," Ellis said. "But I think people were friendlier than usual."
He also commended the fraternity brothers for their Bid Night efforts.
"I think the frat guys were pretty in control," he said. "They did a good job of making sure nothing got too out of hand."
Not everything went smoothly for Ellis and his friends, however, despite a generally positive night.
"One of our acquaintances had a little too much vodka, beer and peppermint schnapps," he said. "She got a little sick so I had to stay up until around four in the morning making sure she was okay. You have to look out for your friends."
Other students made similar observations.
First-year College student Lauren Hilker said she didn't think Bid Night was significantly different from her other experiences on Rugby Road.
"I thought it was pretty much the same" as a usual Saturday night, Hilker said. "Maybe more people than usual."
She did note, however, that pledges' experiences were probably different from her own.
"I heard it would be crazy," she said. "I guess it was crazier for the pledges."
Her pledging friends, however, would not disclose any details from their nights.
"They said it was secret," she said. "Just that they were trashed by five or six but they couldn't tell you what happened after that time, so at least they remembered not to tell that."
Second-year College student Cory Maxwell, a Resident Advisor in Dobie, said he agreed Bid Night was fairly normal for a weekend night. Maxwell also said the Resident Staff was no more or less lenient than on regular nights.
He said he only saw about 10 tipsy students before he was off duty at 2 a.m. He expected to receive calls later, but he didn't.
"I'm sure some of my fellow Resident Staff members did," he said.
He thought the lack of activity after 2 a.m. was partially due to the low number of pledging male residents. He said only one of his 20 residents decided to rush and pledge and estimated that there were only about 10 residents in his entire building joining fraternities.
Some of Maxwell's non-pledging residents and many other students decided not to go out Saturday.
First-year College student Rich Rueb said he chose not to participate in the Bid Night activities.
"Ordinarily I would have gone out, but I had an off night," Rueb explained.
He said he rushed but decided not to pledge, despite liking the fraternity brothers he met.
"I just kind of decided it was too much of a distraction," he said. "I really liked the guys, so it was a hard decision, but I think it was the right choice for me."
He added that he hopes to remain friends with the brothers he met and will definitely go out on Bid Night next year.
He said that although he hadn't talked to any of his friends about their nights yet, he had observed some remnants of the festivities.
"The dorms were a wreck this morning," he said. "It sounded like a lot of fun though. Everybody's pretty hung over."
First-year College students Victoria Martin and Miriam Keliddar also chose not to go out on Saturday.
"We heard it was invitation only," Keliddar said.
"We were going to go, but it was cold outside," Martin added.
Martin said about half of her suite, including her roommate, went out, although only one is pledging a sorority.
"My roommate didn't really have a great time," she said. "She said there were too many parties so there weren't a lot of people at them."
Most of the students who went out, however, said they had a great time.
"It was like a free for all," Barton said. "It was awesome"
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