With the Outing Club
Goal of More Inclusive and More Serviceable Program Reflected in All Departments This Fall
BIGGER AND BETTER" seems to be a common phrase these days, and this phrase is also reflected in the Dartmouth Outing Club. The Club has expanded and improved its activities in many and varied ways.
Number One on the "bigger and better" list was this year's Fall Freshman Trip up Mt. Moosilauke. On the morning of September 14, a record group of 116 freshmen assembled on the steps of Robinson Hall for what everyone agreed was the best trip of its kind. Half the men occupied the DOC's new Ravine Camp at the base of the mountain, and the other half were quartered at the Summit Camp. Besides providing an exhilarating four-day outing, the Freshman Trip acquaints all the men with the topography around Hanover, and gives them physical conditioning at the same time. Perhaps most important of all, it starts them off on the right track for four years of College.
There is ample opportunity to make new friends in an atmosphere which breathes fellowship. The program of hiking, songs, good chow and outdoor life, gives every fellow a glimpse of the privilege he is going to be allowed to enjoy for the coming four years. This spirit of camaraderie does much to bind the incoming freshman class into a solid, close-knit unit. The Freshman Trip stands way up on the list of outstanding college activities for the yearlings.
Also enjoying a banner season last summer was the Summit Camp on the top of Mt. Moosilauke. This year's summer crew of Hutmaster Dave Heald '42, DOC President Harry Bond '42, Bob Straub '43, and Dick Backus '44, served and provided entertainment for 3,600 guests—the majority coming from a total of 106 boys' and girls' camps.
The Cabin and Trail Division of the Outing Club has also laid elaborate plans for the fall season. Bob White '42, chairman, has announced a schedule which provides for trips going out every week to visit different cabins, highlighted by an excursion to Mt. Washington and Mt. Katahdin on Yale and Thanksgiving week-ends respectively.
Perhaps the biggest development in the Outing Club will take place in the skiing program. Percy Rideout '4O was selected to serve as coach last spring when Walter Prager was drafted. Word has just been received that Prager may be released from the Army because he is over the age limit; thus, tentative plans now provide for a two-man coaching staff. The team is faced with the loss of four out of eight lettermen, but a strong sophomore group should cover this loss.
A few of the outstanding members of this year's team are Captain Jake Nunnemacher '42, Jack Tobin '42, and Bob Searles '42—all downhill and slalom menand Roger Simpter '42, eastern intercollegiate jumping champion. Outstanding skier of the junior class is Bob Meservey, a four-event man, who is the son of Prof. Arthur B. Meservey '06.
Among the sophomores are Bill Distin, Ric Bradley, Eric Barradale, Jay Densmore, Wemo Epply, and four or five other good men. Prospects in the freshman class have not yet been looked over very carefully, but it is known that several members of Dartmouth's famous "skiing families" have been added—including another Olivers and another Durrance.
This year is also singular, in that it provides fine skiing instruction for undergraduates not good enough to make the teams. The Recreation Department has hired Finnish Lieutenant Piltti Heiskanen, who served in last year's Russo-Finnish War and who earlier was a crack army ski instructor.
Expansion of the recreational ski program at this time ties in with the College's national defense program and with this country's growing need for men who have had expert ski instruction.
The DOC is also offering a program of greater skiing opportunities both in instruction and competition. A series of weekly ski races is planned besides the intramural and inter-fraternity races held in previous years. Every undergraduate who wishes to engage in competition may enter these races. A classification system is being devised whereby every man will race against those of equal qualifications. It is expected that this will make competition much keener. Men who can stay in the top bracket will probably become good enough to compete for the team.
Notable among the unexpected activities of the DOC was an occurrence of October 6, when sixty volunteers, headed by Charles Dorkey '43, combed the woods for 15 hours, doing their part in the successful search for five-year-old Pamela Hollingsworth, missing from Albany, N. H., for eight days.
It is generally agreed that there is a new attitude prevailing on the campus this year in conformity with the present national emergency. There is less frivolity, more hard work, and a greater attempt to prepare for the future. The Dartmouth Outing Club can certainly share in this new spirit, and is rapidly adjusting itself to meet the situation. Plans for saving on equipment and expenses are already in effect. More work is being put in by undergraduates, and the good fun and fellowship provide relaxation on a much healthier plane.
NEW SKI COACH Percy Rideout '40, former Dartmouth skicaptain, who has been called back to serveas varsity coach for the DOC
