DU’s annual hockey campout, organized by DUPB and DU Athletics, is what some might call the best time of the year.

Students arrive, some as early as 6 a.m., with their camping gear to the front lawn of the Ritchie Center. Usually battling some sort of weather, everyone camps out until the next morning, in order to get—might I say, earn—DU Hockey season passes for the measly price of freezing half to death in a tent surrounded by hundreds of other determined hockey-loving individuals.

“I wasn’t a hockey fan last year,” said Brooke Goldman, a second-year DU student. “I did it [last year] just because it was a tradition, but it’s exciting actually being a fan this time around.”

According to DUPB traditions co-chair Lilly Quast-Villafana, students were told to register on Crimson Connect beforehand. “We had over 800 people, which was insane,” she said. This made things very interesting, as we didn’t know until the next morning exactly how many season tickets the athletic department was handing out. Based on last year’s numbers, not everyone was going to get their season passes, even if they stuck through the night. 

Whether you knew it going into the campout or found out rather quickly after it started, they didn’t make getting season passes all that easy.

“When you checked in, you were assigned a wristband. They wouldn’t tell you what it meant because they didn’t want people to figure it out,” Goldman explained.

Quast-Villafana revealed that the color of the wristband, the number on it, and the colored sticker all meant different things. “Last year it was very obvious,” she said. DUPB decided to spice things up a bit so that students couldn’t figure it out beforehand.

Members of your group were allowed to come and go as they pleased, but one member had to be there at all times. Once the clock struck eight, everyone who wanted season tickets had to stay until 8 a.m. when the lineup began.

Even before the evening activities began, the entire Ritchie Lawn was filled with tents. “Tent spots filled up fast. Once you woke up, you lined up … so if you were sleeping right by where you lined up, it was much more convenient.”

Many students at DU pride themselves on being pro-campers, but for those who didn’t already have a tent, the gear garage was open prior to the event, offering free rental tents. Students who stayed throughout the day got to participate in a hockey puck scavenger hunt, hockey campout bucket list and had chances to receive free merch from DU athletics and other event sponsors. 

DUPB knew how to keep the campers happy. After everyone was there for the night, there were a variety of activities such as ice skating on Magnus Arena, open hockey practice, mini-golf, movies and more.

Courtesy of Dylan Lindsey

“I’m just really excited seeing all the different tents here. It’s super sunny, unlike last year,” said Quast-Villafana.

The weather is always a touchy subject. Last year, it rained out and everyone was told they could leave and still receive tickets if they came back the next morning. Of course, students still stuck through the night, only to be woken up by sprinklers in the early morning. This year, sprinklers were promised to be kept off, and everyone had much higher hopes for the weather.

“I think I am here to stay. I slept through rain and sprinklers despite them telling us we could leave last year, so I think it would be pretty hard to get me out of here,” said a determined Goldman, 10 hours into her hockey campout endeavor.

The morning finally arrived for those who had made it through the night, then came the most important part of the event: the lineup. Students woke up around 7 a.m. to shuffle over to where they would receive their tickets. While in line, there were individual “minute to win it” contests that could earn you a “skip the line” pass. Everyone’s wristbands finally had meaning, and just over 400 season passes were distributed to some happy (and sleep-deprived) campers.

Even for those who don’t take hockey too seriously, the campout is always a great opportunity to hang out with people, make connections and enjoy the outdoors. Luckily, the weather was mostly pleasant, despite some cold, and it seemed like students had a great time fighting for their hockey season tickets.