Darrel Colson, Wartburg College President
What were your initial thoughts when you learned about Outfly?
It sounded like a fun thing to do.
How did you and Abhay decide the date?
We had to identify a day that had the best weather. The rain and cold temperatures limited the dates we could choose from.
What was your favorite part of the day?
The seriousness with which student senate took the planning of the whole day was admirable. The energy they had was amazing. I was excited for the outdoor movie because it is one of my favorites. I watched some of “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”, but didn’t bring enough clothes to stay the whole time.
What else did you participate in?
I sat in the dunk tank for 20 minutes in the afternoon. The water was warm, but the air was cold.
Did you get a tattoo or piercing on Outfly?
No, I had never heard of that before. I think it is an interesting tradition and wonder how it got started.
ABHAY NADIPURAM, Student Body President
When did you decide Outfly was going to be Wednesday?
President Colson and I talked about a few different dates and it came down to Monday the 5th or Wednesday the 7th. We were both off-campus a lot, which limited the possible dates. The weather also affected the date. We chose the actual date (Wednesday, Oct. 7) the previous Tuesday, Sept. 29.
How difficult was it to keep Outfly a secret?
I think people caught on after a while. It was a little freaky that everyone knew my schedule and knew that I was leaving Thursday. It wasn’t difficult to personally keep the date a secret, but it was tough to keep people from making deductions.
Did you have any close calls telling someone when Outfly was?
There were a couple close calls, but I think I did a good job playing it off. I caught myself saying ‘I don’t know where I’m going to hide tomorrow’ a couple times but walked away thinking I’d played it off pretty well. Once it gets closer to the date, its easier to let it slip.
What was your favorite part of Outfly?
I was really excited to see so many upperclassmen involved. A lot of seniors and juniors were looking for me that night. More than 200 people were at the outdoor movie, which was a larger crowd than we expected. It was one of those Wartburg moments where you get to see people come together, as cliché as that sounds.
How did you decide where to hide?
I didn’t want to make it too easy, but there were so many people looking for me that they found me pretty quickly. I hid in a classroom of the Science Center. We estimated that 100 students were looking around campus for me.
Who paid for the prizes?
Student senate paid for some, but a lot were donated from local businesses. Money was also used from the Readership Fund, a fund that can be used for student life in any way. The Readership Fund pays for newspapers on campus, but has generated a large surplus over the years. We’re giving those dollars back to the students, who pay money to the fund. Entertainment ToKnight helped a lot financially because its money also comes from students.
Who was involved in making Outfly happen?
The Outfly planning committee planned the day with the help of numerous people. Wartburg Players and Jason Meyer put in many hours to create the skits and video that gave clues about where I was hiding. ETK helped out financially and volunteered in the morning. Student senators volunteered during the day. Dining services and maintenance were also instrumental in making things happen.