For the adventurous and the daring, there is an alternate form of education that teaches leadership skills and provides a comfortable social setting for students and adults of all ages. Look no further than the Memorial Union to find a club in which people can participate in horseback riding, rock climbing, hang gliding or even scuba diving.
Hoofers serves as an organization that establishes and sponsors recreational activities for students, faculty and members of the Wisconsin Union. To many students, Hoofers becomes a giant playground where they can ski, canoe, backpack and even play ultimate frisbee. Hoofers offers seven different clubs for sailing, skiing, snowboarding, outings, horseback riding, scuba diving, gliding and mountaineering.
Each of these clubs arranges recreational activities for its members in the Madison community and throughout the state, although some clubs occasionally offer trips outside of the state and even outside of the country as well as special events.
Pirate's Day, offered through the Sailing Club, is an event in which sailors don pirate outfits, tote plastic weapons and participate in a scavenger hunt and a barbecue on and around Lake Mendota, according to Paul Penkalski, the Hoofers Technology Representative and an active member of the Sailing Club.
The Sailing Club and the Outing Club are the two most popular clubs within the organization and each draws more than 1,000 students at the beginning of the year. The Outing Club is unique because it encompasses a wide variety of activities throughout the year that appeals to a diverse population, unlike its six counterparts that cater to a specific group. The club offers canoeing, kayaking, hiking, backpacking, biking, cross-country skiing, telemark skiing, climbing, caving and camping. According to Outing Club President and UW-Madison junior Jonathan Gapen, the club offers various trips to locations throughout the state, including Devil's Lake.
For novices of the Outing Club, older members provide instruction while on the trips. For instance, according to Gapen, inexperienced rock climbers can learn to belay after a few trips. The Sailing Club offers sailing lessons and new members can participate in races using smaller boats on Friday evenings.
\[Tech racing] is a great way to get practice and have fun ... [and] see what more experienced racers are doing,"" Penkalski said.
Joining a club is simple, and Hoofers holds several kickoff meetings throughout the year at Memorial Union. In the sailing club, for example, membership dues are approximately $100 for a semester or $200 per year for Union members, which UW students are automatically. Lessons from experienced staff members are offered with the fees.
""Pretty much every trip, the leader provides instruction for the beginners,"" Gapen said.
For the Sailing Club, a monetary donation is a requirement for joining, but the club offers work opportunities as well. Included in the standard fee is a $30 deposit that will be returned upon working four hours. Jobs include boat maintenance, locking up the lakefront at night or clerical work.
""It's really just another way to get people together and get members,"" Penkalski said. ""It's a good way to meet people, to learn about fixing boats.""
Incoming freshmen may be discouraged by the cooler Wisconsin weather and prevent them from joining Hoofers, especially the Sailing Club, but, according to Penkalski, September is a prime month for sailing and members continue to boat through October.
""September is a great month for sailing. ... There's wind, it's still in the 70s. ... The water's still warm so if you capsize, it's no big deal,"" Penkalski said.
Hoofers not only offers recreation opportunities to its members, but it brings social benefits as well, according to Gapen. By joining Hoofers, one can learn outdoor recreation safety, and demonstrate leadership abilities, as well as learn the organizational skills that come with planning trips.
For many of the members, especially students, the benefits lie not only in the unique activities or the friendships from participation in the club, but in the fact that Hoofers provides an escape from day-to-day academic rigors.
""The university's academically oriented but administrators will tell you it's not good to just focus entirely on academics,"" Penkalski said.
The Wisconsin Union supports Hoofers, although its funding comes from membership dues that members are required to pay. In addition to that, Hoofers falls under the Union's learning atmosphere.
""Basically, since we're part of the Union, ... we are part of their mission in educating people outside of the classroom,"" Gapen said.
