6

NEWS

OVER THE EDGE NEWSPAPER. SEPTEMBER 27, 2006

The RRT Amazing

Students snowshoe through sand at the RRT Amazing Race.

JEREMY JOHNSON
STAFF WRITER

Some of you may have heard of the
RRT Amazing Race. In fact, I know
some of you have even competed in it. I
had the opportunity to actually compete
in it myself. The race was based on the
hit reality TV. show “The Amazing Race:
While it was maybe not as glamorous as

having a film crew and clue boxes with
rippable clue pouches, the race was a lot

~ of fun and a total success. The race was

sponsored by the RRT (Resource and
Recreation Tourism) program as well as
a number of sponsors I can't remember
at the moment. My shirt’s in the wash
and I can't read it at the moment.

What is This PGPIRG - Thing?

TYLER CLARKE
PRODUCTIGN COGRDINATOR

Have you ever walked past the PG-
PIRG [Prince George Public Interest
Group] office, located in the hall be-
tween the Wintergarden and the cafe-
teria, and wondered what it was? Won-
der no more, as, simply put, PGPIRG is
the place that organizes Prince George's
body of volunteers. You, as a student of
UNBC, have already paid the 4 dollars
to become a member of this group, just
as you're a member of Over The Edge
because you paid the 5 dollars, or the fit-
ness center, having paid 45 dollars.

PGPIRG is a non-profit organization
whose mandate is “to promote research,
education and action around issues of
environmental justice and social change,’
says Marissa, PGPIRG's coordinator.

The process is as follows: someone
submits an application for a voluneteer-
required job in or around Prince George,
and PGPIRG helps push them in the
right direction. These projects involve
whatever the person applying may be

interested in, assuming it is covered by-

their mandate, though, as Marissa notes,
she doubts an application has ever been
turned away.

“We provide financial assistance,’ adds
Marissa, “but were mostly a resource for
people... We give people the support
they need to actualize their goal or vi-
sion.”

PIRGs originated in the 1970's
in American campuses, having been
founded by Ralph Nader. Later, they
would expand into Canada.

“We're always looking for volunteers,’
says Marissa, adding that anyone in-
terested should drop by the PGPIRG
office, located in the hall between the
Wintergarden and the cafeteria. They
have a wide range of volunteer jobs, not
to mention the endless potential future
jobs people like you can dream up.

Want to know how you can get
involved? Here's a start:

PGPIRG is currently hold-
ing a t-shirt graphic design con-
test, The winner will receive the
pride of designing a t-shirt, and
also the privilege of owning said
t-shirt for absolutely free, while
everyone else has to pay upwards
of $20 for them.

-The Compost and Organic
Demonstration Action Group-
Since 1995, PGPIRG and
REAPs have been providing
UNBC with an environmentally-
friendly alternative to throwing
your food waste in the garbage.

Currently, volunteers are needed
to get the program up and run-

-The Recycling Action Groups-
Handles the recycling in UNBC

residences.

-The Alternative Resource Li-
brary- Billed as “one of the largest
sources in the region for books,
magazines, videos and clippings
with an alternative perspective of
the world around us,’ this library,
located in the PGPIRG office,
has everything from Adbusters
>a iimmichemageses wages

ez Gai: nfienuion vencked
pees rink papi

COURTESY UNBC RRT

At the start of the race, the seventeen
two-person teams (who all got a free T-
shirt for entering) started at the front
of UNBC. We each received a clue and
were told to open it at the same time (so
it wouldnt blow away in the wind). We
all opened the clues (folded pieces of
paper) and quickly raced up the stone
steps, across the road and behind the

campus towards the water tower. Of
course, one must remember that the
race isn't all about who can run the fast-
est, but it certainly helped. I thought I
was a bit of a drag on my teammate as
I found myself quickly exhausted and
coughing frequently (I later found out I
had a cold). I think it enabled my team-
mate to read the clue more thoroughly
and realise that the front runners actual-
ly ran past the first checkpoint which led
up to the first challenge.

We ran back down the path from
where we came from and got a chance
to sit down and solve a puzzle of piecing
together an image. Getting the clue, we
raced to our next challenge which was to
tie a fairly complicated knot. After that
challenge, we raced down to the side of
the parking lot for the next challenge,
which was for one of us to put on a
blindfold and trust our partner through
and obstacle course (touch one obstacle
and do the whole thing over again). We
then got our next clue and raced to the
Bentley centre to solve three questions
related to the RRT program — of course,
each question was on a different floor
which meant that if one got an answer
wrong, then it is entirely possible that

‘the team had to go back and read the

question again. We then run to the final
challenge which was to put a snowshoe
on (one snow shoe per team mate) then

Race - A Complete Success

wrap our arms around each others and
go back to back through a sandy course
to the finish line.

Our team found out we made fifth and
I'm told that we were the first male team
to cross the finish line. Yes, that means
the top four teams were all female teams.
All in all, we felt that we did great and
had lots of fun going through the chal-
lenges. The top prize was a ski trip for
two. ‘The second prize was a backpack
full of nifty prizes. Third place received
a jacket and a tour guide to Prince
George's great recreational hot-spots.

The additional challenge wasthatevery
team needed to complete the course.
Every team crossed the finish-line, tying
the standard set last year whete every
team finished. ‘The race lasted just over
an hour. It was a good thing because
the weather turned ugly just minutes
after the race ended on that Thursday
afternoon. It couldn't have been timed
any better. At the end of the reception,
there was mention of the possibility of
a city-wide Amazing Race. It's likely to
involve the city of Prince George, much

in the way the UNBC version involved -

the campus of UNBC. More sponsors
involved could mean upping the anti for
the future racers willing to part-take on
the adventure.

Useful Tips From Professors

bring about world peace.

recommends.

Prince George.’

Professors are smarter than you think. Sure, they have degrees and read lots of
books, but they also have a few hidden talents that you might not know about. In

this feature, we find these talents and share them with you, thus doing our part to

This month: Chemistry professor Margot Mandy teaches you how to sing,

1.Focus. “At rehearsal,’ Mandy says, “don't think about anything else.”

2.When using sheet music, take notes.“Bring a pencil to mark up the score,’ she

3,.Get ready to make friends! “Prepare to meet iepropte from a cross-section of

4.Singers always get high-- on performing. “Conerts are a blast,’ she says. “[It's]
such a high to have everything to come together.

Margot Mandy has been singing with the Cantata Singers in Prince George for

12 years. You can see her next at when they perform the Messiah with the La
George Symphony Orchestra on December ae