The 11th annual Living Learning Communities (LLC) Oktoberfest brought students together to take in one of the first official days of fall with German-themed food and festivities.
Oktoberfest, which took place Saturday in the LLC Courtyard, was a place for students to gather with friends, eat free food, listen to music and enjoy a weekend afternoon outside.
Alexandra Stutzman | Argonaut
Students gather to chat and eat at Oktoberfest at 1 p.m. Saturday in the LLC Courtyard.
With a variety of games like cornhole, badminton, four square and crocket, students had an array of events they could take part in.
From German foods such as pretzels and sausages, to more American foods like cotton candy, popcorn and snow cones, Oktoberfest catered to nearly every hungry student’s needs.
Root beer floats and hot apple cider were also in abundance, taking the place of alcoholic beverages one might usually see at an Oktoberfest celebration.
With no set schedule for the event, students came and went as they pleased, however some stayed a while to play a game or two with friends.
Oktoberfest brought the University of Idaho community together.
Many students stood beneath the sun to talk and eat German-themed foods as the event continued throughout the afternoon. The LLC Courtyard was almost always full of students.
Turnout exceeded the 50-student expectation which many coordinators considered the number needed for the event to be a success. Hagen Hunsaker, a coprogramming chair on Oktoberfest and fourth-year UI student said the event exceeded expectations and had a pretty good turnout.
“It’s bigger than expected by a lot — I’d consider it a success,” Oktoberfest coordinator and second-year UI student Josh Standish said.
Hunsaker said this years’ Oktoberfest reached its goal, and even exceeded far above it. Both Hunsaker and Standish said the event was an overall success because the student turnout was so great.
With recent unexpected rainstorms and poor weather conditions, Standish said coordinators were prepared for the worst and reserved an indoor room for Oktoberfest just in case. However, he said he was pleasantly surprised with Saturday’s weather turnout, which allowed the event to remain beneath the sun.
Some student’s wondered why Oktoberfest took place in September instead of October. Standish said the event was originally supposed to take place Sept. 30, but the date was the same as Vandal Overnight Games. He said coordinators believed more students would go to overnight games than Oktoberfest, and decided to move the event up one weekend so they could reach the most students.
Kali Nelson can be reached at [email protected]