Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the University of Oregon Outdoor Program said that in 2020, they had their busiest summer yet. This trend continued through fall term, and the same energy has stayed throughout winter term so far.
Margaret Hoff, the OP director, said that she thinks during this time people have realized how great the outdoors is for their physical and mental wellbeing.
“We really do believe that the outdoors is great for people; I think people stuck at home and inside are really understanding that,” Hoff said. “Taking a walk to mountain climbing, just being outside is really good for you.”
Hoff said that in previous winter terms, the program would provide busses for students every weekend to go skiing or snowshoeing. The OP is unable to provide transportation this year, Hoff said. “It’s just not smart to have a bunch of strangers in a closed vehicle,” she said, but they have worked with Mount Hoodoo to get discounted tickets for students to go themselves. The OP also rents out cross country skis, snowshoes, snow pants and other equipment and clothes students might need.
Cora Bordley, a fifth-year and the OP collaborative programming coordinator, said that students are still coming in, even if it is just to ask questions about where to go hiking or to buy Hoodoo tickets.
“COVID is the worst, and normally we would have a bunch of ski trips and events going on, but we’ve put out a bunch of self-guided hikes that are posted on our windows and Instagram account,” Bordley said.
Normally, the OP has a waxing station for students to wax their boards and skis, but since they can’t do that this year, Hoff decided to offer free waxing. She said she has been busy waxing about 200 boards and skis so far, which takes a lot of time.
Hoff said that the OP has also teamed up with the Duck Nest to do late afternoon walks close to campus for students, but that she is excited for the OP to be able to resume its normal activities once the pandemic is over.
“A lot of students got here from the East Coast, and haven’t been out of Eugene since then,” Hoff said. “There are so many incredible places. We’ll run our kayak trips, and our ski trips, and our hikes, and our hikes in hot springs, and our bike rides all over the place.”
In the meantime, The OP has received a grant to get speakers to talk about “Redefining Outdoorsy” with people who are LGBT, Indigenous, People of Color and disabled, talking about how they can get outside even though it’s such a “White, heterodominated culture,” Bordley said.
Along with this, the OP is also launching a fundraiser this month to provide free trips to students who might not be able to afford them otherwise. Hoff said this fundraiser will be through the university, and she is hopeful that it will bring new students outside to try new things.
As the collaborative programming coordinator, Bordley said that she is responsible for working with university offices, outside organizations and student groups to increase the diverse involvement in the OP.
She said that one of the biggest things she has done with her job is meet with students who are underrepresented in the OP, and talk with them about why they’re not participating in the program.
“A lot of the problems we’re running into are issues of systemic inequity that were really hard to address,” Bordley said. “Students of color, first generation students, etc. are a lot more likely to have to work to put themselves through college, and they’re a lot less likely to have parents with a ton of disposable money to have $80 for a ski lift ticket.”
Bordley said that she hopes this fundraiser will be able to ease the financial burden for some students, and allow more students to get involved with the OP. This is the first year the OP has hosted a fundraiser like this.
“A lot of people think [the OP] is a very bro-y, White dude thing, but it’s totally not,” Bordley said. “I work here, and I am half Black and in a wheelchair. It’s a program for everyone.”
A sign advertising the Outdoor Program's equipment rentals sits outside the Outdoor Program equipment shed. The University of Oregon's Outdoor Program has become much busier since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, as students utilise the numerous natural areas of Oregon as a way to safely pass time during the pandemic. (Will Geschke/Emerald)
