Grease-spotted pizza boxes form a tower dedicated to the deity of laziness in the corner of your room. Your roommate's noxious heap of dirty laundry is piled in the middle of the floor. The stink wafts through the room as the droning black fan oscillates. A putrid sweaty sock, that has turned gray from multiple mixed washings with colors, comfortably lies atop your TV remote.
The Arizona Outdoors Club (AOC), which has been planning outdoor excursions since it was founded in the late 60's, offers a change of scenery to those interested in getting away from their every-day routine. The 250 members of the AOC enjoy camping, hiking, off-roading, and exploring caves, but the two most popular trips are skydiving and scuba diving.
Brian Lesinski is the club's vice president, who joined the group two years ago and went on a camping trip to the hot springs and sand dunes in Stafford, Arizona.
"The club's goal is to get students involved and see the outdoors," Lesinski said. We try to guarantee at least two to three trips every weekend."
Junior Nick Doyle, the AOC's president, didn't get to experience the outdoors until he joined the club three years ago. His first trip with the club was a road rally to Sedona where he and about 60 others set up camp and gathered around a bonfire. The next day they hiked four miles to Wet Beaver Creek to go cliff diving.
"I had never been cliff jumping before," Doyle said. "I must have jumped 40 times. I was hooked to the club right there."
The club travels to a variety of places.
"We have gone to Mexico, Flagstaff, Sedona, Las Vegas, everywhere," said Doyle. "You get to see so much of the world in this club."
In addition to hiking, backpacking, and cliff jumping, the club organizes movie nights, parties, and arranges outings with the Snow Devils, ASU's ski club.
"The main focus of the AOC is a social club," Doyle said. "In fact, in the past year, two couples that met through the club have gotten engaged, and one of the couples already got married."
Senior Lisa Chyette has been a member of the AOC for one year. She got involved with the club to get out of her apartment and meet new friends. She said she likes the freedom the club gives her to do what she wants.
"The trips aren't just up to the president or the other officers," she said. "The highlight of the club is anyone can plan and lead a trip of their own and have people to go with."
Chyette organizes a group from the AOC that plays tennis at the Student Recreation Center on Tuesday nights. Chyette added that she is currently trying to organize mini-tournaments.
There are 250 members of the AOC; faculty, friends, and students from community colleges are also welcome to join. The membership fee is $20 a year, and that comes a T-shirt and discounts to places like the Phoenix Rock Gym. Members also enjoy cheaper rates on AOC-led activities, such as scuba diving and skydiving.
The club meets at the Life Sciences Building in room LS 191 every Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. On Wednesday January 29, the group announced some of its future plans, which include a hiking trip to Sedona this Saturday and a trip to Peppersauce Cave this Sunday. The Peppersauce Cave trip will consist of a four-mile deep trek, using ropes to scale down holes and crawling on bellies through tight spots.
The group will go skydiving trip on February 15. For more details, check out their website at http://www.azoutclub.com.
Reach the reporter at eric.fiori@asu.edu.
