There’s a new way to stay cool on campus, and students can do it all year long.
The Sun Devil Snow Club is a new student organization that aims to attract students with a passion for snowboarding and skiing, or for those who are simply interested in learning about snow sports.
The club has attracted almost 200 members since it officially began at the start of the semester and holds regular events to get students ready for the snow season.
“We wanted to start this club because we all had a passion for snow sports, and wanted to find others here in the desert who shared this interest,” said Jasmine Nejad, biomedical engineering junior and president of the club.
The club is the only organization on campus geared toward snowboarders and skiers.
A former winter sports club, ASU Snow Devils, is no longer active on campus, club member Alicia Davis said. The Sun Devil Snow Club has taken over.
Students might wonder how a club centered around snow activities thrives during Tempe’s nearly year-round sunshine.
“Off season, we do a lot of social events to build a sense of community among members,” Nejad said.
The club has socials every Thursday from 7 to 9 p.m. at Devil’s Advocate, located on the Southeast corner of University Drive and Rural Road, which are usually followed by other activities.
Socials serve as a way for members to get to know each other, Nejad said.
Activities besides the socials change every week. The club kicked off the year with a trip to the Salt River. Other activities include bowling, movie nights and even snow-oriented activities like ice blocking.
“We get big blocks of ice and find big hills in parks, and we get the bottom wet, get on top and slide on down,” said Davis, a tourism and marketing junior. “We also do Slip ‘n Slide, and it can get crazy. We sometimes call it Slip ‘n Bleed.”
There are often events on weekends as well, such as pool parties and camping, Nejad said.
“Some of these activities are snow-oriented, getting people stoked for the season, and some of them are purely social,” she said.
The club already has several in-state and out-of-state trips planned for the upcoming season.
The club will be going to Colorado during Thanksgiving break and Utah in the second week of January. Weekend trips up to Snowbowl in Flagstaff and other Arizona mountains are in the works too, Nejad said.
It’s not hard to find people in the desert who are interested in or have a passion for snow sports, Davis said.
The club gave industrial design freshman and former Alaskan resident Carolyn Cummins a perfect way to connect with people who have a similar passion for playing in the snow.
“I joined because I love to ski and figured there would be people with similar interests to me,” Cummins said. “It gives me something to look forward to every Thursday, because I know I’m going to have a good time.”
Students don’t need any knowledge of or experience with winter sports to become members, Nejad said.
“When I joined, I’d only been snowboarding once,” Davis said. “I sucked, and I was terrible. You meet people who teach you how to snowboard, and they’ll give you tips. The more you go, the more you pick it up.”
To become a member, students can visit the Sun Devil Snow Club’s booth, located outside of the Memorial Union Monday through Thursday. Membership fees are $25 per year.
Reach the reporter at ktenagli@asu.edu
