Saints on skates

Students wipe out at SGA skating event

The Student Union came to life as loud music played and students rolled around on skates, Feb. 22. While some were skilled in their skating others were not. Many students stumbled across the floor only to fall.

Holding on tight, freshmen Destiny Vasquez and Krisi Anderson try not to fall during their first attempt at skating in the student union. The freshmen eventually mastered it and rolled around but they say it was after a lot of falling and scrambling. (Mary Ramirez)

Among the students that were first-time skaters were Tatiana Edwards, a liberal arts major from the Bahamas, and Aurora Ortega, a Liberal sophomore majoring in accounting and business. 

Ortega said that she wished she had “some lessons in before because I busted butt a lot of times.

“I found it actually pretty cool, It was a good distraction,” she said. “We came out of class and it was nice to just relax and laugh.”

The event, sponsored by the student government association, allowed students to come together safely during covid social distancing. Roller skating allowed a few students to try something they had never done before. According to Edwards, “It was a very good experience that I actually enjoy, even though I did fall a lot and hurt my wrist.”

Students checked out the skates, strapped them on and tried to roll. The skate floor was a little difficult to get started rolling with the hard plastic mesh, but once a little momentum started, it was smooth sailing. 

I don’t know how to roller skate, so it was like a first time experience,” Ortega said. “I think that was the fun part of it because I’ve never been roller skating.”

For some, a little help was needed to get started Since they had never skated before. They’d hang on to each other and slowly walk without taking the skates off the floor. Those who knew how to skate helped others by taking their hands. That didn’t always end up being the best idea as both parties often found themselves wiped out on the floor. Ortega said she and her friends ended up “busting their butts” a lot of times.

Romina Gonzalez, a Liberal sophomore majoring in business, said that she just “enjoyed having fun with my friends.”

The next SGA event will be at the beginning of March with a game of “Gotcha.”