Raisin 2014
Is it worth the chaos?
As the Estates teams wash away the last of the foam from Monday’s foam fight, we can reflect on what was, as always, a fantastic weekend of (alcohol fuelled) madness.
Despite feeling slightly more tame this year than previous years (potentially the result of the rumored plot by the university to move Raisin into the middle of deadline season), Raisin 2014 certainly had its highlights, and regrettably a few lowlights.
Before dawn on Raisin Sunday (I and a number of other academic families) woke up our kids and by around 7.30am there were around 40 people running into the North Sea on West Sands as the sun slowly crept up for a beautiful morning.
By midday the streets were full of boisterous students sporting facepaint, running around town and into Tesco completing scavenger hunts and various challenges. There were the usual challenges of asking the public for condoms, kissing a stranger and performing the YMCA in the middle of the street.
However, by 5pm things looked as though they were getting out of control as the flat a few doors down from mine on Market Street appeared to have smoke billowing out its open windows. Everyone was evacuated onto the street as police, ambulance and fire crews turned up. Thankfully, it turned out everything was under control.
However, another incident that could have been a lot serious occurred at a house party on Bridge Street where a student seriously damaged his neck after falling down some stairs. A third year eyewitness told The Stand:
“I was at a house party where a man fell down the stairs and seriously injured his neck. No one was allowed out of the party until the man had been put in an ambulance”.
As one would expect, where there is alcohol, excitement and huge numbers of students, some incidents are likely to happen. Thankfully the emergency forces are out in great numbers on Raisin weekend in order to ensure everyone remains safe.
Sadly, there have also been a couple of reports of anti-social behaviour with one woman posting in the Facebook group ‘Overheard in St Andrews’ that some students had damaged her car and that she would be getting the police involved.
The Foam Fight
The weather for Monday’s foam fight was superb with clear skies and (relatively) warm weather. There were plenty of imaginative costumes and receipts including beer pong cups, sushi, jellybeans, TV characters and of course, the classic giant inflatable penis. Receipts ranged from huge cardboard banners to cracked raw eggs, jelly and pumpkins.
By midday on Monday only the foamy footprints remained outside the library and the University administration breathed a collective sign of relief as the madness of Raisin was over for another year. Let’s hope that none of the anti-social or dangerous behaviour marred the experience for any students or locals in the town, and that the University will allow Raisin to continue in the future. Role on next year!