Open Tourist Rally Gathered Those for Whom Social Clichés are not Important

The rally was organized by HSE Extreme Sports Club and the HSE Office of Public Relations. The event took place not far from Khotkovo railway station, heading towards Yaroslavl, and included quad bike races, orienteering contests, quests, and relay races. In addition to the competitions, experienced instructors from the Extreme Sports Club taught beginners to organize a camp and to survive in the wild. Of course, in the evening everyone gathered around a big fire, got out the guitars and accordion, sang and danced.

‘Experienced members of the club told stories about the club’s trips in Russia and abroad’, said one of the Extreme Sports Club organizers, Harry Rutberg, ‘In addition to this, we presented our forthcoming tourist projects to the public. They include, for example, the traditional HSE Horse Trip in the Nizhny Novgorod Region, which will take place on October 12-16, 2015, ‘Alternative St. Petersburg’, which has been scheduled for the weekend of October 31-November 1, and many others.

Participants of the rally shared some of their impressions on social media sites:

‘I went to the rally for the first time, and regretted missing the previous seven rallies during my study at HSE. But once again it demonstrated what a cool university I study at. Here I met the first HSE graduates with children, freshmen students, experienced outdoor travellers, many snowboarders, trekkers, and professional athletes. They all value the outdoors, because there people get rid of social clichés and you see the real self. They have formed a very strong HSE group, one you would want to come back to five, ten, or thirty years after graduation’.

‘The Extreme Sports Club team are incredibly careful and proactive guys. They remembered each of the 300 participants by name, checked whether they had put up their tents correctly, organized paintball and various outdoor activities. You could find food near every fire, and sleep in every tent – you were welcome anywhere!’

The Extreme Sports Club open tourist rally takes place twice a year, every spring and autumn. The next rally will be an anniversary one, the 25^th, and the organizers are planning to make it extra-special and promise some exciting changes.

The HSE Extreme Sports Student Club has been organizing trips and competitions in winter and summer sports for HSE students, staff and their friends for 16 years. You can learn more about the Club and its upcoming events on its website or through its VK group.

Natalia Stepanova, 2015 Graduate of the Faculty of Communications, Media, and Design