Hosting thousands of students, the annual Wolfieland carnival made its return to Stony Brook University on Saturday, Sept. 9, in the Student Activities Center (SAC) parking lot.
The fun-filled evening included a variety of rides such as the Swinger, where students were seated rotating from a large tower, a Ferris Wheel and many other classic carnival favorites. Round Up — a ride where students are stuck standing against a wall as it quickly spins around — was a crowd favorite; the wait time was brought to an hour and a half at one point during the night.
“The long lines were worth the wait,” Shaana Cheriyan, a freshman biology major said. “It was nice to have a break after the first two weeks of adjusting to the college life!”
For both new students like Cheriyan and those returning, Wolfieland brought an exciting energy to the school year.
“Wolfieland is one of the biggest events of the year, we start planning at the beginning of the summer. The carnival is entirely student planned with support from Student Engagement and Activities (SEA) and Stony Brook University staff members as well,” Undergraduate Student Government (USG) President Devin Lobosco said.
As of this year, the food choices at Wolfieland have never been more diverse, including vendors such as Chatime, Carvel, Island Empanada, Vincent’s New York Wood Fired Pizza and SBU Eats Grill.
“The turnout is similar to last year and the club tables are a good opportunity for kids to get involved,” SEA Program Coordinator Brandon Daley said. “It gets more hectic during the night hours but it is still a good time!”
Some club tables featured at Wolfieland were the Taiwanese Student Association (TSA), Cat Network and Stony Brook Cheerleading.
In addition to fun rides and a plethora of food choices, DJ Destiny took the stage and played exciting music for all the students to sing and dance to. Vice President of Student Life Isaiah Daniel hosted the night’s festivities alongside DJ Destiny, giving away giant teddy bears, t-shirts, beach balls and other fun prizes.
There were also multiple traditional carnival games positioned around the parking lot that students could play and then exchange the tickets they won for prizes.
“It’s a great event, I like to see so many of my fellow students out here,” said Jose Riquelme-Caeogan, junior business management major and a member of the USG street team. The street team is a volunteer group which helps to execute campus events; Riquelme-Caeogan was responsible for maintaining the line for the Ferris Wheel.
Overall, the general feedback of the event was positive, marking yet another successful Wolfieland.