Dare to Bare All

As the door opened and four students entered, the professor stopped mid-sentence. Wearing nothing but shoes, wool hats and belts, the students slowly descended down the stairs, handed the professor a note, then walked back up the stairs.

"We regretfully apologize that we will be unable to streak your lecture today," the note read, "Due to inclement weather we were not able to get sufficient numbers to field a full team. We had hoped to streak for the cause of legalizing streaking. Apologetically, the Princeton University Varsity Streaking team."

Meet the streaking team — a group of roughly 30 students whose "competitions" involve seeing how big of a group they can get to go unclothed in public areas.

Evan Coopersmith '06, who was in the abnormal psychology lecture that December day, still recalls with some revulsion his "up close and personal view" of one of the streakers.

But given the course material, which "covers a lot of strange things," he added, "it did fit in a little bit."

At a university criticized by some for being full of "organization kids," the streaking team offers one solution for the clichéd popped collar: lose the shirt — and the pants while you're at it.

The team is relatively new to campus, but has had a great deal of exposure in recent months.

Though members stress the athleticism of the team and its status as a varsity sport, the team is one of the less exclusive groups on campus. Danny Brome '05 says that it "can be useful to be a quick runner," not because there is competition within the group, but rather because "the strategy for dealing with potential disciplinary concerns is to just run away."

The tryout process is "really simple," according to Brome: "You have to show up." An understanding of streaking is an advantage as well.

"Some people have difficulty distinguishing between different types of nudity. Someone in the shower or someone who runs around in a drunken haze is completely different from a seriously trained athlete," Brome said.

The active members of the team do not see their vocation as odd in the least; they believe what they're doing is only natural.

"It's an opportunity for people who normally feel constricted by the rules of society to break free and show their true selves," Scott Welfel '06 said.

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But he remains wary of declaring an overt political or philosophical message — the streaking team is more of an organized activity than a declaration of autonomy. One streaker who has bared all twice — except for a tie during her initial foray — said that "we're all really comfortable with each other. You develop a certain bond." Welfel cited each "practice" as a way to "provide an opportunity for those who want to get naked. As a group we offer support to those who might not be able to streak on their own just yet. But after you streak for the first time, you become a new person."

Collective streaking may also offer a new solution to what Welfel describes as an endemic problem at Princeton: "We want to loosen up this school. We don't have to take ourselves so seriously. We can shed our dignity for the day."

So far, few have disagreed, even if not everyone expresses the enthusiasm for streaking that Welfel exudes.

After the Ab Psych lecture, one student claimed to be offended by the event and suggested that Professor Litchman call Public Safety.

But with the exception of the occasional raised eyebrow, most people have responded to the team with enthusiasm and even affection.

As Megan Van Voorhis '06 explains, "The people I know on the streaking team are very multi-talented and intriguing people, clothes on and off. And at a place like Princeton, where people are so worried about inhibitions, it's great to see a group that doesn't have any."

Janine Jaffe '05, who documented the team's endeavors for a film class, considers it a "noble pursuit. Nudity is something I'm actually uncomfortable with, but I feel a strange attachment to the members."

The founding members decided to form a club after news of the Hamilton College Varsity Streaking Club, founded in 2002, reached campus. The Hamilton club, which has a website and online store at www.hamiltonstreaks.com, turned into a phenomenon of sorts and garnered the attention of Fox News and The New York Times.

When the founding members heard of Hamilton's success, they decided that school representation was imperative. Through word of mouth and a general interest in the team, it grew to a membership roster of about 30, 15 of whom have streaked.

Training takes place during a number of meets, most of which happen shotgun style. "We are not that big on planning in advance," Brome said. Last week, a split-second decision to streak Tower eating club ended up involving dancing and whipped cream.

Technically, a meet occurs wherever there are other people present and the team with the most participants wins. Both Welfel and Brome cite the team's undefeated standing as proof of its cachet, although Brome explains that it is hard to distinguish between fans and opponents, because "some people are just there to enjoy a good match."

They reminisce about their exploits in Ab Psych with pride and a hint of despondence — they were expecting a better turnout, but blame the bad weather (something that does not usually stop them, as one member explained that the cold "just makes you go faster.") Brome calls the episode a "moral victory" anyway, and Jaffe hopes that it will increase interest in the team because it gave them "a little more face time."

Considering their aspirations, all this publicity is essential to their success. After "building up a lot more general excitement towards streaking" at Princeton, Welfel hopes to eventually "start traveling and having away games." Hamilton, where each meet has at least 20 people, remains the prototype of a good team, and if Princeton hopes to compete with them, more students will have to express their support. "A lot of our athletic teams are about competing and doing well to make the school look good," Brome said.

He said he expects the streaking team to do just that: "The main thing is to make people laugh," he said. "And to win."