Tubestock, a summer tradition that was never sanctioned by the College, was cancelled after the summer of 2005 due to new town and state laws which prohibit gatherings on public bodies of water without a permit. Tubestock had always been illegal, but as no specific entity ever sanctioned the event, no one could be held responsible. Under the new legislation, however, individuals can be arrested for illegally congregating on a state waterway.
In an effort to gain the permits necessary for Tubestock to take place, Treseler, who has previously worked in sports management, formed a corporation that would claim responsibility for the event and entered into discussions with the town of Hanover. The corporation was to be named "Lest the Old Traditions Fail, LLC."
"The people of the town originally signed off on the permit," Treseler said. "Their main concerns were the drunkenness and the rafts and we addressed all of these concerns and came up with a plan."
According to Treseler, the river was ultimately deemed an unsafe location for the event due to its depth and rapid current. It would also be impossible to regulate the number of people participating in the event. The town then recommended that Treseler try Storrs Pond, a nearby recreation area that features a 13-acre pond and two beaches. The area is privately owned by the Hanover Improvement Society.
"We proposed the idea for a dry event on Storrs Pond, which could easily fit 400 tubes, and all we needed was the approval of the town, seeing as there were no safety concerns and we could have safety personnel covering the entire area," Treseler said.
The proposal, however, was denied last week, for "primary reasons of safety," according to Matt Marshall, the head of the Hanover Improvement Society.
"It was estimated by the people who we were planning the event with that there could be over 700 students on the water, and that is a huge safety concern," Marshall said.
The College also notified the Hanover Improvement Society that the event was not sanctioned by the College.
"I talked with someone from the Provost's Office and someone from the Dean's office, and they said that they considered the students to be making a proposal not on behalf of the College but on behalf of themselves," Marshall said. "We make arrangements with a lot of different organizations, and they made it clear that we are free to do so."
The next step in the process would have involved submitting the proposal to the Town of Hanover, but due to the Hanover Improvement Society, the group was unable to proceed.
The Office of the Provost and the Office of the Dean of the College could not be reached for comment.
