New England College students took over Pats Peak for a free day of skiing and snowboarding on Feb. 14, 2024. The event, held as a collaboration between the New England College Student Engagement offices and the Pats Peak Mountain, offers NEC students the ability to try skiing and snowboarding for free, as well as having other activities such as raffles, food, games, and more.
This event has been held since 2015, when the first take over the peak event took place. This has only been able to continue due to the peak’s relationship with the school. “Pats peak does a lot for us, being able to put this event on and making a great tradition,” said NEC Program Coordinator Gavin Bibeau, “the students love it, the staff love it, and we wouldn’t be able to do it without Pats Peak.”
NEC’s relationship with the peak spans more than just this event, as enrolled students at the school gain a free ski lift pass for the skiing year with the use of their student ID and get rentals at a discounted price of $10. This pass is good all seven days of the week and is available all day.
The annual event gives students a chance to socialize and spend time away from their dorm halls and campus, something the students of NEC have been wanting more of recently. “It was really fun but we need to do more of these events,” said senior student Alyssa Perko, who has seen the change in events from the COVID year of 2020 to now.
NEC plans to continue offering more social events such as the takeover as the semester continues.
