Students dash through the Quad in the buff

Livingston High School '94 Livingston, N.J. The morning sun could not take the edge off the cold -- the kind that numbs fingers in seconds. But the temperature on February 7 -- 32 degrees below zero with windchill -- did not prevent two women and 18 men from participating in the seventh annual Quadrangle Streak. At 6:45 a.m., the streakers gathered in the upper portion of the Quad for mental preparation. In keeping with the post-Ground Hog Day tradition, they filtered outside and began to undress for their forthcoming buck-naked lap around the Quad. Although the runners made noise in an attempt to wake up sleeping Quad residents, the frigid temperature and early hour kept most students in bed. The spectacle did not go completely unnoticed, however. Female Quad Residential Maintenance workers gathered on the Junior Balcony to cheer on the streakers. As the clock struck seven, the men and women dropped their drawers, untied their robes and revealed it all. "Hands up! Hands up!" they screamed as they made their way to the first stairway. "Get up! Get up!" With the exception of hats, gloves and sneakers, body paint was the only thing covering the 20 bodies. A rear view exposed buttocks boasting runner's initials, backs painted with the numbers "1995" and one smiley face. The brave group of students included 19 seniors and one sophomore. Within minutes, they had completed their run through the snow-covered Lower Quad and up along the Spruce Street side of Upper Quad. For two male and two female streakers, the adventure did not end with a single lap -- upon returning to upper Quad, they discovered that their clothes were missing. But they handled the catastrophe with grace and calmly followed the instructions of a voice from an Upper Quad window. "They're in the lounge," the student called from above. Following the run, the participants hurried into a Quad building to finish dressing and have a post-run discussion on their early morning exercise. "It needed to be done," said one female runner who did not want to be identified. She added that the brisk morning run made her feel "alive." A four-year veteran streaker, who would only identify himself as a residential advisor in the Quad, said unlike last February's gift of warmth, this year's streak was the coldest he ever experienced. The senior also praised the two female streakers who also identified themselves as RAs in the Quad. "Last year there were more women and we were happy about that," he said. "But we're happy with what we have." "A hand for the women," another male streaker added.

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