THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
KULeisure
WEDNESDAY. AUGUST 16, 1995
SECTION E
"Of ager suggests bar hints
It's Hawk Week. Five days of sun and fun until the real school work begins
Whew, just thinking about another college semester can make a good, hard-working student stressed out. Time for a beer at one of what seems like a thousand Lawrence bars.
But before any of you "of age" Jayhawks decide when and where to go, here's a bar guide for things to check out and situations to stay away from.
First and foremost, stay away from any bar that has a waiting line outside. What's the point? The bar has to be pretty dam good to deserve
DOWNTOWN
waiting for 15 minutes
A message to bar owners people don't have to stand in line to get alcohol. As long as it's before 11 p.m. a liquor store is just a five-minute drive away.
SUMMER EDITOR
Another message to bar owners. If people go out on a weekday and a pub doesn't
have a GOOD band, it should not have a cover charge just to walk in and drink. There is no Lawrence bar deserving that kind of recognition just to enter.
If you are "of age," never take flack from a bouncer checking IDs at the door. These bouncers are not doing anybody any favors by letting people in unless those people are under 21 years old.
Try this the next time a bouncer gives you the evil eye when checking IDs. First, give him the evil eye back. Then, ask for his identification. If he doesn't give it to you, swipe your ID from the bouncer, laugh like a cackling idiot and run as fast as possible to another bar. Buying alcohol isn't worth getting the third-degree treatment.
Any opportunity available for free music at a bar is always a plus. Be on the lookout for possible free concerts during the week or even a disc jockey who pumps out a good music mix. Nobody likes just sitting in a booth with crappy background music or no music playing at all. You can only talk coherently at a bar for so long before getting bored, and that could be the general consensus.
When going to some bars for weekday music, the key is to slip in before bouncers start collecting a cover charge. And if any bar tries a cheesy maneuver like asking for a cover after you've entered, sat down and bought a drink, you have my permission to tell the bouncer where to stick it. If there's no cover at the door, there's no cover in the bar.
Message No. 3 to bar owners: have more things available to do than just sit and drink. A bar that sells food and cigarettes always can count on a good turnout. If people want to get sick from grease or clog their lungs with tar, at least it's convenient to do so. When I'm drunk, I am ready to throw money away to satisfy any immediate urge.
Finally, for the most inexpensive bar entertainment, watch for newly "of age" 21 year olds celebrating their birthdays. This scene usually includes a bunch of friends buying the person of "honor" shot upon shot of hideous alcoholic substances. The names for shots are amusing enough, like Dirty Mexican, Dead Nazi, Kamikaze or Flaming Dr. Pepper. But the funniest sight is to watch the victim's face as these nasty concoctions slide down the throat. The reaction sometimes looks like a mix between feeling constipated and eating a whole lemon at once.
Take these hints to heart and take advantage of anything that's free. The bar scene can be scary if you don't start the evening with a plan. But don't let bar politics stop you from having a good time.
The highlight is the battle to get an incapacitated drunk out of the bar and home. Once, I saw a guy drink 31 shots in a two-hour span. He actually would not let his friends take him home. His friends finally allowed him another shot. As expected, he drank it and promptly puked on the table. Way to go, dude.
Colorful graffiti decorates the alley behind The Wakeway, 106 North Park West. Edme Rodriguez / KANSAN
Edmee Rodriguez / KANSAN
RC's Stadium Barbery, 1033 Massachusetts St., helps provide downtown Lawrence with its old-fashioned, friendly atmosphere.
Atmosphere keeps downtown competitive with nearby malls
Students can shop,relax on Massachusetts Street
By Bill Potula
Special to the Kansan
J. R. Fleser needed to buy a friend a birthday present. Although he knew downtown Lawrence might have what he was looking for, the Great Bend senior elected to drive to a Kansas City suburban shopping mall to find the gift.
Like Fleser, many students are choosing the overcrowded malls with common-chain stores, high-priced food courts and push service. But downtown offers students a relaxed outdoor environment, affordable foods, gifts people can't find anywhere else and quality customer service.
Because of efforts by past city commissioners, Massachusetts Street businesses don't have to compete with malls in Lawrence.
At the mall, however, he ran into only a mediocre selection, high prices and over-aggressive sales people.
A ride down Massachusetts Street
reveals a thriving town, but it didn't come without a fight.
City Manager Mike Wildgen recalled a time when a Cleveland-based company wanted to build a mall at 33rd and Iowa streets. But the Lawrence City Commission voted to keep the company out of Lawrence.
"The commissioners primary commitment is to downtown." Wilden said.
This commitment to keeping the downtown strong was finally decided in the late 1980s when an appeals court ruled in favor of the commissioners.
Today, Massachusetts Street has more unique shops and restaurants than many malls.
Shops offer everything from a 1922 Jayawardek yearbook to wax eyeball candles to an antique pump organ. There are even rides on a horse milled trolley.
Lisa Blair, director of Downtown Lawrence Inc., called the area a model of revitalization for many small towns.
One can shop and sample delicacies ranging from vegetarian to traditional Midwest barbecue, all on the same street.
Those looking for that hard-to-find gift
need look no further than The Antique Mall, 830 Massachusetts St. With antiques from 50 dealers, shoppers are bound to see something they like, whether that is antique dolls or baseball cards.
Larry Billings, owner of The Antique Mall, said that people liked to buy KU merchandise and Life magazines from the day they were born.
Right across the street at Arensberg Shoes, 825 Massachusetts St., manager Larry Flottman is happy to sit down and talk about footwear or offer opinions about downtown.
"Our downtown gives a unique shopping experience," Flottman said. "We offer more personal service than you get at a mall or a chain store."
For formal dining, Teller's, 746 Massachusetts St., is but one option. Once used as a bank, Teller's has become a treat for those looking for Italian food.
The restaurants on Massachusetts Street complement the shops and contribute to the area's reputation.
See DOWNTOWN, Page 12E.
Outdoor itch cured with dose of Clinton Lake fun
By Amy Ryding Special to the Kansan
Summer's over. And though the sun disappears once the lecture hall doors shut, students still itch for the outdoors.
Located
four miles
west of
Lawrence,
Clinton
Lake offers
an escape
from the
city, the
sterility
of air-conditioning and
stress.
They can find relief for that itch only 10 minutes away — at Clinton Lake.
five federal parks and one state park surround the lake
"All the parks are different," said Dave Rhoades, park manager with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Rhoades said that Rockhaven and Woodridge parks were more rustic and suited for hikers and backpackers, while Bloomington Park offered a museum, showers, electricity and a supervised beach area.
Susan Keen, Holton senior, began
going to lake her freshman year with other students in her residence. hall. She said that she enjoyed going with friends to soak up the sun, read and fish. "I like it
and are open year-round. The lake offers biking and biking trails, camping sites, beaches, hunting grounds and 7,000 water surface acres for swimming, boating and fishing.
"I like it because I hate the city" she
said. "I hate the noise. There are too many people and the streets are always crowded."
Clockwise, from left: Doug Rowland, Kelly Rowland, Mellissa Sandberg and Carrie Proje play at Bloomington Beach at Clinton Lake.
Dan Hughes, manager of Sunflower Bike Shop, 804 Massachu
setts St., said that Clinton State Park's bicycle trails were some of the area's best.
"Though Clinton Lake lacks big climbs, there is no lack of technical riding," Hughes said. "The trails are pretty extensive. We are lucky to have such awesome trails."
Grant Martin, Lawrence junior, spends time at the lake sailing, fishing and camping. Martin describes his visits during the school year as a wav to relax.
A one-day parking pass at Clinton Lake is $3. Annual passes — good at any state park in Kansas — are $20.50. Biking and walking in the park is free.
"It's a definite stress reliever," Martin said. "It's just you and the sailboat and the wind. It's therapeutic."
The other five federally owned parks along the lake's shores charge a dollar for the use of the swimming beaches, $2 for the use of the boat ramps, and no more than $3 for parking. An annual pass is $25.00.
The U.S. Congress approved money for the lake's construction — it cost $55 million — in 1862. However, it wasn't until 1971 that the money was appropriated. After the five-year construction of the dam was completed, the Corps began filling the lake.
Now, the man-made lake provides an escape from civilization.
Carl Ringler, the Clinton Trails coordinator and president of the Kansas Trails Council, stressed the need for proper trail etiquette, especially on the bicycle trails.
However, visitors still need to follow rules and directionality.
"It is important to stay off the trails when they are muddy," Ringler said. "It catches arosion problems and can be dangerous."
He said that the rocky trails became slippery when covered in mud, making them difficult and unsafe to maneuver.
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