This year’s Picnic Day will open up with Pre-Week, four days of events combining bovines and baked goods that will take place on the quad at noon.
With planning that started in winter quarter, Pre-Week is a chance for students to get informed and excited about Picnic Day while snagging a few freebies in the process.
Today’s event is the traditional Eating Contest, which will center on speed eating cupcakes. Six teams of two, with participants ranging from ASUCD Senators to Picnic Day officials, will try to devour ten cupcakes in the fastest time possible. The vanilla and chocolate cupcakes were donated from Davis Creamery.
Although onlookers cannot compete, Picnic Day staff will hand out frisbees, schedules of events, posters and cupcakes for those in attendance, said Monica Lindholm, chair of the Picnic Day Board of Directors.
Observers can also win raffle items such as gift certificates for ice cream, private Brazilian Jiu-Jitzu lessons, and Sacramento Rivercats tickets for this and other events.
Wednesday is the annual Cow Milking Contest, a battle on the West Quad to collect the most milk from two Dairy Barn cows. Its six contestants are: ASUCD President Jack Zwald, Monica Lindholm, former ASUCD Vice President Chris Dietrich, Dietrich’s father and former Picnic Day Parade Marshall Peter Dietrich, UC Davis Chief of Police Annettee Spicuzza, and UC Davis Band-Uh Director Ariel Sarver. Spectators can also expect free ice cream sandwiches from Sodexho.
“We’ve got our skills down now and we are well prepared for the event,”said Chris Dietrich, who believes milking the cows will be tricky because the animals are nervous in front of the crowd.”But, I tell you this, a Dietrich will win the competition this year.”
Na Keiki ‘O Hawai’I, an Hawaiian island culture club and performance group, and the Lounge Lizards, a UC Davis a capella music group, will perform at Thursday’s Entertainment Showcase at the West Quad.
Finishing out the week on Friday is the Roaming Cow event, in which one of the Picnic Day directors will comb through the campus in the city of Davis’ cow suit to promote Picnic Day.
“This is my favorite because we get to go across campus and see a lot of people,” Lindholm said. “Also, because it is the day before Decision Day, there are so many families that we get to let know about Picnic Day, and there are always little kids who love seeing the giant cow costume and taking pictures with him.”
Planners also stressed that Pre-Week and Picnic Day are both drug-free and alcohol free events.
“We want to emphasize Picnic Day is a family friendly event,” Lindholm said. “Everyone’s actions need to be respectable for the events and for everyone who wants to attend.”
For ASUCD Senator Adam Thongsavat, who will help set up some events, this year’s Pre-Week is an opportunity to see which venues might be expanded.
“I would definitely like to see a larger entertainment option and I would like to see a roaming around of an actual cow,”said Thongsavat, who is interested the concept of a large concert for a future Pre-Week. “It’s going to be a difficult process but definitely manageable.
LESLIE TSAN can be reached at campus@theaggie.org.
