(originally posted by UWeekly - http://uweekly.com/article/number-fest-changes-dates-stays-awesome-5603/)

Ohio University’s Number Festival, which typically occurs near the end of the school year, is now slated to kick off on Sept. 29.

The change of date has been made as consequence to OU and Ohio State University dutifully adapting to a new academic calendar. The manic weather that an early spring quarter entails does not agree with the mandatory picaresque setting that an outdoor jamboree so staunchly requires.

The festival turns 10 years old this year (they grow up so fast don’t they?) and shows no sign of waning in popularity. According to early ticket sales, the projected figures are estimated to be around 13,000 attendees. Even with the sudden shift, students will still use any reason to come together and lubricate the liver.

“The OU festivals are legendary; I’ve been hearing about them before I even graduated high school. It’s a focal point for the Ohio colleges whether you go there or not,” said Vincent D’Andrea, a sophomore business major. “The idea of a festival in fall is very exciting because the weather is perfect and the best beers that I cannot wait to stir up come out. If the festivals have changed then count me in.”

For those who have never before experienced one of the number fests and are unaware of its nature, just imagine droves upon droves of college drones roving up and down the same pavement (each week a new numerically named street plays host) searching for their friends and bumming beers off strangers in the process. It turns the town of present-day Athens into 4th century B.C. Athens, Greece, where the Hippocratic oath meets the Socratic school of thought as philosophy and pre-med majors engage in a symposium so wild it could summon the spirit of Dionysus; and all the studly Adonises try to make it with their study-buddy Aphrodites. P-A-R-T-Why?

On one of the weekends the party moves over to an open field where distinguished musical acts elevate the already rowdy crowd to near-riotous heights. That is the type of brouhaha that is being moved to an earlier date. But it’s all in good fun — there is plenty of booze to tap and bros to dap. The abrupt switch is harmless to most, but not everyone is pleased.

“I don’t like the idea of them being in the fall because it gives you something to look forward to if it’s spring and gets you through the rest of the semester,” said Mollie Moore, a sophomore psychology major.

The Sept. 29 date was picked because it is the only weekend where neither school has a home football game. Instead of trying to compete with football, the event coordinators have chosen to partner with it and will be setting up Jumbotrons to give the place a tailgating atmosphere.

After this year, the coordinators hope to secure the location on Sunday and Monday of Labor Day weekend to extend the festival into a two-day experience. Free shuttles will be available to and from the Ohio University campus during the festival to preempt any partygoers from feeling pressured to drink and drive.

“I never considered the option, but now that it is set in stone I actually prefer that the festival transpire in the fall because it segues seamlessly into the Halloween celebration. Just as students will stop swapping stories about the Number fest, another one comes along and creates even more. I think of it as perfect timing,” said Spencer Marquardt, a junior special education major.

As the leaves change, so does the scenery. We’ll see you in Athens.

(Originally posted by UWeekly – http://uweekly.com/article/number-fest-changes-dates-stays-awesome-5603/)

Buy your tickets today: http://thenumberfest.com/2012-tickets