Will Walking Come After Crawling?

Taking bar hopping to a whole new level

Story and photos by Kerry McAvoy

The bar crawl: A group of people moving from bar to bar, having a few drinks at one location then moving on to the next. Drinks are served, conversation is made, and new watering holes are discovered. Recently, Plattsburgh had its own bar crawl that began at Geoffrey's Pub and Restaurant and wound it's way through downtown, hitting the bars and sampling the scene.

Wearing matching t-shirts, and following a set path from Geoffrey's to Olive Ridleys, the fourth semi-annual Plattsburgh Bar Crawl drew its largest crowd ever this year with around 55 people according to organizer, and Plattsburgh State University College (PSUC) alumni, James Cook. Cook put up a page on the facebook.com networking site to announce the spring bar crawl. Students from St. Lawrence University , Clarkson University, SUNY Potsdam, and the University of Vermont all attended this year's event after reading about it on the Internet.

The event begins at Geoffrey's on the corner of Broad and Peru street. The crawl then works its way downtown Plattsburgh with a drink filled tour of Margaret Street. Krazy Horse Saloon, Tabu, Rumours, Woodstock's, Chi Booms, the Green Room, Giovanni's, Irises Cafe and Wine Bar, Maggie's, Peabody's, and the Monopole were all part of this spring's bar crawl, according to Cook. Many of the bars waived their cover charges, and everyone paid for their own drinks.

Cook said that to avoid problems everyone had to be 21 years old, and need to tip when they buy a drink at each bar on the crawl. Out of the 55 people that began at Geoffrey's, Cook said only around 20 made it to all 12 bars. "Some people skipped or didn't end up finishing."

Cook said when getting the event ready, he followed in the footsteps of the previous years' organizers. "I didn't add much, besides people [to this year's event]." The Plattsburgh Bar Crawl has been going on every semester since 2005. It has become a tradition for the group of friends that go on it every semester. Cook said that it's something fun for everyone to do together, and the funny stories are the talk of the rest of the year.

"[It's a good way to] get out of the comfort zone of your favorite bar and check out some new places."

Fall 2006 organizer Katy Isenberg said that to prepare for the event, a count of how many people will be attending is made and t-shirts are created that have a number and nickname on the back. Afterward, Isenberg had everyone figure out the shot they wanted and at which bar they would like to have it. Finally, the bars were contacted to let them know approximately what time they would be arriving and who wanted what drink.

Isenberg said that during her organized bar crawl, 10 bars were hit and around 30 people attended. She said the bar owners were very cooperative with the group and some even gave them deals on their drinks. On average, Isenberg estimates that attendees paid around $5 a drink at the 10 bars and $10 for their personalized t-shirt.

PSUC student Chris Gardener said he went on the fall 2006 Bar Crawl because his friends were going and it sounded like a good time. Gardener didn't know all 30 people that attended that particular bar crawl, but said he went mainly to have fun with his friends. "On the walk from Maggie's to Peabody's we played Duck, Duck, Goose outside," he said. Gardener said the night was expensive, but he would consider going on other bar crawls in the future.

In the end, Cook, Isenberg, and Gardener agreed that the main reason for going on the crawl was to have a good time with their friends. Cook said that it was a way to "get out of the comfort zone of your favorite bar and check out some new places." He also said he hopes more people join next year's bar crawl and that every year it gets bigger and bigger.

Have you attended a bar crawl? Let us know how it went!

Be safe when you have a few drinks. Don't let the problem of getting home safely after attending a bar crawl kill your buzz. Drunk driving contributes to 37 percent of all fatalities on New York state roadways according to Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

To prevent accidents make sure that someone in the party is either sober or that everyone has enough money to take a taxi.

The New York state Legal limit for arrest is .08 percent blood alcohol content or BAC. For a 140 pound woman, the rate for reaching that limit is as little as 3 drinks. For a 180 pound man legal limit BAC can be reached with four drinks. A calculator of blood alcohol content can be found at the University of Oklahoma's police department web site.