No. 1 Big Ten party?

Badgers and Hoosiers know how to have a good time. The latest Princeton Review rankings place IU and Wisconsin at sixth and first respectively on the list of top party schools. The rankings then beg the question of which school takes top honors for biggest party in the Big Ten. IU has its celebration of Little 500, but Wisconsin has its annual Halloween festivities. \nLittle 500 is a tradition at IU that dates back more than 50 years. The race was the brainchild of former IU Foundation director Howard Wilcox and is currently in its 56th year. The festivities surrounding the race prompted the \nnickname "World's Greatest College Weekend." \nBy comparison, the Halloween party at Wisconsin is relatively new. IU professor and Wisconsin graduate John Lucaites said he did not remember any major event surrounding Halloween on campus or elsewhere while at Madison in the late 1970s. \nMany consider Little 500 to be the climax of the school year at IU. Students use the week as a time to relax, reflect and enjoy themselves at the end of a long year before they have to study for final exams. \nIU Student Association President Alex Shortle recalled his personal favorite Little 500 moment just prior to the men's race last year when he jumped into the Arboretum pond.\n"Superstitiously fearing my week of collecting stench would slow our bike team, I decided a bath was due," Shortle said in an e-mail. "The only tub I could find was our little oasis on the site that previously held Little 500 races, and, at the time, it sounded like a great idea."\nWisconsin student Bridget Connelly had similar stories to share about her experience with Halloween.\n"There really was nothing to compare it to," Connelly said. "I just thought it was just a really fun experience, as long as it was kept under control and no one got hurt."\nBoth events are notorious for causing trouble with the law. However, the attitude of the communities surrounding the two events is very different.\nHalloween party is heavily frowned upon and not sponsored in any way by the University of Wisconsin or the city of Madison, said Ervin Cox, the assistant dean of students at UW-Madison. Cox said the university and the city frown upon the event as a whole.\n"We don't feel there are any 'good' aspects of Halloween," Cox said in an e-mail. "It is basically an underage drunkfest that causes a lot of harm to health and property, not to mention taints the image of UW-Madison and the City of Madison."\nCox pointed out the negative aspects of the weekend, including the possibility of alcohol-related deaths (he recalled two last year) and the $350,000 of damages incurred on the city. He also said sexual assault reports rose on campus and in Madison directly following Halloween party. \nBy contrast, Little 500 Week at IU is viewed in a more positive light. \nIU Police Department Lt. Jerry Minger, an IU graduate, said he had fond memories of the event, even as a police officer.\n"I came here as a student in 1969 and worked at IUPD for 34 years," Minger said. "This has always been a festive time for me and all of us at IUPD." \nHalloween party and Little 500 are both popular events at their respective schools. Connelly said she often has friends calling and e-mailing her, asking if they can come in for Halloween. She said the parties thrown over the weekend were legendary, and she remembered one fraternity was kicked off campus for a party that got too out of control and garnered thousands of dollars in fines.