Review: SUSU Roller Disco 05/10/21

Although we’re now coming to the end of Freshers, and begin to put our minds to the dreaded upcoming academic year, SUSU’s Freshers events are still ongoing. With the pandemic ruining the majority of the last years social events, University organisers and both new and returning students alike are keen to engage in as many events as possible – and this years Roller Disco was no exception. I attended the disco on Tuesday evening to see what was going down.

On arriving at the “roller rink” (aka half of The Cube with some funky lights and music thrown on it), attendees were given their skates to strap on – which were surprisingly comfortable. We then entered the rink to 70s disco music and flashing coloured lights. It was hilarious to watch all the nervous first-years enter the room, looking like baby deer on unsure legs. However, with the help of the fantastic staff who were on hand to give expert guidance on how to improve your skating skills, people were quick to warm up to the activity – within ten minutes, the number of falls per minute had reduced massively.

Although the skating itself was enjoyable, it seemed that the event was mainly “roller” and tended to lack the “disco”. The music, although made up of excellent tracks, was way to quiet to be able to be called a disco – this meant most people were focused on trying to perfect their roller-skating skill, not on having fun and making a fool of yourself dancing on skates! In addition to this, I felt the room could have been opened up to use more of the available space; not many people were allowed to attend at once due to the limited space, and hence the atmosphere often felt flat at times.

Despite this, the night was definitely enjoyable. With the added perk of a cheap ticket and even a free drink token from the bar next door after the event, everyone (including yours truly) most certainly had a great time. For freshers especially, this roller disco is a great way to have fun while making new friends.