A Run Through Norris

At 10:37 a.m., DM emcee Adam Welton gave the dancers an ominous warning.

"For you naked people, I feel sorry for your genitals," the Communication junior called out.

With that, one of the most recognizable movie themes in recent memory, "Gonna Fly Now" from Rocky, came on. Welton and co-emcee Todd Johnson, a Medill junior, directed the dancers to the Louis Room's exit, where it was time for the infamous run outside Norris University Center.

The dancers left the room with their hands in the air, many of them holding up their fists Rocky-style, singing along to the theme.

But the March snow kept the dancers inside this year. Instead, everyone filed down the Norris stairs at varying speeds to the food court on the ground floor before heading back up to the second floor.

As they returned, many of them had smiles on their faces, even as their shoulders slumped from exhaustion.

"I wish we could have gone outside," SESP senior Amanda Dixon said. "It was energizing."

"There's so much energy," said Katie Bacon, a Communication freshman. "I'm really having a good time."

"It was refreshing," Weinberg freshman Alex Drake said. "We're halfway done. The second half's going to be much better."

Text: Nomaan Merchant/The Daily Northwestern

Photos: Lauren Pond/The Daily Northwestern