Parking Wars: Are You a Sleeper, Stalker, or Swooper?

ARE YOU A SLEEPER, STALKER, OR SWOOPER? PARKING WARS

Your CSUF parking personality says more about you than your Myers-Briggs type.

Story by Korryn Sanchez Photos by Dominique Villamor Design by Chau Le

CSUF is known for a couple of things: a good baseball team and horrible parking.

No matter which structure or lot you park in, you’ve got to get creative. According to the 2018 CSUF fact sheet, campus population is just shy of 40,000 students. The iFullerton app indicates there are under 7,250 parking spots available on site, and an additional 550 spots off campus, translating to one spot for every five students.

The lots have turned into war zones where social conduct rules are thrown out the window like an old CD from the dashboard during a sharp turn. It’s a dog-eat-dog world that has bred new strategies to survive the parking wars.

Tusk surveyed the parking culture on campus and found that students employ three different strategies to snag those sweet, sweet spots: sleeping, stalking, swooping.

SWOOPER SWOOPER

Swoopers are like line cutters who bypass the queue with expectations of being served right away, even at the inconvenience of those waiting longer. They plan their attack on a calculated risk. Alejandro Sanchez is a senior public relations major who commutes to campus five days a week. “I find swooping to be the best technique,” he says. “You just kind of sync your schedule with when you know people will be getting out of class.” Swooping is based on luck. Sometimes the spot is there, other times you circle around the lot like a dog chasing its tail. Students with later classes tend to swoop more often; they don’t come early and they’re not looking to play fair.

SLEEPER SLEEPER

The idea of being a sleeper is simple: wake up earlier in order to catch some Z's later. Sleepers typically arrive on campus between 7 to 8 am and sleep or relax in their cars before class starts to avoid the stress of arriving later in the day when there are no spots available. Senior Eric Alcantar, a communications major, describes this tactic as the optimal way to find parking. “I get to campus early and sesh,” he says. “Then I knock out in my car until it’s time for class. It’s honestly the ideal strategy.”

Stalkers are drivers who wait by the elevator exits of the parking structures and prey on students walking toward their cars. The usual, “Hey! Are you leaving?” echoes throughout the parking lots more than students complaining about exams. STALKER STALKER

IT'S LIKE THE HUNGER GAMES OUT THERE!

Funding Fatima Alhooty Adrien Chan Lucia Chavez Nick DeOrian Nadia Dolor Marc Francisco Michael Hill Matthew Lazaga Taylor Mactal Jesus Mancera Chanelle Medina Isabel Mercado Bryce Miller Ana Munoz Malia Nua Kaylyn Sheriff Avalon Whalen Kishon Williams

California State University, Fullerton Dept. of Communications

Tusk wants to celebrate the memory of our fellow writer, staff member, and friend. David Keller passed away in Spring 2019. We dedicate this issue to him.

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