Article by Alex Hart
Photo by Wyatt Moran
Pictured, Wyatt Moran, Laura Milligan, Logan Hjelmstead, ASAP trip manager, and Tim Seale, ASAP summer intern; reach the top of Huron Peak.
Wyatt Moran, from Sante Fe New Mexico, says his decision to come to Adams State University was "pretty simple really, it was cheap, close to home, they do a lot of recruiting at my high school so I came here just on a regular tour of the campus and I thought that I really liked it." Moran is a part of the Adams State Adventure Program, or ASAP, a program he wasn’t sure he wanted to be in at first due to the requirement of taking part in the 21 credit hour adventure leadership minor "I didn’t know if I was ready for it so I took a year and I started my sophomore year, I was really involved with ASAP up until that point with the climbing and some of the trips and decided it was something I wanted to do so I started taking the minor and have been with them ever since."
The discovery of one’s strengths and weaknesses is a big part of ASAP according to Moran, when asked why someone should join the adventure program he said "so there is a couple different ways to put this, we always take students out, that is awesome, we love taking people outdoors, getting people out of their comfort zone, teaching people how to become better but working for ASAP, you just get to learn so much working for them, so becoming involved in that, not only teaches you outdoor skills which is kind of the obvious component, but for me it really teaches me about my weaknesses, like what I am not good at and once you look at that then you can figure out how to be a better leader and a better person, which I think ASAP is all about."
For Moran, the ASAP program has changed college experience for the better "working for ASAP, you’re working towards an adventure leadership role, so you’re kind of taking that role of a leader, as well as taking on the role of being adventurous like going into the outdoors all the time, which is something I don’t think a lot of people take advantage of, even though we live in such a great area, a lot of people don’t know what kinds of opportunities the San Luis Valley has to offer, in ASAP we just try to help out with that."
If there was someone new to the ASAP program, someone who just joined and happened to ask Moran for advice, he might tell you "the best thing is to learn from your mistakes, you’re going to make a lot of them, I know I did, it’s just part of being a leader, you’re going to screw up, best thing you can do is grow from it, learn from it and don’t make the same mistake twice."
To freshmen just starting at Adams State, or to freshmen at any school, Moran’s advice to them is not unlike many people’s advice "college is a time of growth right? So I would say get out there and try something new, you might find that you like it, beyond the obvious stuff, if you never really push yourself, you’re never going to get anywhere, and when you start pushing yourself out of your comfort zone that’s when you find the fun stuff, so don’t be distant."
Moran, an Adams State Porter Scholar, is currently pursuing a major in wildlife biology, a minor in computer science programming and an adventure leadership minor with plans to one day work with national parks as well as research partners so he can study large animals, predators and see how they are affected by their environment and how they adapt.
Adams State was named the Top Adventure School by the online magazine, Elevation Outdoors this summer.
