Mini-trucks tread on Gator territory

Author: Ben Salkowe

In a mini-blow to the American mini-vehicle industry, the College turned to Japan this year for an automotive invention that could bridge the gap between car and Gator. Middlebury's iconic green Gator utility vehicles now share the sidewalks with not only students, snakes and squirrels, but several recently purchased Japanese "mini-trucks" as well.

"The addition of these 'mini-trucks' to the Facilities fleet will reduce the amount of Gator traffic on campus lawns and sidewalks," wrote Julie Hoyenski, Facilities Services communications specialist, in the latest Facilities Services newsletter. "As they are more fuel efficient than our larger trucks, we will also save energy on errands and small hauling assignments."

The Gators have faced criticism in the past, most of which has been rooted in the way they are driven across lawns and sidewalks at high-speeds, tearing up landscaping and terrorizing pedestrians. Unlike the John Deere Gator or the traditional golf cart, the Mitsubishi and Daihatsu "mini-trucks" are registered to drive on local roads and would not be confined to the campus grounds.

But news of non-Gator additions to the community did not sit well with some students.

"The Gators are just more Middlebury. They're kind of off-beat and friendly," said student and former Gator driver Catherine Vigne '07. "The 'mini-trucks' might be more practical but they're not as cute. They're more like normal vehicles."

Beyond being a popular campus icon, the Gators are also an essential element of the College's day-to-day operations. Five years ago, when Mail Center staff struggled to make all of their daily deliveries across campus, it was a new Gator that saved the day.

"I asked for a part-time student [employee] and they gave me a Gator," said David Larose, the mail center supervisor, noting that Gators do not demand benefits or show-up late after classes.

"Now I tell people my Gator replaced about three or four students," said Larose. "Mine's a deluxe, it's got a flashing light and a heater."

Larose admitted that the now-defunct heater did not survive its first Vermont winter, lasting only "a couple months" before breaking down.

The Gators' popularity with students extends beyond innocent admiration. More than 100 students are registered members of the well-known but grammatically incorrect Facebook.com group "Can I Ride Your Gator?"

According to the group's description, it is "dedicated to those of us on the Middlebury College Campus who desperately want the opportunity to ride one of the green gators we daily see scooting on the premises." The group hosts an open discussion board in which students share in dreamy prose their personal experiences riding the Gator. Writes one member, "They're all you imagined and more."

Vigne, herself a member of the group, used the discussion board to tell her story after getting to drive a Gator for her summer job at Breadloaf.

"I was not a very adventurous Gator driver," Vigne confessed. "But it was everything I hoped it would be."

Both Vigne and Larose said the thrill of the Gator was what made the experience, because the vehicles are noisy, jerky, and sometimes caught behind pedestrian traffic. But Larose doubted the "mini-trucks" could take corners as well or handle snow with the ease of a Gator.

The Mail Center's Gator, which is the only one to feature a closed cabin and spend much of the day tearing across campus or parked outside McCullough, is particularly well-known.

"I'm sure mine's a popular one," said Larose. He added that more than a few times students have raised a hitchhiker's thumb as he passed by. College policy, however, does not permit Larose to take casual passengers. While the vehicles only accommodate two passengers, drivers must possess a seven-passenger van license to operate them.

Larose said he had not driven a mini-truck and had no interest in trading in his little green helper.

"I say if it's not broke, don't fix it," said Larose. "The Gator works for me."