Tarika Pillay
Neon-wearing students gather Wednesday at Palo Alto High School's football field for the annual Spirit Week Night Rally, watching intense competition between grades. According to Associated Student Body President Katie Kim, the best part of hosting the rally is observing students come back to Paly with eager attitudes. "Seeing students come back to school to compete with such spirit is so exciting,” Kim said.
Lights flashed across the field and cheers echoed through the bleachers as students in neon gathered for the annual Night Rally on Wednesday at Palo Alto High School’s Viking Stadium.
The event, packed with competition and spirit, ended with the junior class claiming the win after a series of intense games — consisting of a relay race and wig-snatching contest.
The rally began with a balloon relay between freshmen and sophomores. Both classes worked in teams of six to keep a balloon from touching the ground while passing it down the line, then shaking pingpong balls out of boxes strapped to their backs. After a tight match, the sophomores took the victory and moved on to the next round.
Next up, the juniors and seniors faced off in the same game. The competition was close, but the juniors pulled ahead after strong teamwork and crowd support. The final round of the relay pitted the juniors against the sophomores.
Even after the juniors’ balloon hit the ground and were forced to start over, they came back to win, moving one step closer to the championship.
The second half of the rally featured a new game that quickly became a crowd favorite — the wig-stealing challenge. Three volunteers from each class entered a square marked by cones, each with one hand behind their back. “Out of My Mind” by Nicki Minaj blasted from the speakers as the bob-wearing competitors scrambled around the field.
The goal was to protect their wig while stealing others’. The juniors defeated the seniors in the first round and then secured another victory against the sophomores in the finals, earning the title of Night Rally champions.
Associated Student Body President Katie Kim said the event’s energy made the long hours of planning worth it.
“My favorite part of the night rally is just the atmosphere,” Kim said. “There’s a whole different vibe when it’s at night.”
According to junior Victor Chen, the rally brought unity to the campus.
“There are so many students here, all packed together in one section,” Chen said. “I love seeing the school spirit.”
Junior Eva Barthelemy said that the outdoor night felt extra special.
“The night rallies are exciting because they’re some of the first ones since they stopped for the pandemic,” Barthelemy said. “It’s just cool to be out with all the classes again.”
As Spirit Week continues, the juniors’ win at the Night Rally adds major points to their class total — and even more momentum heading into the final days of competition.