Dressed in a red sweatshirt, Ball State University senior Kyle May had a smoke before enjoying his first taste of the music, food and beads that turned Walnut Street into the biggest "block party" of the year Saturday night.
"I figured I'm not going to New Orleans," May said. "I might as well come here and see what it's all about. Even though it's frigid, I don't care."
And neither did the thousands of Ball State students and local residents who flooded the city streets during the fifth annual Muncie Mardi Gras from 7 p.m. to 2 a.m. Despite the 17-degree weather, more tickets were sold this year than last year's total of at least 11,000, which helped rake in $40,000. Exact numbers will be figured Tuesday, said Cheryl Crowder, events coordinator of Downtown Development.
Crowder said widespread advertisements and the controversy surrounding the downtown event helped draw so many participants. Several area churches protested the event because it promoted drunkenness and nudity.
"It's February," Crowder said. "There's nothing to do. Everybody is kind of bored. Why not party in the streets? It's something fun; it's something you look forward to, even if it's 14 degrees."
Along Walnut Street between Main and Charles streets, men and women wore purple, green and gold beads, masks, costumes and jester's hats as they shouted and laughed. On the east side of Walnut Street, a stand featured a sign that read, "Rate Your Rack," where women flashed for beads.
Farther down the street, venders sold beer and hot sweet almonds, pecans and cashews, while people threw beads from apartments above downtown shops. Three Muncie Indiana Transit System trolleys transported students between campus and the Muncie Gras event.
Ann Hargrave, owner of the Hoosier Poppy, which opened downtown in September, said Saturday night was the most people she had seen downtown at one time.
"This has been a good evening," Hargrave said as she took a break Saturday night from serving hundreds of students at the bustling snack shop across from Pizza di Roma. Many downtown businesses anticipated a 10 percent to 20 percent increase in sales Saturday night, Hargrave said.
Two hours into her trip to downtown Muncie, sophomore Ashley Lennon said she wished Muncie Gras would have taken place during a warmer season, but she enjoyed mingling with friends and strangers alike.
"You see some crazy stuff here," Lennon said, referring to some partiers who were looking at other people's breasts near the Bud Light Stage.
At the intersection of Walnut and Main streets, members of several area churches - including Blood 'N' Fire, Muncie Alliance Church, New Life Center, Union Chapel Ministries and Common Way - handed out free hot chocolate and coffee from midnight until 2 a.m. On the table hung a sign that read, "Concerned Christians of Delaware County."
Stacy Ball, member of Blood 'N' Fire, said she hoped to build a good relationship with the local community.
"We hope to give a positive impression that people that love God love people," Ball said. "That can be expressed in many different ways."
Sgt. Joe Krejsa of the Muncie Police Department said the night ran smoothly, with a steady stream of students entering and leaving the event due to the wind and cold.
He said 33 police officers were on patrol during Muncie Gras at any given time, with 10 officers working in the rest of the city and six working in DUI patrol. Fewer altercations took place this year than last year, and police made fewer than half a dozen arrests, he said.
About 25 people from Community Corrections and the Muncie Sanitary District spent more than three hours Sunday morning cleaning up the downtown area, Crowder said.
She said she hoped both the city and local churches would agree to disagree about Muncie Gras, but Downtown Development was open to hearing ways to improve the popular event.
"I think they feel very passionate about their position as do we, so it wouldn't surprise me if this was something where there was controversy surrounding it always," Crowder said. "Even in New Orleans it's that way. ... It's the typical Mardi Gras struggle."
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