(St. George, UT) - “The Dixie Spirit: You Can Feel It – You Can Hear It” serves as the theme for Dixie State College of Utah’s annual second homecoming known as D-Week, which will run from April 9-14, 2012, with various activities and events held on and around the DSC campus.

D-Week’s roots can be traced as far back as 1914, three years after the college’s founding, as a chance for college alumni, students, and faculty and staff, as well as the community, to come together in a reunion setting for a week of activities.

“D-Week is a long-standing Dixie tradition that began when Dixie students constructed the whitewashed the historic D for the first time,” said Jordon Sharp, DSC Director of Student Involvement and Leadership. “We invite all Dixie students, alumni, faculty and staff, and the community to take part in all the festivities and celebrate with us and help us keep that ‘Dixie Spirit’ alive.”

The full slate of the Centennial D-Week events begins on Monday, April 9, with a D-Week kick-off activity from 9:00AM to 1:00PM, featuring music and free food, along with decorations and displays on the Diagonal and various areas throughout campus. On Tuesday, April 10, the annual D-Queen Pageant will be held in the DSC Avenna Center Cox Auditorium. General admission tickets for the pageant are on sale now for $5 at the Avenna Center ticket office. For tickets or further information, call (435) 652-7800 or go to www.dixiestatetickets.com.

Wednesday’s (April 11) events include a free concert by popular comedian Jeff Dye, sponsored by the DSCSA, beginning at 7:30PM, in the DSC Student Activity Center (Old Gym). Dye has appeared on Comedy Central and was a finalist on the NBC hit series Last Comic Standing. Then on Thursday, April 12, everyone is invited to try to break a world record in thumb wrestling. The event, held at the upper end of the Encampment Mall on campus beginning at 6:00PM will also feature free t-shirts and ice cream shakes while supplies last.

To many, however, D-Week’s signature event is the Great Race, which will take place Friday, April 13, at 6:00PM followed by a free BBQ and carnival at the DSC Hansen Stadium south practice field at 7:00PM. All DSC students, faculty and staff, and the community are invited to participate in the Great Race, carnival and concert festivities. For more information on the Great Race or to enter a team, contact the DSC Alumni Office at (435) 652-7535.

Due to the construction of the new Jeffrey R. Holland Centennial Commons Building, the starting point for the Great Race has moved to Hansen Stadium. More than 30 ten-member teams, comprised of DSC alumni, students, faculty and staff, and community members, are expected to relay their way across campus by foot, mountain bike, roller blades, water, mud and more.

The inaugural Great Race occurred in 1971, but it origins can be traced back as early as 1964, as a bicycle race around the Black Hill near the airport. The first official Great Race included such events as motocross, horseback riding, and tubing down the Virgin River. Community growth and safety concerns eventually forced the race to the friendly confines of the DSC campus. In addition to the traditional running, biking, and swimming, Great Racers now have to negotiate, among other things, a slip n’ slide track, a roller blade course, a Dixie trivia question, and a mud pit throughout the 10-leg relay course.

D-Week wraps up with a busy day of events on Saturday, April 14, beginning with the annual tradition of whitewashing the ‘D’ on Black Hill, which includes a pancake breakfast provided by the DSC Alumni Association, at 7:00AM. Following at 12 noon, the DSC Alumni Association will host a special Alumni Luncheon at the Wade Alumni House.

Then at 7:00PM, the DSC Alumni Association will host an “Evening of Dixie,” which will take those in attendance on a fun look back at the over 100-year history of Dixie, featuring the Raging Red Show Choir, and former members of Dixie College’s Program Bureau. The “Evening of Dixie” is a free event that will begin at 7:00PM at the Eccles Fine Arts Center, which is followed by an Alumni Social at the Sears Art Museum Gallery at 8:00PM.

The D-Day Dance will wrap up the festivities later that evening at 9:00PM in the Gardner Center Ballroom, followed by the annual “True Rebel Night” event held at midnight at the Tanner Fountain.

All D-Week activities are free and open to the public to attend, with the exception of the Annual D-Queen Pageant. For more information, contact the DSC Director of Student Activities Jordon Sharp at (435) 652-7513 or at jsharp@dixie.edu, or go to www.dixie.edu

Great Race relay legs:

2012 Great Race

Leg 1: RUN one and one-half times around the Hansen Stadium Track

Leg 2: BASE RUN after baseball bat spin (Cooper Diamonds)

Leg 3: ROLLER BLADE one-half mile to Nisson Towers basketball court

Leg 4: BASKETBALL SHOOT after 20 push-ups

Leg 5: MOUNTAIN BIKE one mile through campus and back to Hansen Stadium

Leg 6: DIXIE TRIVIA QUESTION at Hansen Stadium, then sprint to swimming pool

Leg 7: SWIM one lap while sitting or laying in an inner tube

Leg 8: MUD PIT, 30 yards through mud and water (by Udvar-Hazy Business Building)

Leg 9: SLIDE PULL, sprint back to Stadium, slide down slip and slide, rope pull rest of way

Leg 10: RUN TO FINISH, ¾ lap at Hansen Stadium track.