Satellite still in orbit 35 years on

EPFL’s Satellite bar has passed through the capable hands of 350 volunteers over the last 35 years. As well as brewing and serving countless gallons of beer, the venue has played host to no fewer than 11 Sat Rocks festivals, 75 jam sessions, 180 local comedy shows, 380 concerts, and over 1,000 games nights. Add to that a collection of 120 board games and 5,000-plus comic books (not counting those that have been damaged or lost), and it’s easy to see why the place has built a reputation for fun times. Sat, as it’s affectionately known, is going from strength to strength three-and-a-half decades on – and setting an example for others to follow.

What’s in a name?
Back in 1983, AGEPoly was mulling over ideas for somewhere its members could relax and socialize. Plans for a new nightclub – to be called Spongiflex – were eventually dropped. Marc Dikötter, then an electrical engineering student, picked up the baton, coming up with the idea of an all-day bar and café stocked with a selection of comics. He spent 12 months working on his plans, securing a 2,000-franc loan from AGEPoly to buy French comic books and sourcing furniture from Ikea. “I ended up failing my classes,” explains Dikötter. “I didn’t attend a single lecture that whole year. But I wanted to finish my studies, so I left Sat and enrolled in computer science. I wasn’t exactly a diligent student, but I found it pretty easy and graduated in 1988. After five years as a teaching assistant, he decided it was time to move on – from EPFL and Sat. “I enjoy working on new ideas, but I prefer to hand over the reins once things are up and running.” After coming back for Sat’s 25th anniversary celebrations, Dikötter missed the 30-year reunion. He’s determined not to make the same mistake this time around. “It’s funny to think that my most lasting achievement isn’t job-related but a student bar.”

That’s what friends are for
The story of Sat is one of friendship. Dikötter met fellow student Pier Donini at the bar and, 30 years later, they ended up working together at the Vaud School of Management and Engineering (HEIG-VD) in Yverdon-les-Bains. Although Dikötter has severed all ties with Sat, Donini is still heavily involved to this day. “I started out taking the special mathematics course on Avenue de Cour in 1984,” he says. “Then in 1985 I joined EPFL as an undergraduate in physics. And like any good student, I used to hang around at Sat. I was 19 years old and obsessed with comic books. Because I spent so much time there, I was eventually asked to join the team. So that’s what I did – as head of the comic collection, of course.” Donini, of French and Italian descent, found life at the school rough at first. Sat became something of a second home to him. “I practically lived at Sat. I’d find any excuse to head over there. I even studied there. I wouldn’t have coped without the place. It was a lifeline.” As well as being an avid reader, Donini is a lifelong comedy fan. He invited up-and-coming comedians to perform on stage at Sat. Some of them – like François Rollin (who played there in 1989), Les Vamps, Les Chasseurs en Exil and Les Indécis – went on to become household names. Donini, now 52 and head of HEIG-VD’s Computer Science School, is still on the Sat mailing list and continues to attend committee meetings to this day.

Talents and decisions
Morgan Fargues graduated with a degree in environmental engineering in 2016. A dabbler with an insatiable curiosity and an appetite for new experiences, he was heavily involved in the Swiss Living Challenge’s NeighborHub solar house project, which won the Solar Decathlon competition in 2017. He also traveled to Bogotá, Colombia, to take part in air quality research. Fargues was twice involved in organizing the Balelec Festival and helped run Sat Rocks for ten years. A man of many talents, he’s now teaching himself how to brew beer. “I like to think I’ve got two or even three degrees under my belt. I gained a decade’s worth of experience at Sat.” Manon Durand-Ruel started a Master’s degree in neuroscience at EPFL in 2014. Like Fargues, she too was keen to meet people. After attending Sat Rocks, she joined the committee – and passed up the chance to go abroad, instead taking a placement at the CHUV so she could devote her time to the cause. “I made a conscious decision to stay local so I’d be there when Sat needed me,” she says. She has no regrets about her decision, and her time at the CHUV is still serving her well as she pursues her PhD.

All the fun of the festival
Andreas Jaggi (computer science, 2009) enjoyed nothing more than organizing concerts. “There were some stressful times, but we all stepped up and helped each other out,” he explains. “We were a close-knit team.” He has fond memories of his time at Sat. Even though he works in Zurich, he makes regular trips back to catch up with old friends – both at the bar and at local festivals. “Lots of people I knew from Sat are now working backstage and on artist meet-and-greet at festivals like Caribana, Montreux and Paleo.” Jaggi will be there, behind his favorite bar, to mark Sat’s 35th anniversary celebrations.

Do you know Satellite at EPFL?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMCZWJMI_dQ&feature=youtu.be

Satellite 30th anniversary video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=iS5XgnZSol0