any ideas on how to keep the dirty nasty tour rats out?

[ripfish]

I don't want my **** stolen or annoyed all fricking night :twisted:

[aesop435]

Personally, I think you better check that attitude before you leave your house to go to any festie no matter how large or small. \"Tour rats\" (brilliant) are part of the scene, and there's no exclusion of anyone. I run with a lot of kids that you would probably look at as \"tour rats\" that have never stolen a thing from anyone, keep drunken frat boys and other unwanted trash in check, clean up after said unwanted trash, and have a helpful hand for anyone who needs it. Kids are the lifeblood of the scene, period. None of this would happen without dreaddy, dirty hippie kids, and some are good and some are bad, just like every clique and strata of society. You don't want to be annoyed all night? I come to a fest to party. Haul your ass to quiet camping, that's why it's there. Don't want your stuff stolen? Tour kids get their stuff stolen, too. The only cure is vigilance. Lock it up. Or maybe you're getting taxed for being an ass. There's a certain dynamic to the scene that you obviously don't quite get. The best way to make sure all goes smoothly is to try to get along with your neighbors and not go throwing around terms like \"dirty nasty tour rat\".
As soon as you say someone isn't welcome you make yourself unwelcome, man.
That being said, I hope none of your stuff gets stolen and you have a sweet fest and you are not plagued by bad kids. It's not like I don't know they're out there. It ain't wonderland, but that's no reason to go all patriot act on the scene.

[montgomeryburns]

word

[Kindbud03]

tru dat

[meatstick]

word to your mother.

[PolyOntology]

I agree with aesop for the most part right there. That being said, it'd be cool if there was some medium between the \"obnoxious partying 24/7\" and \"family camping, needs to be quiet by 10PM\". Last year we had some pretty damn annoying people around us. At about 5AM, when that thunderstorm on Thursday finally stopped, we all thought we'd get to breathe a sigh of relief and get some sleep ...but there were a group of cokeheads very near us partying VERY loudly..lots of yelling. I don't think these were the typical tour rats..they seemed more like, to be blunt, white trash. I hope i'm lucky enough to avoid that next year

[JustBob]

The best dreaddy is a clean dreaddy :) I have much love for dreads that shower. I run into way too many that don't.

Bob

[Missouri Mitch]

A couple of years ago at the Great Blue Heron Festival in Sherman NY, I was up early buying a cup of coffee. After receiving my cup of brew, I reached up to my left to grab the creamer at the same time the guy in line behind me was ducking in to order his own cup of coffee. Unfortunately, his face and my shirtless armpit met head on. I immediately apologized for inadvertently sticking my armpit in his face. His reply...\"No problem. You look like a hippie, but at least you aren't one of the stinky ones!\"

Let's all be kind and enjoy the diversity that a festival provides.

[aesop435]

I really don't think that personal hygene is what this little thread is all about. I've already spoken my mind about ripfish's inane post and the subject in general but I think that sort of attitude is too corrosive to this scene to turn into a joke. Have we become so shallow that we can go from an issue of someone being prejudiced against one of its core elements and turn it into a tongue-in-cheek discussion of how often we shower? There's nothing funny about that.

[PolyOntology]

Yeah I don't care how much you shower. I don't even care if you wanna stay up 24/7 hanging out..but man...YELLING for long periods of time about 20 feet from me at 5AM when I'm trying to get at least enough rest to have energy to dance my ass off (since it is a festival) is... I don't know...a bit inconsiderate? I mean, like, beee goood phaamily duuude.

[kinderkitti]

I'm with polyo-had the same experience last year. It doesn't make me put all white trash/tour rats/trustafarians/insert your fave name here into THAT category but it does make me hope that history doesn't repeat itself.

[meatstick]

who cares what anyone else does.. there are going to be people everywhere that are completely different than you. who cares. what the hell does it matter if someone doesnt want to take a shower, or whatever. there is a certain level of mutual respect that we SHOULD have (i.e. yelling 20ft away at 5am). we are a different class of people, and we should be above worrying about the stupid stuff that some people do. to them its not stupid. to each his own.

[JustBob]

People not taking a shower is not a joke and I do care that they don't. Nothing sucks more then listening to a band and the stinky fool next to you makes it hard to enjoy the music.

aesop435, I think you are overreacting to what ripfish said. You and all your friends are welcome at this fest. Buy a ticket and come on out. Nobody is going to be at the gate doing \"tour rat\" check.

Bob

[aesop435]

It has been brought to my attention that I am in a \"pot calling the kettle black\" position by using the phrase \"drunken frat boys and other unwanted trash\" in my post above. Sorry. Seriously. I'm guilty of exactly the sort of name-calling I'm bitchin' about and that's not at all in the spirit of the attitude I'm trying to promote. Like I said, there's good and bad in every scene. Tossing slurs around isn't going to endear anyone to anyone else and I apologize if I offended anyone besides ripfish. :wink:
I'ma shut my big yapper now. Everyone have the best fest ever, and remember: \"the right to swing your fists ends where another's nose begins\".

[JustBob]

Can we all be happy(clean) people now?

[ryangetz]

as some have stated, this isnt about the hygeine of people, but about the RESPECT amongs our fellow concert goers...

i too had a group of people near me who thought it would be fun to start a drum circle at about 4am RIGHT next to my tent. needless to say everyone in the area got real pissed. i mean it was crazy, ****, there was a GIANT OPEN FIELD liek 20 yards away, why couldnt they just go over there!!!!!

[tourman]

I've been to a lot of festivals and the one thing that I've learned is that open communication with those around you can definitely increase your chances of getting a good night's rest. That and bringing some earplugs.

[ajones6]

[quote:d1062a1cd3=\"tourman\"]I've been to a lot of festivals and the one thing that I've learned is that open communication with those around you can definitely increase your chances of getting a good night's rest. That and bringing some earplugs.[/quote:d1062a1cd3]

Word. Last year, we had the exact same prob next to our tent after the storm. All I had to do was go out there and kindly ask them to move to a better spot... and they said \"Sure, sorry about that, we didn't know there was anyone in that tent.\"
Granted, it doesn't always work as well as it did for me that ONE night, but you have to at least let people know that you're there. I'm an earlybird/earlysleepy person, and I've found that the 70's style stereo headphones + earplugs works really well for fest. Schwagstock's drum circle never ceases until the sun peaks over the horizon. It's like a rule or something.

[Kindbud03]

[quote:665e7c1a7e=\"ajones6\"]Schwagstock's drum circle never ceases until the sun peaks over the horizon. It's like a rule or something.[/quote:665e7c1a7e]

exactly ajones,....I was just about to put something about that. It never seemed to bother me too much....and besides, if you wanna go to a festival then you'll have to deal with THE FESTIVAL. People having fun is just a part of every festival. Yes, given if someone's yelling outside your tent for no reason, then you can get mad. But fun/partying coincides with all festivals. My advice is to get up, get out of the tent and join the concert. When your worn out from partying it's impossible not to go to sleep no matter what happens to be going on.

[more Keller]

I think we should ALL try to spread a positive vibe, cause it tends to be contagious!!!! I think there are kind and unkind in every scene of life but the more we practice acceptance, peace and unity the better our world will be. BE GOOD FAMILY AND HAVE SWEET WAKA DREAMS!