Whether it's your first Bonnaroo or you’re a music festival veteran, we welcome you to Inforoo.
Here you'll find info about artists, rumors, camping tips, and the infamous Roo Clues. Have a look around then create an account and join in the fun. See you at Bonnaroo!!
Post by dancinginthedark on Sept 1, 2008 11:26:40 GMT -5
Okay, so after attending this year's roo and suffering in a tent for four days, my friends and I have come up with an idea to actually assemble a stucture to stay in this go around. We are deliberating on how to build it, but it's going to be around 24' x15'. We're thinking we'll build it out of PVC pipe and hang tapestries for "walls" and make a roof out of tarp. we've also included a shower area where we can hang our solar bags. Of course, there is always the option of just taking like 3 EZ ups and putting them together, but the pipe just might be cheaper....the plan is not complete yet.
Anyway, my question is, would this be acceptable in tent only? I know that there is generally a lot of space, and we're going to have about six people in our group. I know that it would probably take up less room than all of our tents splayed out every where. It won't be any taller that an EZ up, so that won't really be an issue...
Has anyone ever tried this? Any tips out there? We're buying now since camping supplies are so cheap at the moment.
I'm not able to answer your question regarding tent-only... However, to be sure, there would have been NO way I could have gotten something that large set-up where I was parked. I had a 10x10 with a tarp at a 45* to the ground with my sleeping tent under the tarp/e-z up and well.... if I didn't hop on the land-grab I wouldn't have had enough space for even that.
I'd think the EZ-up idea would work better. In my exsperience, PVC is too flexible and won't hold up if/when a stiff wind picks up. Bonnaroo is in prime thunderstorm country andI'd be bvery worried about a collapse.
I'd try the EZ-up idea first and you might get some cheap EZ-ups at an end of summer sale.
Or even use the cheaper canopies with many parts. I found some pretty decent ones (like the ones I used for my first 4 Roos, see below) for $6 each at Big Lots the other day. I think they'd be no harder to assemble than PVC and not as flexible and less likely to collapse.
Last Edit: Sept 3, 2008 10:16:39 GMT -5 by troo - Back to Top
Post by crazykittensmile on Sept 3, 2008 19:46:33 GMT -5
a small group of EZups would be no problem, provided you get their early enough to find a spot that is big enough and offering some shade to shadeless neighbors would help keep the envy level down
yeah i agree ^^^^^^ my first year we had NO shade structure what so ever (i'm from canada and have only ever camped in a wooded area) and our neighbours had a sweet shade structure which seriously saved our asses the whole weekend
Post by belltwala1 on Sept 4, 2008 15:49:55 GMT -5
there was another thread here at some point about a dome structure. you can buy them online. im not suggesting you do that...im just saying that someone was thinking about this and it might be a good idea to try to find that thread.. i think if you can build it then it would be cool. i almost died getting my shade tent up this year - so ...if you can figure this one out then go for it...and invite me over!
yeah i agree ^^^^^^ my first year we had NO shade structure what so ever (i'm from canada and have only ever camped in a wooded area) and our neighbours had a sweet shade structure which seriously saved our donkeys the whole weekend
Ditto (about the neighbors with the shade, not about being from Canada, eh? ;D). I read these forums religiously for months before this year's roo, and even I was horrendously underprepared. Part of that was because I flew in and couldn't take that much stuff with me, but still, as a first timer, you never really know what to expect until you're there. You don't realize how much something like a hammer or baby wipes matters until you need it, or just how overwhelming the whole thing can be.
I'm not saying I won't make any mistakes next year, but now I've done it, I know what to do and what not to do, what to bring and what not to bring, etc. I've had time to recover, and I'm getting ready to do it all again next summer (providing the lineup appeals to me and I have the money, of course).
Last Edit: Oct 14, 2008 18:47:18 GMT -5 by jack324 - Back to Top
Post by TheToxicEuphoria on Oct 19, 2008 12:26:13 GMT -5
sounds like a good idea, actually. i saw quite a few fairly complex tent/tarp structures in tent only this year. i will definitely have to go with more than just a single leaky tent next time :/
Personally if I did not have a camper I would get a 10X20 foot shelter with sides and weight the corners down with some water jugs or stake it down to the ground (just incase the wind picks up). Then add some cots so you are not sleeping on the ground. This way you could have all your stuff (sleeping, table, chairs) under one roof. Especially if the weather turned, you would not need to run between your sleeping tent and shade tent. I would keep one of the narrow sides open and then you could even roll the other sides up a little to allow air to circulate.
Post by wonderhamster on Nov 13, 2008 10:20:46 GMT -5
I ended up taking this Coleman 14x14 dome canopy... It was love at first sight at the Bass Pro Shop and it turned out to be a *very* good investment. My tent is about 7'w x 11'L x 6'h and it fit perfectly on one side of the canopy, about 3/4 covered. Since there were only two of us, that left plenty of room under the shade, which we shared happily with our neighbors in tent-only. It is plenty big for a larger group, depending on how you arrange your other structures, and has the advantage of being shaped so as to give you some coverage when the sun is not directly overhead. You can also purchase side walls individually for about $20.
Post by elusiveboz on Nov 13, 2008 12:04:10 GMT -5
go with the e-z ups and a real big silver tarp over the top of those worked great for us the last 3 yrs... tent did not get wet at all last year if you get to tent only early enough should not be a problem with room just remember to think about your nieghbors in your plans
we had enough room to have tent and sitting area and part of the car covered
This word also has a underground meaning once you break it down. Let’s take “Bonn” for example and it actually turns into the word “Bone”. We all know gays use this word to describe the action of when they are fecal fisting their Cuban cabana boy at their sex bath house parties. Now let’s look at Roo, “Roo” is short for “Kangaroo”.So put the full true message together and you get“Bone a Kangaroo
Post by Steel_City_X on Nov 15, 2008 9:29:48 GMT -5
I am still undecided about tent, or RV area. I was in the RV area and probably missed out on some of the community, since we were spread out more.
I may try to join up with the Inforoo camping group next year. My dilemma is that due to sleep apnea, both my son and I need to have electricity. Now last year may neighbors were amazed at how quiet my generator was. And perhaps, in exchange for the joy of fans, lights, refrigerator, I might be able to join with a larger group this year.
Already trying to look at the need for bringing the trailer or not this year. could I pull it off without the trailer, or do I bag it and pay the extra fee to bring the trailer in, park it somewhere and hang out with an Inforoo group.
Post by dancinginthedark on Dec 2, 2008 23:32:57 GMT -5
Bug512-
That is an awesome structure and it's really cheap, considering the fact that an good EZ up wouldn't be much cheaper than that, and we would need three of them. I think we're going to go with that. Depending on how many people end up going, we may just get the other group to buy one, too so that everyone can camp together.
I'm excited now! Of course, we'll HAVE to decorate the outside with lots of paint and stuff. Are you guys in to help us decorate??? That's a huge, extremely white and boring, blank canvas.
Post by rideincircles on Jan 20, 2009 20:30:30 GMT -5
Also, when considering large amounts of shade, as soon as you park you need to stretch out the tarp or whatever to claim your space. We did that immediately, and they guy basically cut off any more cars in our area and we had tons of room. We brang a 10 x 20 carport and it was awesome, we basically kept our tent under there, and had a side shade tent. We did fence it off so no one would mess with it and put up a wall that made it semi-restrictive to our neighbors to block the sun. THe goal was to keep our stuff safe, our neighbor had his backpack stolen twice. there definitely was some thievery going on this year. Keep important stuff in the car.
I thought about putting together a PVC tent too, but after designing it and looking at prices it wasn't that much cheaper than an inexpensive shade shelter you can buy in the stores. That and I'm sure it wouldn't hold up nearly as well as an EZ Up. And if you're going to be in Tent Only the fewer pieces you have to bring the better. It'd be along hike with a whole bunch of awkward PVC pieces if you got stuck parked far away.
Post by contradictator on Feb 19, 2009 8:41:07 GMT -5
Built my own out of pvc in 2006, it worked well for the first 2 days, then requires some major duct taping to keep it up after some heavy winds, I could have made it sturdier but i was really just going for a box to drape tarps over. As someone noted, it was only a bit cheaper than some of the deals i have seen on EZ-ups. It provided good shade and i had the tarps setup so i could shift the shade to match the sun, but all in all i wouldnt do it again, i would invest in something made for that purpose.
After the wind blew it down the first time, it tillw orked but was a tad unstable, so i just pulled the tarps back before i left camp so it wouldnt blow away/over. I still have some of the pvc pipes and use them to fix things around my house sometimes, haha.
and offering some shade to shadeless neighbors would help keep the envy level down 
;D). I read these forums religiously for months before this year's roo, and even I was horrendously underprepared. Part of that was because I flew in and couldn't take that much stuff with me, but still, as a first timer, you never really know what to expect until you're there. You don't realize how much something like a hammer or baby wipes matters until you need it, or just how overwhelming the whole thing can be.
