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This was my 6th bonnaroo and for all the fun I had there was alot of things that pissed me off. Geting into centeroo was a pain in the ass and it felt more crowed this year I don't know if it was all the new venders or what but the tents were always over flowing. It was 5 hours to get in from wear the line started on exit 127 and a cluster fuck when you went past the check point, and the traffic hasn't been that bad since 03. The Police sucked Sing was uninspired and Andy Summers was so drunk he sounded like shit. Under cover cops in the campground I saw many of kids getting busted, but Spearhead rocked the Flaming Lips made my weekend. I will go back if next years line up is good and if bonnaroo gets their act together.
Post by oleander124 on Jun 18, 2007 16:11:24 GMT -5
For my first Roo, I have to say I was pretty disappointed and probably won't be going back.
1. We stayed at the Holiday Inn at exit 114. On Thursday morning we got into the line of traffic directly off the exit ramp, were directed past exit 111, past 110, then we were on our own. We had to drive all the way to 105, turn around, then saw the signs saying we had to go all the way to 127 to turn around and get in line again. There was no way in hell we were going to drive 15 miles back down the road, so I forced my bf to get off 117 and turn around there. Two hours later we were in our spot in Camp Chewbacca. This was absolutely ridiculous that they diverted us around all of the exits after we had been in line. f**king pissed us off.
2. Our neighbors sucked a$$. First of all, we were right beside the road. Our tent was about 5 feet from the road, so I had visions of our tent being run over by morons. The people across the street in the "Hillybilly Deluxe" truck (aka - a bunch of old nasty hippies in a truck named that) kept screaming at people all day. They flashed girls walking by, kept trying to get people to buy their moonshine, and would rate girls on their looks as they walked on by shouting out a number. Completely ridiculous. The people right beside us came in on Friday and they were loud the nights they were there. (They seemed to be fighting with each other on Sunday morning...there was a weird vibe with them that day. I heard one of them say they wished their friend would get back b/c they were thirsty. We gave them a big bottle of water b/c no one should be thirsty.)
3. Someone made fun of our screenhouse over our tent saying it was stupid to have a tent for your tent. It's called SHADE stupid a$$hole!
4. The security didn't know what in the hell they were doing. Thursday the girl at the other entrance to Centeroo told me I couldn't carry in my umbrella, but I was told my Bonnaroo that I could. I even emailed them to make sure I could as I can't handle the sun very well. I had to throw it away. At the entrance under the arch, one guy said that my plastic bags (that were carrying gold bond, hand wipes, baby wipes, etc) could be considered paraphenalia. WTF?????????????? He even told me I couldn't bring in my EMPTY water bottle.
5. I got very sick of being stepped over and stepped on by people coming in late to a show just to get in front of me when I got there early for my spot. Nothing pi$$es me off more.
6. I absolutely hate people that go to a show just to talk to each other, text message, or sleep. There was a couple on the ground right in front of me at the White Stripes that slept through the whole set!!! Why go to a show to sleep? Go to a shaded area instead!
I had a good time other than what I stated above. The heat was just way too much for me to take. I can't handle that stuff.
Best shows for me were the Police, Rocco deLuca, White Stripes, Lily Allen, and of course Regina Spektor! Love that girl! (I was extremely upset that we had to miss the Flaming Lips...by the time we got out from the Police, there was no where for us to go without being arseholes and pushing past everyone. They are my fav band, and I've seen them twice, but it's not the same listening to them from your campsite.)
despite the most enormous blister that made me hobble around like an 80 year old man on Sunday. Good times.
we would've hobbled together....blisters suck!
Oleander - I'm really bummed you had such a subpar experience. Having good neighbors is really a crap shoot, and it sounds like you had the worst of em. I didn't think I'd go back, but never say never. If another lineup comes up that you like, never rule it out, just rethink your strategy, if possible, and cross your fingers that Superfly makes some major changes to their strategy as well.
I'm going to e-mail Superfly in a couple weeks regarding the subpar VIP. It was still a million times better than my GA experience, but did not live up to years past.
We treat mishaps like sinking ships and I know that I don't want to be out to drift Well I can see it in your eyes like I taste your lips and They both tell me that we're better than this
I must be the only veteran who thinks that this was his favorite Bonnaroo. I didn't have a single problem with security, just emptied my pockets prior to getting to the gate and they always waved me right on through. Prior to Bonnaroo I thought this was the weakest lineup, but I ended up seeing more amazing shows than ever before. Getting in took a while, as expected, but we ended up with a great campsite not far from Centeroo. It did seem that there was a bunch of people just there to get fucked up, and there were a bunch of rude people at shows, but for the most part I thought that the crowd was great, much better than I felt about the crowd last year. Everyone seemed super pumped at all the shows I went to and you could tell that the bands appreciated it.
All in all, my 5th Bonnaroo was my favorite Bonnaroo.
Post by sparklybecca on Jun 18, 2007 16:13:46 GMT -5
^im sorry you had such crappy experiences..its so weird that ppl had such trouble getting into centeroo - maybe it was less bad for me cuz i went in on the side entrance near the other tent...almost every time. i was able to bring in my umbrella and basically everything i wanted too
oh, i also wanted to say that having an RV is AMAZING. this was my 3rd roo - first year with an RV. I felt rested when i woke up in the morning, I was able to cool off when i needed too, and it just made the dust/heat more bearable. if you have the means, i HIGHLY suggest it
Post by sparklybecca on Jun 18, 2007 16:16:02 GMT -5
thefrp said:
I must be the only veteran who thinks that this was his favorite Bonnaroo. I didn't have a single problem with security, just emptied my pockets prior to getting to the gate and they always waved me right on through. Prior to Bonnaroo I thought this was the weakest lineup, but I ended up seeing more amazing shows than ever before. Getting in took a while, as expected, but we ended up with a great campsite not far from Centeroo. It did seem that there was a bunch of people just there to get fucked up, and there were a bunch of rude people at shows, but for the most part I thought that the crowd was great, much better than I felt about the crowd last year. Everyone seemed super pumped at all the shows I went to and you could tell that the bands appreciated it.
All in all, my 5th Bonnaroo was my favorite Bonnaroo.
Also, I agree with you, i thought this years crowd was way better than last years crowd....
Ok, was my first 'Roo and I had an amazing time. It wasn't perfect but damn I thought it was great. We were in VIP as I knew GA would make me personally miserable and VIP turned out to be very cost effective anyway. Totally worth it! Many thanks to all who convinced me to do it.
The stuff I LOVED:
1. The shows, the bands, the music... Holy crap that White Stripes show was AWESOME! I only wish I had not been so tired by the time they rolled around. All I can say is DAMN! Also Superjam was awesome, The Roots kicked major ass, and I absolutely was ecstatic just to wander around and catch a random act I had never seem and just sit in awe. Gogol Bordello stunned me and I happened across them completely by accident. Friends dragged us to The Dynamites late one night in the Troo and that show was fantastic. If anything the music was too good!
2. The people, my neighbors, the scene. Most people I met and saw were cool. Yah, there were some jerks to be sure, but 90% of the folks were very cool and nice. The fact that some pricks (hello to all of those who bring chairs then STAND on them) try to ruin the experience is a bummer, but for every one such jerk I found nine awesome people. I LOVED the folks who sat down to eat near us and would chat about who they saw and what they loved and what they were excited to see. I was stoked when I would say hi to someone while we were waiting for a show to start and they would turn us on to some great band coming up later we should check out. Most of the people were awesome. I just wish the jerks didnt stand out so much!
3. The food, esp. VIP food. Ok, first let me say that I know logistics was a problem, but the quality of the food in VIP was really good in my opinion. The burgers were not so hot and I think any kind of pork is a bad idea for mass catering (whose idea was that?!) but the chicken, fish, vegetables, salad, spicy tofu thing, and most of the VIP food was pretty good. Centeroo food was also pretty good but we only ate a couple things. Oooooooohhhhhh Yummy Crepes with green tea before Superjam = Resurrection! The breakfast sandwiches by the Sonic Stage were good too.
Ok and here is the not-so-nice stuff, or my list of major issues:
1. The dust. I had a bandana, wore it almost constantly, usually wet, and still got the cough. I dont know the solution but this needs work.
2. The whiners (esp. in VIP). I don't mean to tick anybody off, and I am sorry if this sounds kind of harsh coming from a new guy at his first 'Roo, and I totally agree that there are legit complaints, but I don't want anyone to sit down next to me in the middle of Bonnaroo and start bitching about how this year sucks and previous years were better and they wont be back. Yah, complain on the boards when 'Roo is over if ya want, and definitely complain to AC and the management during and after the event, but dude, during Bonnaroo I am trying to have fun, wth?! When we are all at 'Roo having a great time, I dont want to hear how someone is so disappointed with the headliners or how ridiculous the wait for food is. I was most aggravated by the number of people who seemed more interested in being pissed off over relatively little stuff than having a good time. Damn, I was having a GREAT time until this aholio sat down and started griping at me. Couldn't he have had something cool or neat to share? Save your gripes for AFTER 'Roo or for the management. As a matter of fact, I told more than one person they should just take their complaint to the VIP supervisor trailer and very few seemed interested in that. I suppose that was the real thing that got me. Pissed off people who wanted to bitch at me but had no interest in taking it up with the VIP supervisor. Seemed like VIP had a TON of these people but I dont know if it was any worse than GA.
3. Logistics. Just all the way around they need to work on logistics. Everything from the traffic to the med tents (is it true they ran out of inhalers?) to the scheduling to security to organizing VIP food seemed to be a mess. Toilets and showers in VIP seemed fine, but lots of other issues elsewhere. Staff were obviously poorly informed and on-site communication was bad. I saw the Manchester paper reported that the head of the medical services or security or someone similar was completely unaware of the Friday morning fatality even six hours after he had been officially pronounced dead at the hospital. If that is true, it is a pretty damning statement of the disorganization. At first I was frustrated, as I tend to prefer hyper-organization, but after the Thursday night food line I just let myself live in the semiorganized chaos and figured I would treat every event as a unique and non-binding occurrence. In other words, expect no order, rhyme, reason, or consistency. Once I bought into that, it was all cool and I just dealt with each security person or whatnot as if it was a totally different set of rules and played along. No problems at all. Still, they really do need to work on their logistics a good deal. Of course, I don't do or carry anything that would ever get me into trouble, so things are easier for me than some others.
Overall? I had a truly AWESOME time. I mean, AWE INSPIRING. It has been years since I had so much fun and met so many cool people in such a short period of time. Not only did it convince me to go again next year, but it convinced me and my wife to check out AllGood to see if it can be another great experience.
Thanks to all the Inforooers out there for helping us prep for our first time! I'm sorry I didnt get to meet any of you but I hope to next year!
But I've heard voices not in the head Out in the air they called ahead Through ripped out speakers Through thick and thin They found a shelter Under my skin -Evgeny Aleksandrovitch Nikolaev
This being my first Bonnaroo, I had no expectations for what was going to happen. However I had a great time, and got a great campsite. Just on the corner of Shakedown St. and East 3rd St. As for the dust, it didn't really bother me at all. For the longest time I thought all the people with bandanas over their faces were just being goofy, but I guess some can't handle it.
As for security, I didn't have a problem at all and thought the staff were all very nice, and I guess again I just got lucky with that. The lines for Centeroo were long, but I expected that and didn't give it a second thought. Food was good(especially the vendor selling Gator tail) and priced very fairly given how big Bonnaroo is.
My only complaints were with the rude people at Bonnaroo. Don't push your damn way through the crowd just because you want a better view. If you didn't get there early enough then tough shit. Also, just because there might be standing room in the crowd, yet EVERYONE ELSE is sitting, you don't mosey your way through the crowd and then stand up in front of people, thats just rude. Lastly, don't give people attitudes when they are trying to leave the set, they need to get out so don't be a prick to them and not get out of the way, and if they apologize if they bump into you or step on you, don't give them a "You better be sorry" look or overexaggerate that it really hurt you.
Given that was a long paragraph on rude people, I would say that would only constitute about 5% of the people I encountered at Bonnaroo, everyone else was very nice.
As for the wait in line, it wasn't so bad. I got to Manchester around 8am Thursday, and instead of waiting at exit 121 on I-24 West I just drove down the highway until I found a big enough space to fit into for a shorter wait which was around exit 114. (Please don't get mad at me for this. I just thought ahead)
Overall I had a GREAT time at my first Bonnaroo and will return each year until I get tired of it.
Post by roolacksreality on Jun 18, 2007 17:29:08 GMT -5
I thought security from Thursday through Friday was awful. Whoever told the staff to search everyone, or which staff member who thought it would be cool, is/ are morons. But I won't complain too much because I always look for quick-moving lines, which helps out so much. I noticed Saturday and Sunday's searches were much better and things moved much more smoothely.
The What Stage sound was not very good and it went silent on more than one occasion.
Staff in general were not very good. Many of them didn't know anything and looked as if they had never been to a music festival period. The thing that really made me mad was when Ornette Coleman fainted and no festival employees did anything helpful for a good while.
Aside of the dust, which truck or no truck is hard to control, the weather was alright. Thursday, Friday and Saturday were still hot, but the humidity was not oo bad. Sunday was a different story, though. We could have used more rain but a drought is a drought.
I see more and more people who IMO shouldn't be there, but no one really bothered me personally, it's just my perseption.
The fact that Superfly/ AC Ent. are cracking down on security is stupid and bound to fail. Similar to the real "war on drugs".
Seeing this year's Shakedown was disappointing. The absense of and clandestineness of glass was a sad sight. Last night I was looking at pieces and when horses came by they would turn the lights off and we would have to stay still and quiet to avoid being seen. Last night I went to the end of Shakedown, and took a right at the road. As I continued to browse I noticed a drastic increase of "taboo" items that should have been abundant on the main drag. I went down the last road, to the end of the broken-up Shakedown to find what it was the previous years. By this I mean even more glass, shaddy characters, more underground food vendors, tee-shirt salesmen, etc. I was happy to see that the memorable element to the festival was still present, but very unhappy to see that Superfly/ AC Ent. are trying to hide all of that away from the crowds.
Late night shows this year were amazing. The Galactic show on Saturday night was my favorite of the entire weekend. Many others were great too, like Mago, Superjam, Rod y Gab, and DJ Shadow. The crowds were so into the music. The overall vibes were amazing.
I never had any major problems with this year, aside of the poor excuse for and broken-upness of Shakedown, this is just stuff I noticed. I had so much fun and we prepared so well and had the ultimate set up with 5-Day Coolers so our food never went bad. The weekend flew by and I'll most likely be back next year. I also discovered so much new music and found the line up and scheduling to be pretty reasonable.
On the other hand...Superfly/ AC Ent. need to cut back on searches and vending restrictions, bring back Shakedown, and hire people who know what they are doing. I have heard so many complaints about that stuff this year. I would not be shocked if there was an article about this stuff on Jambase.com that mentions these things. I would also not be shocked to get an apology in some way, shape, or form for Superfly/ AC Ent. similar to the one from the Wakarusa performers.
2. Our neighbors sucked a$$. First of all, we were right beside the road. Our tent was about 5 feet from the road, so I had visions of our tent being run over by morons. The people across the street in the "Hillybilly Deluxe" truck (aka - a bunch of old nasty hippies in a truck named that) kept screaming at people all day. They flashed girls walking by, kept trying to get people to buy their moonshine, and would rate girls on their looks as they walked on by shouting out a number. Completely ridiculous. The people right beside us came in on Friday and they were loud the nights they were there.
We had one of those guys come through our camp. His name was Rainbow...or "Rain" for short. We gave him a shish-ka-bob 'cause we cooked up so many and he told us to come by the Hillbilly Deluxe for some moonshine. Walked past their camp many times but didn't bother to stop.
Post by TheFudgeFactory on Jun 18, 2007 17:46:36 GMT -5
papacat said:
2. The whiners (esp. in VIP). I don't mean to tick anybody off, and I am sorry if this sounds kind of harsh coming from a new guy at his first 'Roo, and I totally agree that there are legit complaints, but I don't want anyone to sit down next to me in the middle of Bonnaroo and start bitching about how this year sucks and previous years were better and they wont be back. Yah, complain on the boards when 'Roo is over if ya want, and definitely complain to AC and the management during and after the event, but dude, during Bonnaroo I am trying to have fun, wth?! When we are all at 'Roo having a great time, I dont want to hear how someone is so disappointed with the headliners or how ridiculous the wait for food is. I was most aggravated by the number of people who seemed more interested in being pissed off over relatively little stuff than having a good time. Damn, I was having a GREAT time until this aholio sat down and started griping at me. Couldn't he have had something cool or neat to share? Save your gripes for AFTER 'Roo or for the management. As a matter of fact, I told more than one person they should just take their complaint to the VIP supervisor trailer and very few seemed interested in that. I suppose that was the real thing that got me. Pissed off people who wanted to bitch at me but had no interest in taking it up with the VIP supervisor. Seemed like VIP had a TON of these people but I dont know if it was any worse than GA.
I think that I heard the same guy complaining about the VIP. He must have went on for about 30-40 min. and everytime someone new would sit down he would start over. He kept complaining about the food(yet he went up for multiple plates), and the lines for the food. I actually liked how they had a bigger tent setup for the food part and how they had multiple stations, I never had a problem with a long wait in the lines, I would walk right up each time.
Overall, out of the three years I have went, this was probably the my favorite one!
What happens if my tee shot lands on a bird's back and he carries it out of bounds but then is attacked by a larger bird who grabs the ball and drops it in the hole? Is that still a hole in one? 'Cause that's how I'm gonna play it.
This was my first roo, but it was awesome minus a few things. The first time I went into centeroo my pipe and my ganja were taken. Boo. My cigg box was checked nearly every time I entered also. We also had security people in our camp ground within an hour of setting up over a bag of buds and nothing more. That calmed down though. My neighbors were crack heads (eek) and my friends were complaining that there was far less glass this year than last year. My car, for whatever reason, became the nitrous head quarters for the guys with the tanks. All hours of the night and day I had people getting balloons right next to my camp site, which I wouldnt have been bothered by if I didn't have to hear "STOP STOP A CAR" every few minutes. Those are about the only things I could even start to complain about though. BROO!
I guess my worst thing was not getting to meet a lot of Inforoosters, not being on the phone list and all and Tent Only being so crowded that when I wen to Camp Inforoo there was not a lot of room to stay.
Other than that the line to get into Centeroo were horrible I went 4 times Thursday, stood in line for 15 minutes and gave up and went back to camp. I eventually learned to go in the middle of shows. There were more rude people this year also. The dust was crazy. By Sunday I had to leave early because I still had a touch of the flu and the dust had me coughing so bad my lungs are still killing me.
The up side is I had an amazing campsite right between the 2 entrances and great nieghbors. My Fave show was Rodrigo y Gabriela. I'm still in awe. Late night was also the best. All in all I saw fewer bands than previous but more AMAZING shows. All and all I had a blast.
You'll all be glad to know the extra water and food I brought went to a good cause as, being close, I had a lot of hitchhikers and people you climbed the fence camping near by and they needed the extra supplies.
I had really mixed feelings about my first Roo. It was a really great experience in many ways, but I was very ready to come home, and I don't think I will go again unless its free - and that includes all the supplies and food I spent my money on.
Things that were good: 1. My number one thing that I liked about Roo was our neighbors. To one side of us was a big group of nice enough people, college age I think, but we didn't really talk to them. But on the other side was this mid-30s couple, the wife's sister and their friend. They seemed pretty surburban but they expanded their minds hardcore all weekend. I just loved them to death because, first of all, they were the most generous and kind people I think I have ever met. They would have given us the shirts off their backs. They shared EVERYTHING with us. They seriously made our Bonnaroo. But the biggest thing was that my 15 year old brother has been pretty narrow minded thanks to my conservative parents. He was very much of the DARE mindset - that anyone who uses substances is a bad person, doesn't have a job, etc. These people work hard, have a family (that they left at home, how it should be, IMO!) and are very intelligent and kind people. And he loved that they didn't talk down to him because he was young. They had great conversations and I think he came away from Roo a much more open-minded person because of them. Thanks, Dwayne and Julie!
2. The music, of course! I told my friend that was with me, its like you become numb to amazing music because you are so saturated in it. Our favorite show was Franz Ferdinand, which we weren't expecting, but the energy in the crowd and on the stage was amazing. We danced the entire time. We also loved Sam Roberts Band on Thursday night, and we'd never heard them before. I didn't see The Roots, but my brother LOVED them and couldn't stop raving. What we saw of The Flaming Lips was super good. The Decemberists were great, as expected, too. I just loved laying in the shade somewhere and napping with awesome music in the background, though.
3. The vast majority of Rooers were normal, kind people. We had a lot of great, random conversations with people and for the most part people were nice. I felt like there was a large number of older people - 40's and up - that were quite "square" but taking this opportunity to relive their youth. I didn't see as many hippies as I was expecting and had no run-ins with wooks. Whether that's a good thing I don't know but for us the crowd was happy and diverse and we liked that.
Things that weren't so good:
1. The dust. It was SO bad. At one point, I was laying down at the Fiest show and I couldn't breathe at all, I had to move somewhere else. Its not really anyone's fault but its something that definitely took away from my experience.
2. The heat. During Ziggy Marley - a show I was looking forward to - I just passed out. Not like dramatic fainting but I laid down and just went unconscious. I couldn't handle the heat. We didn't bring spray bottles for water which are definitely more than neccesary to stay cool. I'm just not a "roughin' it" type girl and the heat just made me so miserable.
3. Like others have said, perhaps I was naive but I was really surprised by how many people were not there for the music. It seems like a lot of money to pay just so you can party. We saw several people who did not look okay and while a lot of it was the heat, and I have nothing against expanding your mind, I just thought it was a shame that the music was not really the focus for a lot of people. I was sober for most of Roo and it made me feel out of place at times - like I shouldn't be at Roo if I'm not interested in eating fungus.
4. The lines into Centeroo were crazy. On Friday around noon it took us about an hour just to get through the arch. Three people passed out, and nothing was done - another complaint I have. I felt like they should have been more consistent. Sometimes they would look really thoroughly and have these stupid long conversations, and then other times they would just let people walk through without looking at their stuff. This one guy pissed me off because he was on this power trip. He was like, "I know you probably have stuff that you shouldn't have, so just tell me what it is and where it is and I can probably let you keep it, if its not a lot," yada yada yada. Basically saying everything that is unspoken but known at Roo. He could have saved a lot of time but saving his spiel. We didn't have anything but the girl in front of us that he said this to did, and he did this big show of evaluating whether they were going to sell it when it was obvious that it was just for them. It was just stupid stuff like that that got everyone backed up.
5. The security and information people seemed kinda pointless. The mounted patrol did nothing when three people passed out in line to Centeroo. They said medics were coming but they didn't, that we saw, and I felt like they should have gotten those people and taken them to a medical tent instead of just sitting there on their horses, laughing and talking. Also, we were trying to leave on Saturday night and none of the people at our pod gave us any constructive advice. I feel like they should have been way better trained. Also, I read on Inforoo about medics going around checking on people but we never saw that, even when there were people that were obviously not okay. On Thursday night this poor guy was tripping and walking around naked all alone, looking miserable, and even though people went and talked to security nothing was done for the guy for at least half an hour. In those conditions, and knowing people will be on druqs, I feel like making sure everyone is okay should have been a bigger priority.
6. We couldn't leave until Sunday when we wanted to leave on Saturday night, because parking was done so poorly. We were way in BFE - 81 - which sucked but we dealt with it. But I think because it was way out they just let everyone do what they wanted, which meant we were hopelessly blocked in by cars and tents and there was no way for us to get out until people on the edges started leaving. They need to insure that there are paths left so people can leave.
7. The prices were insane. I spent so much money it was crazy. $4 for a slice of pizza?! $11 for a burrito?! $6 for one beer?! It was just ridiculous. And because getting into Centeroo was such a pain in the ass, we couldn't go to Shakedown (or "Fakedown") for food and come back. The food was good but I'm so poor now!
So... all things considered, I am glad I went and I had a really good time but I don't think I want to go back. But thanks so much to everyone here who helped out so much in making sure we were prepared!
I had a great time at bonnaroo. It was my first time so i dont have anything to base it off of from past experience, only my thoughts on this one. I only had two encounters with jerks pushing in front of us, one at the white stripes and one at Rod y Gab, other than that i thought everyone was really cool. I had a couple of really cool security people who didnt bother me, but only 1 jerk in particular (and he was an Auburn fan at that..I'm a Bama fan) who pulled my Burger King guy costume out and said "What is this" i told him my costume for the night, and he rolled his eyes and said "stupid...go through" and handed it back to me. I told him he was there to check me out, not give me his opinion on what i was bringing in. Also finished it off with a little roll tide for him. I thought the people were great. Funniest moment for me was at the police when a guy with the "I'm thinking arby's" icon over his head walked by. I threw on the king outfit and ran up and tapped him on the shoulder. Hillarity insued from there, and we were both crying laughing so hard. My favorite quote was some girl who walked by and said "I'm so fucked up, i swear i just saw the BK guy." It was great for conversation, and tons of people came by and asked for pictures, etc. Cant wait for next year.
"When I was 4 years old, they tried to test my IQ. They showed me a picture of three oranges and a pear. They asked me which one is different, and does not belong. They taught me different....is wrong." -- Ani Difranco
This was my 6th bonnaroo and for all the fun I had there was alot of things that pissed me off. Under cover cops in the campground I saw many of kids getting busted,
Yeah, I had a great time other than seeing my friends get fu*ked over by an undercover sheriff. What a load of crap.
Oh, and Oleander, sorry you had such a load to bear. I know the people you're talking about, and it sucks that you had to deal with that crap, but please don't let that stop you from trying again. Good people were there too, and all we wanted was to have a good time and ensure that everyone else around us did too.
It sounds like several people had some of the same issues as me, which is both comforting and a bit disturbing. I realize there are several issues that are out of the hands of the organizers (such as the weather) but some things they definately can address. I encourage everyone to send an email to AC entertainment telling them of their experiences. In general I think everyone had a good time, but no one should have to endure being called a prick my security for doing nothing more than trying to get into a festival they paid several hundred dollars to attend. AC entertainment needs to be aware that the staff was unhelpful (in many instances) and that there seemed to be a lack of coordination. Hopefully they will take our words to heart and try to do something about it next year.
Post by mikesworld420 on Jun 18, 2007 19:20:46 GMT -5
hornet said:
Had a fantastic time, I held up better than I did the last two years, experience has taken me a long way at the Roo. I knew the dust was going to be bad and the dust doesn't really bother me. Security was not very good, there seemed to be problems with getting people through in a timely matter, the lines were definitiely ridiculous. THe thing that bothered me the most was, they need more water stations. They took the one away from the What stage area and only had two in Centeroo. Two water stations for 80,000 people? Come on Bonnaroo, it's hot, people need water. Also noticed the prices on food went up a bit, but that''s to be expected. My biggest concern was about the water, just need to solve that. Overall I had a fantastic time, I love the Roo and hope to be back next year.
Post by mikesworld420 on Jun 18, 2007 19:23:23 GMT -5
joereefer said:
I exalted you piercedjp, cuz I completely agree. The staff this year were complete power-trippin assholes imo. Examples:
Wednesday night every pulls in...the parking staff is directing traffic, telling people where to park etc...A couple cars try to park next to their friends, and the staff runs up to them waving his light sticks in the air and yelling and screaming wildly saying they need to get back to the END OF THE LINE or just to get off the property and stay off. I realize they're just directing traffic and it could mess them up a little if someone goes off on their own, but there was no need for the scene the staff member made.
At the smoker's lounge...The staff member asks the guy next to me what smokes he wants, he says 'i don't know i didn't know you had this many flavors' so the kind lady runs down the list and describes them all to him. Then a different staff member comes to me...'What cigarettes do you prefer' she asks...and I'm like well, I'd like to try somethin new, what all kinds do you have and she snaps back at me like a total bitch with 'I asked what kind do you prefer'...like screw what kind I prefer, I already have those. I went there to get something different. I thought that was the whole point of the smoker's lounge, that and too turn you on to American Spirits - but I ended up just leaving with some more menthols (my regular kind).
Also, the lack of communication between the mounted patrol and staff members and the real police was unreal. The police had no problems with us riding in the back of a pick up truck, nor did any mounted patrol, or the guys taking tickets at the gate - but every OTHER staff member we encountered told us we had to get out, and couldn't ride in the back. Some just told us to sit all the way down, some just waved us by, but at least half told us to get out (yes, we kept getting back in and so we got told many times we had to get out LOL)...I just think at least security wise, everyone should be on the same page. Though I didn't see ANY arrests like the OP, I'm sure there was.
And yes the amount of dust was outrageous - and lack of glass was just sad.
Sorry this was a long ranting post - I wasn't gonna post it until piercedjp started the thread
Where did you look? I saw several glass pieces, even some for five dollars.
Had a great time overall. This was my second Roo in a row. My experience from last year and learning more from Inforoo this year was a big help.
I agree that Shakedown lost a little bit of its character compared to '06.
Occasionally the staff had an "I don't care" attitude this year. It might have been the miserable weather. Most of them seemed burnt out and unhelpful. I wish they could have trained/informed the security, volunteers and other staff to do their jobs better.
I brought (snuck in) in my umbrella Friday, Saturday and finally it was taken away Sunday afternoon. That little shade was a lifesaver, along with my squirt waterbottle/fan. I saw a lot of suffering people without shade in the Which tent area. Next year they should give away free sun screen and build shade areas.
I have been thinking about the stepped up security and the extra busts and undercover cops I keep hearing about... I have to wonder if AC/Superfly did not get squeezed by the authorities about the rumored of druq use at broo (and mind you its only a vicious rumor with no truth to it). It would not be hard for the Feds or even the Tenn state atty gen to lay some serious heat on AC/Superfly, especially since they bought the property and could have concerns about asset forfeiture that they did not face when they were renting...
But I've heard voices not in the head Out in the air they called ahead Through ripped out speakers Through thick and thin They found a shelter Under my skin -Evgeny Aleksandrovitch Nikolaev
I had a mediocre time this year.....I worked a beer booth....Security and gate access folks were damn rediculous this year...depending on who was there if you had to walk 2 miles or 2 hundred yards.....The bands were good.....the weather sucked, all in all...... I don't think I'm going back next year. To much BS....4th and probly final one.
i'm pretty happy and content with my first bonnaroo. there were a couple of minor things, like the centeroo security guy taking my glow sticks ( 5 coleman camping glow sticks, not the throw in the air at SCI kind ) for one. The crowd was younger than i expected, seemed like there were a lot of teenagers. tent only wasn't bad, but we decided we're definitely RV'ing it next year. The dust was horrible, but what are you going to do about it. I came in wednesday night, the wait wasn't bad, security was in a good mood. left out around 1630 on sunday and it was easy getting out. the best part about all of it tho.....getting to hang out with one of my best friends the entire time. i hadn't seen her in about a year and a half, so that was, without a doubt, the highlight of bonnaroo 2007 for me. ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
"White collar conservative flashin down the street, pointing that plastic finger at me, they all assume my kind will drop and die, but I'm gonna wave my freak flag high." Jimi Hendrix
2. They also provided bigger/more tents for food, but that made the place hardly air condidtioned, and the quality of the food was worse. I also saw a few red and yellow bracelets snagging meals in there. 3. Rv and Camping was mixed, and though we didn't mind too much some people were stuck listening to generators running all day and night. 4. Another problem was security. One of the perks to vip is NOT being searched. On the first couple days (especially with the whole tool and no cameras/flashlight crap) they were searching us as throughly as GA. 5. The biggest problem was check in. I think they changed it around so that the people arriving for check-in wouldn't cause traffic for the town but after check-in trying to head to camp was INSANE. I partly blame the state troopers for this...they were everywhere but it took them 3hrs to figure out there was a problem and even then there were only a couple who were trying to fix the problem ...I certainly saw all their cars but where were the officers themselves!?
3. I think the younger high school/college crowd were to blame for a lot of the rudeness. It seems it's really cool to be into music right now, so i can only figure a certain % of kids were there because it's cool and their friends were going, not because they are passionate about the music. Plus a lot of young people are rude in general.... I'm 21 and can't stand most people my age or younger because of this.
So all in all, I think security/staff problems created the most complaints, but we still had an amazing time. I love 'roo for the life style it creates. When I leave, i'm left pondering my own life and searching for ways to make my everyday life as great as it is when I'm at roo.
god, what a whiner, why didnt you go taddle on the people stealing food from the VIP tent? Its crazy to think that you can complain about the rudeness as you complain about "thieves" in VIP. If you want better service you should drop the VIP pass and bring your own food, and a maid. Some of you VIP cats just dont get it.........
LINES: everytime I wanted to go into centeroo I went in the second, smaller entrance, never had to wait more than ten minutes.
UNDERCOVER COPS: are they allowed to do this on private property? Also, whats to stop one from just running away from a UC cop?