Anyway, exactly this time last
week I was pouring pint after pint of cider, it was pissing down like the world
was going to end and U2 were giving it some serious welly on the main stage.
More of that later.
As I couldn't get tickets as a punter I ended up working as a volunteer for a charity to get to Glasto. This entailed working 3 x 8 hour shifts in a bar anytime between Wednesday to Sunday. The charity get money for providing the staff to a bar company. In turn, I had to pay a deposit to the same value as a festival ticket (£250) and provided I did my shifts ok I will get my money back. Working for my passage so to speak. The only downside was that until I got there would not know what shifts I would be working. The upside was that I could at least get there and have secure camping, free hot meals, hot showers, flushing toilets and in reality a free ticket to the whole shebang.
As it got closer and closer to the time to go I was becoming a bit wobbly about going by myself (Amy & her mate didn't want to go & work it and were both skint anyway) and I was a bit concerned about stating that I had 7 years bar experience. (I do but didn't tell them it was over 20 years ago). However, due to Amy’s moral support I.e. “don’t be such a wuss”, I plucked up enough courage to wing it.
As I couldn't get tickets as a punter I ended up working as a volunteer for a charity to get to Glasto. This entailed working 3 x 8 hour shifts in a bar anytime between Wednesday to Sunday. The charity get money for providing the staff to a bar company. In turn, I had to pay a deposit to the same value as a festival ticket (£250) and provided I did my shifts ok I will get my money back. Working for my passage so to speak. The only downside was that until I got there would not know what shifts I would be working. The upside was that I could at least get there and have secure camping, free hot meals, hot showers, flushing toilets and in reality a free ticket to the whole shebang.
As it got closer and closer to the time to go I was becoming a bit wobbly about going by myself (Amy & her mate didn't want to go & work it and were both skint anyway) and I was a bit concerned about stating that I had 7 years bar experience. (I do but didn't tell them it was over 20 years ago). However, due to Amy’s moral support I.e. “don’t be such a wuss”, I plucked up enough courage to wing it.
Well, although there were free
coaches to Glasto they were only running from Sheffield & London. This
entailed a two hour trip to Sheffield on Tuesday afternoon to leave there at 7
pm for an arrival time of about midnight. Everyone on the coach seemed younger,
considerably younger, in fact than me. I felt like a collective Dad so to speak.
Most of them seemed to be student-y age with a few couples in their mid
thirties-ish.Still made me about 15 years older than them.However,being as cool
as fuck and right on the cutting edge has never been a problem for me.(Oh,the
irony). The coach was full, about 50 or so and ten minutes into the journey our
shifts were handed out. I had dropped for Thursday 11 am to 7 pm (ok as nothing
really kicks off till Friday) but then Friday 7 pm-3 am and Saturday 7 pm to 3
am again. Bollocks. This would mean I would miss both U2 and Coldplay and all
of Friday and Saturday night. (U2 and Coldplay but still...).The good thing was
that come Saturday I would be done and have all Sunday free. The rest of the
trip was just like any other coach trip-down the motorway, snatches of sleep, half
hour break at the services (leg stretch/toilet break/coffee/ciggie) until we
arrived at Glasto at about 11.45.The whole site was sparkling in the
darkness though any euphoria dissipated as there was loads of messing around to
get to our campsite, get us the correct wristbands and check all our i/ds. This
took till about 12.30 which meant that cack-handed me took till 1.15 am in the
dark to get my "easy pop up" tent up and "easy blow up" air
bed inflated. A cup of brandy from the neighbours in the next tent helped
things work out ok and I was in a knackered haze by the time I finally crashed
at 2.00 ish.
Wednesday morning. Woke at 7 ish to grey skies and thick cloud. Not good but no rain. Yet. After a great cooked breakfast in the mess tent popped out for a ciggie and light rain was falling. The ground was turning increasingly soft and it was a case for wellies.Wellies that would stay on my feet for the four days and which I grew to loathe with a vengeance. After a briefing about what teams and bars we would be working (there were about 500 volunteers overall covering loads of bars) we all had to trudge off to our bars with the respective bar managers to see the ropes etching was assigned to the "Music and Cider bar" which meant that a) music would be played at all times (Djs/bands etc) and I would be serving cider.Only cider. Nothing else. No soft drinks. No water. Nothing but cider. It was like cider, cider everywhere and not a drop to drink. I never ever want to eat or drink another apple based product for as long I live. One brand only and only either pints or halves. All the prepping I did beforehand to find out from Thomas & Amy what exactly "the kids” were drinking these days had counted for nothing! By the time we had been shown how to pull a pint (by pressing one button and dispensing 12 in one go) and how to work the till (press one button for a pint etc) it was 12 ish and it had now been gently drizzling for 4 hours. Outside the ground was turning more and more soft and muddy. Wandered around a bit of the site for the afternoon- bite to eat, coffee etc.Chatted to a few people.One of the stewards told me that even by the Wednesday afternoon bearing in mind that nothing really kicks off till Friday there were already 120,000 people on site (overall its 180,000 when full) and some of the camping fields were already full.Back to the site for evening meal-in the mud this now was an hour’s stretch and knackering.Our site was just outside the main fence and would have been a half hour walk in good conditions but in mud it was twice as long. I was going to go back for a wander round during the evening but being generally knackered after the travelling the day before and sleeping in a tent that was in fact slightly too small decided to hit the sack early-ish.
Thursday. Well, after a crap night’s sleep (I was full of cold before I went) coughing and sneezing through the wee small hours got up at 7 ish.Muddy wellies on again.Breakfast,Shower-good and hot. Back out in the mud again and glooped my way to the bar. Nothing to really say about the work except that for 8 hours I slapped out pint after pint of cider in paper cups. Having to check i/d for people I couldn't possibly guess their age anyway! By the time the shift ended at 7 I never wanted to see another cider as long as I lived. Glooped the way back to the site. Couldn’t be arsed in seeing anything else that night. Evening meal & chats all round till about midnight. Back of my mind-next day I would be working till 3 am and wanted to see some acts in the day before I started work. Squeezed back into the tent. Mud getting everywhere. Time to sleep anyway.
"Turn Left at the Womble" can be got here :
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Turn-Left-The-Womble-ebook/dp/B0060YCKGW
Wednesday morning. Woke at 7 ish to grey skies and thick cloud. Not good but no rain. Yet. After a great cooked breakfast in the mess tent popped out for a ciggie and light rain was falling. The ground was turning increasingly soft and it was a case for wellies.Wellies that would stay on my feet for the four days and which I grew to loathe with a vengeance. After a briefing about what teams and bars we would be working (there were about 500 volunteers overall covering loads of bars) we all had to trudge off to our bars with the respective bar managers to see the ropes etching was assigned to the "Music and Cider bar" which meant that a) music would be played at all times (Djs/bands etc) and I would be serving cider.Only cider. Nothing else. No soft drinks. No water. Nothing but cider. It was like cider, cider everywhere and not a drop to drink. I never ever want to eat or drink another apple based product for as long I live. One brand only and only either pints or halves. All the prepping I did beforehand to find out from Thomas & Amy what exactly "the kids” were drinking these days had counted for nothing! By the time we had been shown how to pull a pint (by pressing one button and dispensing 12 in one go) and how to work the till (press one button for a pint etc) it was 12 ish and it had now been gently drizzling for 4 hours. Outside the ground was turning more and more soft and muddy. Wandered around a bit of the site for the afternoon- bite to eat, coffee etc.Chatted to a few people.One of the stewards told me that even by the Wednesday afternoon bearing in mind that nothing really kicks off till Friday there were already 120,000 people on site (overall its 180,000 when full) and some of the camping fields were already full.Back to the site for evening meal-in the mud this now was an hour’s stretch and knackering.Our site was just outside the main fence and would have been a half hour walk in good conditions but in mud it was twice as long. I was going to go back for a wander round during the evening but being generally knackered after the travelling the day before and sleeping in a tent that was in fact slightly too small decided to hit the sack early-ish.
Thursday. Well, after a crap night’s sleep (I was full of cold before I went) coughing and sneezing through the wee small hours got up at 7 ish.Muddy wellies on again.Breakfast,Shower-good and hot. Back out in the mud again and glooped my way to the bar. Nothing to really say about the work except that for 8 hours I slapped out pint after pint of cider in paper cups. Having to check i/d for people I couldn't possibly guess their age anyway! By the time the shift ended at 7 I never wanted to see another cider as long as I lived. Glooped the way back to the site. Couldn’t be arsed in seeing anything else that night. Evening meal & chats all round till about midnight. Back of my mind-next day I would be working till 3 am and wanted to see some acts in the day before I started work. Squeezed back into the tent. Mud getting everywhere. Time to sleep anyway.
"Turn Left at the Womble" can be got here :
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Turn-Left-The-Womble-ebook/dp/B0060YCKGW
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