LA Pebbles

[WalMan]

What it says in the title & my sig really.

Playing an all day festival on the seafront in Littlehampton next Saturday - hoping our drummers flight back from Turkey Friday night isn't delayed for any reason otherwise we could be stuffed!!!

[WalMan]

Watch the fun unfold on the webcam overlooking the site - assuming we don't blow away tonight (wind sounds like it's got up but hoping the weather forecast is true and it all clears up!!!! )
[url="http://www.allaboutsussex.co.uk/webcam/webcambase.asp?queryon=1"]LA Pebbles webcam - well sort of[/url]

Day one of the setup is in the history. Hopefully tomorrow will go better!!

So DAY 1:-
Arrived with flasks of coffee at 10:30 when the fencing was due to arrive. Do you think it arrived on time? That's right kiddies the utter tossers at that particular hire firm screwed up and it arrived FIVE hours late

Drank some of the coffee

Went and picked up the flat bed truck for shifting stuff about, and a Luton for the PA run.

Got back to the hoping for the fencing to be there............nope

Drank some more coffee

Marquee builders hard at work erecting backstage "green room" and then moving on to the two larger ones for the bars.

Got a football & had a kick about until the ball burst

Took the flat bed for two trips to pick up crash barriers

Got back to the hoping for the fencing to be there............nope. It'll be here by 2

Drank some more coffee, finished both flasks and all the biccies.

BORED - Sod it, nothing happening. Went to Worthing to pick up a guitar from repair & a load of gaffa - you can never have too much gaffa!! Stopped off for a burger on the way back. Guilty because that stop off was at around 2 so I'd be missing unload & start on the fencing

Got back @ 2:45 hoping for the fencing to be there............nope still nothing.

3 ish - woohoo first flatbed for the stages arrives followed reasonable swiftly by the second, the lighting guys and the generators. It's starting to happen, BUT STILL NO FECKIN FENCING!!!

4:30 push off in the Luton to pick up some electrical bits and the strongbox

Eventually around 5:30 the fencing firm finally arrive & start unloading.

Spent the next hour or so driving the flat bed round the site with a couple of guys in the back lobbing fence stands and then fencing at strategic points. AT LAST the site is fenced.

6:30 take the Luton to Emsworth to pick up PA for the two stages. Grab a sandwich while gassing up the van. Back around 9:00. Gassed up the van with assorted Ginsters fumes on the way back [url="http://planetsmilies.net"][/url]

Park up the van in the compound with the security guys guarding the site overnight.

9:30 - HOME. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah nice hot shower and some prescription drugs to ease the aching joints.

12:30 writing this, and I need to get to my pit as it all starts again tomorrow @ 9:00 finishing off the stages and rigging the PA

Edited August 28, 2009 by WalMan

[WalMan]

DAY 2

Get there 09:00, having finally got to sleep around 04:00. I'm sure I caught something from the van seat

Scaffolders hard at work on the stages and lights continue rigging

Flat bed to Builders Centre for some 2x4

Coffee

Head off to Emsworth with the Luton for more PA. Forgot about BH weekend & went through Bognor past Butlins - thinks "I won't do that again!!". Back the slightly longer way and got the van up to 60!!!

Pick up my gear & #2 son on the way back.

Green netting required by the council going up and with the wind gusting as it was spent some time hanging to stop it blowing away whilst we built triangular areas to give better solidity. More coffee & cheese rolls made in the knowledge that it would be another long day with little time for food or to stop.

Thai kitchen lady turned up to set up. Hog roast man due tomorrow (YUM!).

Luckily all the squally rain clouds passed wither out to sea or north of the town. Still looked like we might get hit by one storm at least, but thankfully no.

Collected chillers for the bars.

Off loaded chillers and last of the PA cabs, which were dumped on stages with the forklift.

15:30-16:00 Stages finished and the sound & light tower started. It's coming together.........slowly. Looks big with all the perimeter fences set. Hoping for a "Field of Dreams" moment - If you build it, they will come, etc., etc.

Start rigging the PA's. Much crawling around & plugging in of speakons.

21:00. Foldback desks in, wired up & running. Main stacks wired & to finish first thing tomorrow.

Home. Sandwich. Shower. BED.

I fear all my joints will be in revolt tomorrow. Still here's hoping for a sunny, rain free day & good crowd to make loads of money for charity...............then we just have to pull it all back down again

Edited August 29, 2009 by WalMan

[WalMan]

And so to DAY 3 (into 4) - and my sig needs to change.

08:30 - text from drummer. He has landed and is on the train home from Gatwick - PHEW!!

09:00 roll up and finish of the PA, nail down the anti trip strip for the sound & lights to the tower. Runs a quick test on each stage & it's sounding pretty good.

12:00 gates open & 12:30 we're away

There was a good varied selection of bands and a fair few BC'ers in attendance both gigging & watching.

18:00 have to make a swift visit to the brewery to collect a pallet of beer. Turns out an order 4 times bigger that last years event with half the attendees (and bearing in mind we have two bars this year instead of one) just wasn't enough. Back with the pallet and set up a chain gang to the bar,

Interesting to hear my rig used by a variety of bands and just how loud it goes

20:30 - Why the hell do I have nerves!? I have been doing this long enough!! That said I often find I get slight butterflies before most gigs.

21:00 we are on, off & running. Set seems to be going really fast and over in no time. Good reaction, and then its over

22:30 last b and finishes and the crowd file away. Drive MrsW and one of the compere's (who was in a band with the drummer & I years ago) home.

Crack down my rig & get it stored in the car. Into the beer tent for a post festival wind down and then home to drink a bottle of liberated beer.

Back to the site in 8-9 hours to crack it all down

Sunday - arrived on site @ 10 (overslept for some reason) Start pulling everything down. Deliver PA back to Emsworth and home by 7 in the evening

Edited September 25, 2009 by WalMan

[bassninja]

...but Al, you looked so calm on the day...

Bloody good job though, mate. It was one of the best organised and thought-out local fests we've done, so hats off to you all.

Was anyone there from R*x picking up tips?

[WalMan]

[quote name='bassninja' post='600546' date='Sep 16 2009, 06:22 PM']...but Al, you looked so calm on the day...

Bloody good job though, mate. It was one of the best organised and thought-out local fests we've done, so hats off to you all.

Was anyone there from R*x picking up tips?[/quote]
A belated cheers Wal. Current reckoning is we should have made about £4k for charity and there were around 2,500 punters through the door across the day.

I think unfortunately you were on the stage where the multitracker was not working so there is only the ambient mikes on the sound tower which did not have their wind socks on.

Next year [i]may[/i] be two days and possibly in a big top against falling foul of the weather after two fine years. However the tent apparently has huge H&S problems (its suggestion certianly made the H&S guy blanch whem it was mentioned) so we shall see.

We were talking about it in the band after and our sound guy said that the iPod was cued ready for incidental music but didn't get used once. Having two/three stages helps but makes it a bit of a 'mare for him as the day becomes a pretty much constant job with no breaks, that and running and maintaining two identical rigs.

And I believe there were bodies from R*x there yes