People without wristbands / overcrowding

[formed a band]

Please don't tell me you fell for that article where Eavis supposedly told people to jump the fence. For some reason I gave you more credit than that.

[Chimps in Balaclavas]

I was chatting to two Manc lads at the Stone Circle on Saturday night, they too claimed they got in on a minibus which took them straight into the festival. They had no wristbands either.

[eoJ]

How about just don't do it at all, doesn't help anyone.

Oh and eavis saying he wishes more did it... Well if he is for real he doesn't have a conscience

[Redwinevino]

Sad people are willing to do this.

Why do you want to irritate the festival until security increases?

[doobie ninja]

The crush leaving Bastille for Foals, and then leaving Foals for Arctics was pretty shocking.

Bastille to Foals at the exit of Silver Hayse to Other being borderline dangerous....especially when someone started shouting out stuff about Hillsborough and got everyone into a panic.

Edited July 3, 2013 by doobie ninja

[manateemike]

Absolutely correct Mike let's all discuss methods of sneaking in, I'm sure festival security will definitely read this forum and act on the information, rather than people who want to sneak in getting a load of tips. I'm not saying I snuck my mate in this year, but if I did I definitely have the common sense not to reveal my methods so the whole world can read them, try them out next year and make a massive problem for festival organisers. Keep it under your hat people

Edited July 3, 2013 by manateemike

[Funkyfairy!]

Sat in Shepton mallet Tesco on Tuesday lunchtime in the campervan stocking up and a young lad knocks on the door and asks us if we ae working the festival - we said no, he then proceeded to say that him and his friend were offering £250 to any workers who would smuggle them in - to be honest it would be pretty easy if you are working and take in a campervan - plenty of storage space, but surely thats the easiest way and they check thoroughly !

[Peaceman]

Lots of rumours on here but not much concrete stuff. Nowhere near as many getting in now as in the past. Some will always manage it but not very many. The feeling of overcrowding early on was probably due to the fact that more were onsite by Wedneday afternoon/evening than ever before. Personally I thought it felt emptier than usual.

[Theodore]

saw a drug dealer before The Rolling Stones with a huge stack of £20's must have been about £1000 and he had some ghetto looking wristband was either tail ends glued together or a tie-dyed bit of fabric of similar colours, but it had no metal link on it. It's the first time i've seen it to be honest. I do remember random wristband checks along the train track at random points in other years and wasn't checked once this festival.

[Baby On A Stick]

Mixed opinion really. Obviously the Stones was rammed, as was Chic, but all in all the site overall seemed about right.

I got to Oxleys the earliest I ever have (half ten) and couldn't get our usual spot, but I did have seven tents to put up. Did get pitched but over towards Silver Hayers. Interestingly all the spaces round us normally fill up on Thirdsay but this year you could have got at least five small tents rounds us. These little spaces never did fill, not sure if that was our further north location or others factors.

Had friends working who were on site on Tuesday night and they said a lot of the public camping had been taking by crew, more then they'd ever seen before.

I think hot years always seem busier as folk stay out more and away from their tents. Bottle necks will always be bottle necks, but have to say I think I've seen it busier then this year.

[halfpint]

I didn't see EPO wristband holders being given pass outs. (I might well be very wrong on this) But at the time whilst queuing to get out of PGC it struck me how easy it would be to get people in. One person carries 5 mates EPO w/bands out (meet in local pub) and 5 new friends come in then take off w/band to give back to original holder. Far to easy.

I also watched a Oxfam worker leave with her arms crossed and her hi vis drapped over her arms so no w/band in view. She just smiled and lifted her arms to show the Oxfam emblazoned hi vis and off she went. So that seemed a rather easy option.

I'm sure there were other more ingenious ways, like glueing tail ends (but you still need the pass out and ticket) to get in. Once in I guess it stops you sticking out like a sore thumb.

[Keef]

As I said in another thread....

Just had an interesting conversation with a woman I work with. Her son went with 5 mates with specific instructions on how to get in without a ticket. They had made contact with someone prior to the festival who offered them a way in for £100 (no idea who, but he works in the catering trade so might know someone who knows someone...). They had to turn up at a specified car park and phone a mobile number. 20 minutes later someone met them there with a wristband for each of them to wear to get through the gates - I'm guessing these were some kind of worker wristbands as they weren't given any tickets/pass outs to use in combination with them. Once in the gate they were lead to a particular café where the wristbands were removed and each of them handed £100 over. The people (I presume) connected with the café claimed they were getting around 100 people per day in via this method - that's £10,000 per day they were earning out of it!!!

I don't know any more details and her son isn't about to ask as he's just gone travelling for the next six months. My colleague certainly isn't Glasto-savvy and wouldn't have known about wristbands and pass-outs and the like without having been told by her son, and she has no reason to lie about any of this, so it sounds like it could be true - I guess it could work.

[dingbat2]

You cant really tell how crowded the site is by looking at one particular area at one particular time. But I felt it was a lot less crowded in the campsites than previous years. We didnt get there until Thursday afternoon, and where we camped, in my old friend Pylon ground, was really quite empty this year compared with previous years (as was Darble ground above it). And Pylon ground never filled up throughout the entire weekend which was great. Loads of space. Not sure how much of this was to do with an increasing number of people camping off site, in Worthy View though

[UEF]

As I said in another thread....

Just had an interesting conversation with a woman I work with. Her son went with 5 mates with specific instructions on how to get in without a ticket. They had made contact with someone prior to the festival who offered them a way in for £100 (no idea who, but he works in the catering trade so might know someone who knows someone...). They had to turn up at a specified car park and phone a mobile number. 20 minutes later someone met them there with a wristband for each of them to wear to get through the gates - I'm guessing these were some kind of worker wristbands as they weren't given any tickets/pass outs to use in combination with them. Once in the gate they were lead to a particular café where the wristbands were removed and each of them handed £100 over. The people (I presume) connected with the café claimed they were getting around 100 people per day in via this method - that's £10,000 per day they were earning out of it!!!

I don't know any more details and her son isn't about to ask as he's just gone travelling for the next six months. My colleague certainly isn't Glasto-savvy and wouldn't have known about wristbands and pass-outs and the like without having been told by her son, and she has no reason to lie about any of this, so it sounds like it could be true - I guess it could work.

[markeee]

We had a tent appear in the middle of our camp on Saturday afternoon. We briefly met the couple staying in it, who asked if we were workers. Seemed a bit odd, then I was woken up by security at 6am Sunday as they were being kicked out for having no wristbands. Apparently security had been chasing a few people that night.

The girl said she'd paid £80 for a wristband outside which was taken off her to be used again once she was through the gates. Not sure how that worked without a ticket and passout though.

[malcombe]

I was working securing wristbands at the gates. Twice I saw people walk past the oxfam stewards without them noticing. We're behind tall a counter and any way have been told not to confront any one. Both times the single security guard was too far away to hear us challenge the gate crashers.

[markeee]

I was working securing wristbands at the gates. Twice I saw people walk past the oxfam stewards without them noticing. We're behind tall a counter and any way have been told not to confront any one. Both times the single security guard was too far away to hear us challenge the gate crashers.

[markeee]

As to how to deal with is..is there really any way other than to punish those who do i.e. blacklist/fine could they take legal action?

to try and put people off..but never put an end to it, will always be someone who will sneak people in for some easy quick money

[guypjfreak]

chipped wrist bands next year you watch

[frostypaw]

chipped wrist bands next year you watch

[markeee]

This has no advantages for standard punters. You have to get very close to check them.

Even for workers it's a huge expense and complication. Maybe it's just the end of the EPO without a lanyard photo ID to match it's number

[manateemike]

i guess someone else goies out with a passout and ticket and passes wistband to someone else..they then claim they happened to lose both tcket and pass out

but i cant see it working? not having 1 maybe but both?

[eoJ]

Why, so people can still use them ?

[markeee]

Maybe it's just me..but I wouldn't try jumping the fence/getting in with a high vis jacket..getting all the way down there and tyring my luck..and what if I get caught out...

a) what would i do then?

I dont think this applies-but could you be charged with anything?!

[Pinhead]

Pitched on Wednesday AM in middle of Big Ground this year, about 100 yards from the flushing loos at the top of the field and right next to the path since when I finally got in the field was rammed and space was nearly non existent. Lucky find that pitch really, though it was right below the power lines and quite close to the path.

Anyway, there was still a smallish spot in front of the tent just enough to put my tripod stool in and to have a beer and a fag and look at the view. Thursday morning about 2am I was woken up by a commotion outside as about 4-5 lads attempted to pitch two tents - one in that tiny spot in front of my tent and another in an equally tiny space behind mine. In the morning I was a bit miffed to now be facing a very badly pitched tent right in front of the entrance to mine with 4-5 lads laying randomly about in front totally blocking me in. Well, fair enough I thought if they were late and desperate for a space.

That night they must have all caned it massively and I came back about 3am to the tent to find just one of the lads still awake and wrestling with the zip on his tent in front of mine from the inside (he had clearly broken it). He looked up at me with major saucer eyes and went, "what the fuck are you looking at", to which I answered that this was "my tent mate, thanks, next to yours". Mumbling a response he carried on messing with the zip for a good hour or so before finally passing out.

I did talk to two of the other lads there the following morning who seemed reasonable enough, though they revealed a number of issues with this one clearly more aggressive bloke who had 'fucked up the tent'. It seemed as though it was a common understanding that he over did it at parties, festivals, clubs and so on and could be a bit of a liability for the rest of them. By this time the area in front of my tent and theirs had already been reduced to a sea of cans, bog paper, food, bags, clothes etc. Mr. Charm emerged from the tent and joined them. He looked like he'd been in a fight, but possibly he just blundered into a lot of stuff the night before. He was now bandaged up and sporting a massive bloody plaster across his chin.

Old bill were walking past frequently along that path through Big Ground giving out water bottles. One lad called out could he have one and bill came over to dish one out. Almost straight away he asked where this lads wristband was...... After about 30 minutes of excuses about where his wristband was, including "I took it off", "I lost it", "Its in the other tent" and so on, bill spotted that no-one else around and in the tent (about 3 lads there at the time), had one on either. Their running excuse was that they were working for "CMH" (I think) or some other car park stewarding firm and didn't get given wristbands. Silence ensued though as bill called security to cart them off the site and started going through their stuff. Mr. Charm made a break for it but was collared and got cuffed after he became lippy. The others were made to lay out whilst they were searched by a WPC and bill went through the tent. Finding some K and coke, they arrested Charming and another guy who's bag the gear was found in and confiscated various ID (as they all gave bullshit addresses). After they were all carted off bill went through the whole tent with gloves and found some more gear.

All this time I sat out of sight not really wanting them to start going through my tent next Eventually bill asked me if there was anyone else and I said yeah there was one other lad I think but he's gone down into town. Bill left and I didn't see the last guy until Sat AM I think it was, when he came back to get some of the gear left behind in the tent. He said he was leaving as all his mates had been thrown out and were sitting in the car parks not being able to leave as their phones had run out and bill had the bag with the car keys in. He said they had all got in by making out they were working the car parks doing traffic control, putting on a tabbard and then just strolling in.

Anyway, needless to say he left the tent and loads of gear inside. When I came to pack mine up on Monday AM I found a ziplock of coke under my tent (I reckon stuffed there by one of them when he was laid out being searched). I disposed of some of their crap left outside. Never been neighbours with blaggers before but added to the stories to tell of this years Glasto adventures....