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When to call it a day?


tjamest
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With ticket day fast approaching i find myself in a position of having to decide if my body can cope with Glastonbury next year.

I know that there are many here in there 60's and beyond who still attend, but now i have reached my late 50si have definitely struggled over the last two years. 2016 I can blame on the weather, but by Friday night last year i was knackered.

Don't get me wrong i still enjoyed it and explored many of the quieter areas than ever before, but from someone who has always enjoyed the more lively parts of a crowd when watching a band, sitting on a wall near the Rabbit Hole to watch the Flaming Lips was a very different experience. I rallied a bit on Saturday, but a Dead Kennedys/Toots &The Maytals double header virtually killed off Sunday for me, in fact i sacked off all the headliners and relaxed in a virtually deserted stone circle instead.

I am a couple of stone over weight, but until last year when i had what i thought was a minor skiing injury to my knees i was pretty fit and active. The 'minor injury' has unfortunately become a bit more major over the subsequent 18 months and i was told this week that i needed a full knee replacement, although as i a still pretty mobile they do not want to do it until my condition becomes worse. This means that by the time Glastonbury comes around next year i will probably still be in recovery from receiving my shiny new knee or still waiting for one.

I guess that i'm asking how do others who are not as fit as the once were cope with the beast that is Glastonbury?

 

 

 

 

Edited by tjamest
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Understand you completely. I’m having similar thoughts, the whole weekend is more and more gruelling for me. It’s an exercise in survival. The whole thought of it, the trek from the car, the race for a decent tent pitch, the crowds. It’s just not doing it for me at the moment. I love the place, the energy there is incredible, it’s a weekend of unique experiences, but also, increasingly, I’m finding it fucking hard work. 

If I go next year, I need to think how to minimise some of these elements and make it more manageable for me.

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I think you can certainly make it easier at the start by camping in one of the fields with plenty of space closer to PGA. No battling to find a pitch etc. although I guess it’s swings and roundabouts as you have further to walk back at night. 

I guess only you will know if you can manage it or not but it need only be as hard as you want it to be. The good thing is by Balance day in April you should have a much better idea of your capabilities. And plenty of time to lose a few pounds.?

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I plan to go in 19 and 20 (Ticket Gods permitting) then take an extended break for a few years, I have a seven month old daughter and want to wait until she's old enough to appreciate the festival before taking her (and any more if they come along). Mrs Jass and I are going to do next year as a joint last hurrah together and I've always said I wanted to do the 50th. That'll be something daft like 15 or so festivals, that'll do for a while.

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20 minutes ago, Mardy said:

If I go next year, I need to think how to minimise some of these elements and make it more manageable for me

Yes definitely, i have always been happy to rough it in a small tent especially as i normally go to Glastonbury solo on the coach, but maybe it's time to explore the possibilities of a bit more comfort and also realise that at my time of life i cant expect to be 10 rows back from the front in the liveliest part of the crowd and expect it to have no effect on me

14 minutes ago, MilkyJoe said:

guess only you will know if you can manage it or not but it need only be as hard as you want it to be. The good thing is by Balance day in April you should have a much better idea of your capabilities. And plenty of time to lose a few pounds.?

Yes you are right - Try on T Day and if i am lucky enough to get them i don't need to totally decide until April. If i fail then i will have 18 months to run in my new knee(s) before 2020

Thanks for that, feel better about it already!

 

 

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Ive struggled with a few things issues over the years in terms of fitness .... my back isn't the best at times .... ive had a couple of leg infections and I seem to struggle massively in hot tents/stages and by the sunday im usually shattered despite a reasonable level of fitness im definitely doing the next 2 and will see how it goes from there ... may have to adapt ... whilst I enjoy it more than I dont like it the balance is tipped 

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6 minutes ago, tjamest said:

Yes definitely, i have always been happy to rough it in a small tent especially as i normally go to Glastonbury solo on the coach, but maybe it's time to explore the possibilities of a bit more comfort and also realise that at my time of life i cant expect to be 10 rows back from the front in the liveliest part of the crowd and expect it to have no effect on me.

 

 

You could also consider Worthy View. Yes I know it’s another long walk back but you have a few more comforts such as decent toilets and showers to refresh you a little before they day ahead. Add to that the fact you don’t have to slog your tent in with you and it’s certainly an option.

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Just now, MilkyJoe said:

You could also consider Worthy View. Yes I know it’s another long walk back but you have a few more comforts such as decent toilets and showers to refresh you a little before they day ahead. Add to that the fact you don’t have to slog your tent in with you and it’s certainly an option.

Or maybe do it in stages?  What about upgrading to Camplight initially so you haven't got the slog of carrying and setting up (and later taking down!) a tent, but still in the main area rather than outside of it all?

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2017 was my first Glastonbury in a long time. A week after successfully getting tickets the previous October, my wife was diagnosed with cancer. It was a hard time, but thankfully the radiotherapy and chemotherapy worked and she subsequently got the all clear, but not without side effects from the treatment. 

To make life easier we rented a cottage in Glastonbury itself and caught the shuttle bus in daily. I know we missed out on some aspects of the weekend, but ultimately we got the best of both worlds. The downside was the extra outlay, but we treated it as a holiday. Still walked bloody miles of course, but it was bliss getting back to a shower and nice bed.

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Probably not exactly what you are after, but my thoughts.............

The place is amazing, but let's face it, it's not exactly easy is it? I would say go and find something else you will enjoy almost as much, who knows, you might find something you enjoy more. Loads of great small festivals, or something else entirely.

Good luck!

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6 minutes ago, Yokel Again said:

Loads of great small festivals, or something else entirely.

Yes you are right - my days of Boomtown and Bestival are behind me now and i love smallish festivals like Bearded Theory.... However, although i didn't attend Glastonbury until 2011, i love the general vibe and goodwill from just about everyone there which i rarely find anywhere else

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As a 60 year old (well will be by June) my coping strategy is to camp in the unfashionable "Bushy Ground" where there is always plenty of space and a pretty relaxed vibe. Also approach the site from the West and get parked at that side to avoid "The Hill Of Death". It's a long way from the "Naughty Corner" but I only do that once or maybe twice per year. Enjoy the areas like Avalon where you can usually plonk your sorry arse somewhere and just watch stuff go on around you. I "hit the wall" on the Sunday 2016 but was talking to a lovely lady on a mobility scooter who had stopped near West Holts. I asked her how she was managing with the Battle of the Somme-like conditions and she said that people just helped her, she had actually been pushed out of anywhere she got stuck without even asking for help by cheery festival folk.

All I'll say to conclude is it aint as good on the telly (but then you know that already)

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2 hours ago, tjamest said:

 

I guess that i'm asking how do others who are not as fit as the once were cope with the beast that is Glastonbury?

Maybe try the campervan fields. Can be a bit of a trek back, especially over the top of East cv fields.  But you can have time out when needed. Good vibes in cv fields without being full on. I'm nearly fifty and been using cv fields for ten years. There is a  thread on campervan fields filled with pros and cons.

 

PS. I've been going since I was a teenager. It always left me feeling absolutely rotten. You learn to pace yourself to your abilities, but I fear tiredness and Glastonbury fever strike most of us . 

Edited by mashedonmud
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I’d say go slow with the flow, know your limitations (and only occasionally exceed them). 

Mrs oneeye and me will be 54 come June 2019 and have no intention of giving up just yet, though 2016 nearly broke us. 

We  now camp over on the West side of the site, lots more room and feeling of space plus a little less hectic at night, meaning you do get some unbroken rest.

Mrs oneeye has one artificial hip with the other one just about manageable. Good footwear, stay fuelled and hydrated and take plenty of time outs. Once you realise that you’re no longer a spring chicken the rest is easy ?

 

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I'll be 69 come the next Glastonbury.  I did think after discovering Green Man a couple of years ago that I'd done my last Glasto as GM seemed to have all the good bits of Glasto without the hassle.  But this year it was a bit bland so I'll probably be trying on T Day and F5-ing like everyone else.

The answer as you grow into old fartdom is a caravan and CV East.  Yes, you've got the Hill of Death but it's not that bad if you pace yourself.  Also take a fold up camping chair so you can take a rest and sit and watch the world go by when the mood takes you.

But the answer about age has to be Mrs GH's Uncle Bill who is staying with us for a fortnight at the moment.  We asked him if there were any things still on his bucket list at the age of 96 and his answer was 'to ride a horse'.  So we fixed it up and last week he did his first horse ride, gently round the stable yard and he loved it.  And that's a man who now mainly needs a zimmer frame or a wheelchair.

Edited by grumpyhack
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Agree with the above. As you get older you just have to pace yourself. You can still have a great time. At Glasto you are always missing more than you are seeing so just accept it. If its having a pint and random chat at the Cider Bus instead of rushing up to see the Killers so be it. I do spend some time before the festival though taking long walks to build up some stamina. It does help.

And to tj who started the thread I would say try and lose some of that extra weight. You know it will help. ( I know - easier said than done )

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I can't face the walk from the main part of the site to either of the campervan fields, east or west. It's easierto be in say, Kidney Mead, but then there's the stress of getting onsite early enough to pitch up in there. And all that lugging gear around, I just don't know. The other thing is that I use Glastonbury as a very good way to catch up with friends, many of whom I haven't seen since the previous summer. And the site is so big, the attractions so vast, that if you're going to see different bands, that's at least a 3 hour mission.

 

Ah fuck it, who am I kidding, I'll be there in October, bashing away furiously at F5 like a meth-addicted lab rat

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We're going down the caravan route next time, ticket gods obliging.  A mixture of reasons:  health, effort and campsite culture being mainly just for sleeping these days has diminished the appeal of on site camping.  If we can minimise the journeys to and fro the van via judicious use of the lock ups, then i'm sure it'll be all beneficial.

Plus - Tuesday arrival!

Edited by fatyeti24
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