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Crowd control issues


dulcificum
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20 minutes ago, Rumblestripe said:

Hi Alex sorry to read that you are struggling get yourself to the medical tent and have a chat with someone. It probably isn't your friends being weird it is your "black dog" lying to you, they probably haven't noticed that you are struggling. It is easy to miss the signs even in someone you are very familiar with. Talk to them they will help you.

Most importantly take care of yourself allow yourself not to feel 100% it happens to all of us sometimes especially when we are telling ourselves we "SHOULD" be having the time of our lives. Mental health is important. You are important.

Love and peace. Sorry I'm sat at home and can't head over to Ped Gate D to give you a hug but consider yourself hugged.

 

For those struggling with overcrowding, take your time, don't be an arsehole, look out for others around you, check your maps and avoid crush points - there are multiple ways to get to most of the stages if you take your time and choose a less direct route.

Be beautiful everyone.

Alex I'm at Gate D now Shelter T Shirt and ridiculous black bandana blue sunglasses... Give me a wave?

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6 hours ago, Alvoram said:

Ok so as a first timer then, are these crazy crushes not normal?

Been in a couple already including the Arcadia one. We were at Williams Green all day Thursday, it was insanely busy. (Although you had to laugh at the youngsters rushing into the tent on opening only to walk back out with looks of disgust on their faces when they realised it was a movie! 😂)

We are enjoying it, a lot, but have both said that sometimes the crowds / crushes are a bit scary, do not feel well managed, and almost seem like a disaster waiting to happen. 

At least part of it must be not having been at a big festival for three years. Same story with Primavera. Not saying there aren’t genuine crowd issues but wouldn’t surprise me if crowds we would have considered reasonable before now feel like too much to handle.

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3 minutes ago, rzwodezwo said:

At least part of it must be not having been at a big festival for three years. Same story with Primavera. Not saying there aren’t genuine crowd issues but wouldn’t surprise me if crowds we would have considered reasonable before now feel like too much to handle.

I'm sure that the license for Glastonbury dictates the number of tickets they can sell, they can't just add another 30k tickets to help cash flow and from what we know of the Eavii I would be very surprised to hear that they had done this. I think you're right, I was at Bearded a few weeks ago and it does feel strange to be in a crowd after two years of being 2m from everyone! I found that I didn't want to be near the front. The first day felt hardest but the vibe is still there. 

Good to read people reaching to Alex. Hope he is OK.

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37 minutes ago, kingbadger said:

Crowd crust definitely a major issue I think, even in John Peel tent. Just go down the sides then in and you'll find more space 

This is what I’ve found also. There is often good space closer in, but you end up up with an outer layer of people that it’s hard to get through and as people arrive closer to start times it just builds up. A ‘crust’ if you will. 

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4 hours ago, FrancisH said:

Has been amazing but tough this year, definitely oversold and have heard a lot of people talking about how they know mates who managed to get in without tickets.

Even if you chat to people around site at night or talk to a few traders they have all said they've never seen anything like it.

Toilets are a shocker to get to as well, almost always a crush.

Also a bit sick of the exclusivity bullshit with special wristbands for access. Feels a bit like a class system within a festival.

Sorry, what? There's special wristbands this year? For getting in places like the Rabbit Hole faster etc?

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1 hour ago, Alex DeLarge said:

Might be a bit of a long rambling one.

I'm volunteering at ped gate D this year, if you're there between 6am-12 come say hi to this tall dopey brummie.

The crowds haven't impacted how lovely the punters have been to me this year, only one person was rude and I met Dom Joly who was lovely. Thank you to everyone making us staff feel safe and nice.

That being said, this year is a real struggle for me. I'm feeling anxious, scared, depressed - everything I wouldn't usually feel at glastonbury.

My friends are being really weird and seem to not care I'm here. I could barely leave the tent today I was that low. I thought I could do what I usually do and hit block 9 by myself and make friends, but everyone is aggro, annoyed, hates eacjother. Its a really bad vibe generally and I've taken a bit of a dip. It's really overwhelming and I feel really bad. I don't remember it being like this. Anyone else struggling?

Really sorry to hear this. Hope it improves for you.

I know this probably doesn't help much but I've had some really low moments in the past at the festival (related to tiredness, drugs, friends, whatever) and they usually don't last for the whole time, even if they feel like they will at the time. Hopefully something shifts for you and you can enjoy the rest of it.

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Just now, Zoo Music Girl said:

Really sorry to hear this. Hope it improves for you.

I know this probably doesn't help much but I've had some really low moments in the past at the festival (related to tiredness, drugs, friends, whatever) and they usually don't last for the whole time, even if they feel like they will at the time. Hopefully something shifts for you and you can enjoy the rest of it.

There's something really crap about feeling sad in a place where you're supposed to feel happy though, so I fully get how shit that is 

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2 minutes ago, Barry Fish said:

Do you not think as a society since covid we have in general become much less tolerant of each other ?   its going to reflected in such a big gathering of people...

I never believe there is a single answer for anything, that's all. Yes, the pandemic might have eroded some tolerance levels, but at a festival the size of Glastonbury, seems a bit easy to say it's all down to Covid. Especially a festival that prides itself on being tolerant, polite, respectful etc.

Just wondered what the original poster thought might have contributed outside of the usual easy "covid" answer.

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N

10 minutes ago, Barry Fish said:

Do you not think as a society since covid we have in general become much less tolerant of each other ?   its going to reflected in such a big gathering of people...

Not exactly relevant but where i live since the end of covid restrictions there seems to have been a steep rise in general c**tish anti-social behaviour, petty crime, fighting  (in sports as well as normal life) all seem to have exploded. Its like this is a pressure release after the lockdowns.

I would guess in a population of 220,000 at a festival it isn't going to be any different.

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5 hours ago, Rose-Colored Boy said:

Sundays are normally the worst because they throw in a load of locals on top. Diana Ross up against no major competition whatsoever will be hell on earth. 

Yeah, with the locals in the mix, not to cast a too wide a prejudiced net, a lot of those might only be interested in the biggest names and they'll all flock to DR as well. Her crowd is going to be fucking mental 

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3 minutes ago, benali said:

I know a lot of the problems at football this season are due to the rise in people doing a load of coke. Could that be a contributing factor to a change in crowd behaviour at Glastonbury too?

People are on literally everything at glasto. I doubt this is the issue.

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2 minutes ago, benali said:

I know a lot of the problems at football this season are due to the rise in people doing a load of coke. Could that be a contributing factor to a change in crowd behaviour at Glastonbury too?

If there’s one place that wouldn’t notice a rise in drug taking it’s Glastonbury. 
 

For me it’s the yearly shift towards a pop festival from top to bottom. I would never have gone to v festival, not because I didn’t like some of the lineups necessarily but because it was full of c**ts. If you start attracting those people expect a shift in the dynamic of the festival as a whole. 

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9 minutes ago, Barry Fish said:

Yeah its an easy answer but you can break covid out into a number of very serious things that have happened...

  • anxiety
  • mental health issues
  • impatient
  • frustration
  • intolerance
  •  fear
  • not used to crowds, queuing, being tightly packed all esabtrxting the above...

    A lot of people are feeling these things without recognising them.  While we all kept apart for the good reason of keeping each other safe there is no doubt this caused issue of resentment and frustration and just not used to being around each other that have bubbled and caused problems.  I think the problems being reported mostly stem from poor organisation but some of the crowd issues are no doubt cemented from the pandemic and what we have all be through.

Sure, I thought you meant all of those mixed up in the Covid response. And there's def logic to it. Living alone, being in bubbles for so long - politically and now pandemic-wise, getting news through custom threads on Facebook/Twitter etc, living with so many barriers up... And you're totally right, they're not always easy to spot until you get dumped in a 200k city in the middle of a field. 

I suppose, I wondered if it was noticeable if there were more people coming to the festival who cared less about the ethos of the place and more about just having some nostalgia pop trip, or if the OP had any other thoughts about it. Are you at the festival? I've heard multiple reports of anti-social behaviour. Some of it sounds more like the one and only time I went to V-Fest, rather than Glastonbury.

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1 hour ago, Alex DeLarge said:

Might be a bit of a long rambling one.

I'm volunteering at ped gate D this year, if you're there between 6am-12 come say hi to this tall dopey brummie.

The crowds haven't impacted how lovely the punters have been to me this year, only one person was rude and I met Dom Joly who was lovely. Thank you to everyone making us staff feel safe and nice.

That being said, this year is a real struggle for me. I'm feeling anxious, scared, depressed - everything I wouldn't usually feel at glastonbury.

My friends are being really weird and seem to not care I'm here. I could barely leave the tent today I was that low. I thought I could do what I usually do and hit block 9 by myself and make friends, but everyone is aggro, annoyed, hates eacjother. Its a really bad vibe generally and I've taken a bit of a dip. It's really overwhelming and I feel really bad. I don't remember it being like this. Anyone else struggling?

Dude, you can totally misread signals if you're feeling low and your mates might be picking up on it if they're distracted by all the lights and glitz of the festival!

What about your fellow volunteers? Have you made any friends with them? See if one or two of them have the same break schedule as you and organise a pint together.

Much love, know how lonely it can feel surrounded by hundreds of people having a seemingly brilliant time.

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1 hour ago, Rumblestripe said:

Hi Alex sorry to read that you are struggling get yourself to the medical tent and have a chat with someone. It probably isn't your friends being weird it is your "black dog" lying to you, they probably haven't noticed that you are struggling. It is easy to miss the signs even in someone you are very familiar with. Talk to them they will help you.

Most importantly take care of yourself allow yourself not to feel 100% it happens to all of us sometimes especially when we are telling ourselves we "SHOULD" be having the time of our lives. Mental health is important. You are important.

Love and peace. Sorry I'm sat at home and can't head over to Ped Gate D to give you a hug but consider yourself hugged.

 

For those struggling with overcrowding, take your time, don't be an arsehole, look out for others around you, check your maps and avoid crush points - there are multiple ways to get to most of the stages if you take your time and choose a less direct route.

Be beautiful everyone.

Great post, out of upvotes.

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11 minutes ago, BobWillis2 said:

If there’s one place that wouldn’t notice a rise in drug taking it’s Glastonbury. 
 

For me it’s the yearly shift towards a pop festival from top to bottom. I would never have gone to v festival, not because I didn’t like some of the lineups necessarily but because it was full of c**ts. If you start attracting those people expect a shift in the dynamic of the festival as a whole. 

Unfortunately, I think you are generally right.

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37 minutes ago, BobWillis2 said:

If there’s one place that wouldn’t notice a rise in drug taking it’s Glastonbury. 
 

For me it’s the yearly shift towards a pop festival from top to bottom. I would never have gone to v festival, not because I didn’t like some of the lineups necessarily but because it was full of c**ts. If you start attracting those people expect a shift in the dynamic of the festival as a whole. 

Nothing to do with a rise in drug use, more a change in drug use.

Just wondered if there had been a shift from things like MDMA and acid to coke? I may be completely wrong of course, but it would possibly explain a more disrespectful attitude in the crowd amongst some people.

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Dunno, I’ve been at West Holts all day (Bar a quick sojourn up to the acoustic to see Katherine Priddy, who was sublime)…up at Avalon now. Crowds have been fine all day, much more normal. No idea what the pyramid or other are like, but typically chilled Glasto crowd with space for all is all I’ve encountered all day. But then again, little or nothing is gonna piss me off at the mo! 

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5 minutes ago, benali said:

Nothing to do with a rise in drug use, more a change in drug use.

Just wondered if there had been a shift from things like MDMA and acid to coke? I may be completely wrong of course, but it would possibly explain a more disrespectful attitude in the crowd amongst some people.

I’ve always assumed coke was quite a popular choice of drug at Glastonbury due to how easy it is to get hold of and the energy boost. 5 days of drinking, dancing, walking around a huge site and sleeping on the cold hard ground is not easy work. 

I’ve never really found MDMA to be a consecutive days drug either. I need a couple of days break if I want it to feel any effects from it. 

 

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