Concerts - Bonnaroo 2002

This ruined it for us.

BONNAROO became BONNA-ROADBLOCK

The 11-hour Parking Lot

Bonnaroo traffic jam

A view of our camper in Bonnaroo's 11-hour traffic jam

At the end of four days, we were ready to leave Bonnaroo. It hadn't been the greatest experience (maybe because we had the flu and didn't get to see many of the shows), but we didn't have any major complaints either. That all ended when we tried to leave. We awoke early and got on line to leave at 8 a.m. Monday morning. We figured we'd be out in an hour or two and making our way back to South Florida. Unfortunately, moments after we got online, we hit the brakes. No one was directing traffic. Nearly 80,000 people were all trying to leave at the same time, and with no one directing traffic, it was a damned free-for-all. The Bonnaroo folks were so cheap that they didn't open any alternative roads out, even though we learned that there could have been plenty because of all the private properties surrounding the farm. To make matters worse, the Bonnaroo promoters shut down the water stations and stopped servicing the portable toilets. We watched as many overheated and frustrated campers tried in vain to fill their water containers, or attempted to use the toilets and were turned away by the smell.

By mid-afternoon, some Bonnaroo service people arrived, not to resume the flow of water, but to dismantle the water station. Medics came and took one dehydrated camper away on a stretcher. As the day wore on, we became more and more impatient. Fellow campers raged to get out of the parking lot. In the beginning, people asked nicely if they could cut in front of us. By the end of the day; however, it turned ugly as some girl with an attitude threw herself in front of our camper so that she could stop us and let her friends' camper through. I tried several times to call the Bonnarroo promoters (Superfly Productions) to beg them to send police out to direct traffic, but they never answered the phone. Finally, at 7 p.m., after all the cars had escaped through a back property (at the tune of $10 a piece), the line started to move. We looked around and realized that we were the last group of people to leave Bonnarro. This single act of greed by the Bonnaroo promoters has filled us with such disgust that we doubt we will ever go to this event again. Instead of driving back to South Florida in one day, we were stuck splitting our drive back into two days. We had to lodge overnight in Georgia, we had to pay an extra day's rent on the camper, and Eric missed an extra half-day of work.

Mom and Leah pause for a picture on the Bonnaroo concert field. The main stage is directly behind.	Dad and Leah stroll through Bonnaroo's Centeroo, which connected two concert halls, vendors, first aid, food, the arcade, the computer tent, and the playground.
These are our camp neighbors, JR and Greg, a couple of nice college kids from Baton Rouge, Louisiana.	Leah and dad enjoy an air-conditioned nap inside the camper between shows. The daytime temperature exceeded 90 F degrees. Night was more pleasant in the 60's.
Dad stops to check his e-mail in the air-conditioned Gateway tent. Leah and dad wait for a band to start.	Leah plays with the window cord (yikes!) and observes the scene outside the camper.
Bonnaroo included a large wooden playground for the kiddies! Too bad Leah couldn't get out and enjoy it. Mom spent a few minutes swinging with the other grown-ups. That was fun!
This ruined it for us. BONNAROO became BONNA-ROADBLOCK The 11-hour Parking Lot A view of our camper in Bonnaroo's 11-hour traffic jam At the end of four days, we were ready to leave Bonnaroo. It hadn't been the greatest experience (maybe because we had the flu and didn't get to see many of the shows), but we didn't have any major complaints either. That all ended when we tried to leave. We awoke early and got on line to leave at 8 a.m. Monday morning. We figured we'd be out in an hour or two and making our way back to South Florida. Unfortunately, moments after we got online, we hit the brakes. No one was directing traffic. Nearly 80,000 people were all trying to leave at the same time, and with no one directing traffic, it was a damned free-for-all. The Bonnaroo folks were so cheap that they didn't open any alternative roads out, even though we learned that there could have been plenty because of all the private properties surrounding the farm. To make matters worse, the Bonnaroo promoters shut down the water stations and stopped servicing the portable toilets. We watched as many overheated and frustrated campers tried in vain to fill their water containers, or attempted to use the toilets and were turned away by the smell. By mid-afternoon, some Bonnaroo service people arrived, not to resume the flow of water, but to dismantle the water station. Medics came and took one dehydrated camper away on a stretcher. As the day wore on, we became more and more impatient. Fellow campers raged to get out of the parking lot. In the beginning, people asked nicely if they could cut in front of us. By the end of the day; however, it turned ugly as some girl with an attitude threw herself in front of our camper so that she could stop us and let her friends' camper through. I tried several times to call the Bonnarroo promoters (Superfly Productions) to beg them to send police out to direct traffic, but they never answered the phone. Finally, at 7 p.m., after all the cars had escaped through a back property (at the tune of $10 a piece), the line started to move. We looked around and realized that we were the last group of people to leave Bonnarro. This single act of greed by the Bonnaroo promoters has filled us with such disgust that we doubt we will ever go to this event again. Instead of driving back to South Florida in one day, we were stuck splitting our drive back into two days. We had to lodge overnight in Georgia, we had to pay an extra day's rent on the camper, and Eric missed an extra half-day of work.