So the set up on Thursday went great. Most of the rain showers had passed through by the time we started setting up. Due to a clerical error, our booth space was accidentally given to another vendor…but as luck would have it, we were moved right across the vendor row from our good friends over at Wormtown Trading Co. This meant that we had some great tunes to set up the booth to! Prince Pandora Radio blasted our corner of vendor row, while the Mr. B’s Crew shook off the rust of the winter and got back into our “booth setup” groove. Eventually, we came to a good stopping point, and headed back to the hotel for some pizzas.

This morning, we finished putting the finishing touches on the booth, and grabbed any last minute inventory items before the gates opened at 4:00 pm. As I arrived back on site from the inventory run, and from picking up the new signs from Image360, the skies, that had been chucking down buckets of rain all day, decided to clear up and give us some Earth Day sunshine to dry things out before the patrons arrived. It was just the boost to the morale that we all needed!

The gates opened up and people started filtering in slowly for the first show at 4:20pm. Big Sam’s Funky Nation opened things up with some nice dirty funk jams. Although, the crowd really started to pile in around 6pm to be sure to catch the Cypress Hill set on the Main Stage! Now it’s starting to look like a festival! Throughout the night, people were popping in and out of the booth, grabbing their various necessities and snacks, while the music of Cypress Hill, the Disco Biscuits, Paper Diamond, and many others raged in the background. Clear skies….beautiful weather…amazing sunset…but then………

…..Just as Kid Rock hit the stage around 9:45pm, I noticed that Bryce was starting to cover up a few sections of her booth. She told me to check the doppler, and sure enough, a small, but very strong, rogue storm was about 20 minutes away from the festival, and heading straight for us. So we battened down the hatches, and prepared for the rain, all while staying open for as long as possible, since things were nice and busy. As we weather proofed ourselves and the booth, we tried to let customers know about the impending storm and to pick up a poncho on their way out of the store…some listened…others got soaked…

About 5 songs into his set, just as he was starting to play ‘Cowboy’, the lightning flashed across the clouds and the skies opened up. Only 25 minutes into his hour and a half long set, Kid Rock and his band were told to pack up and head for shelter. The festival was evacuated and the storm, although quick, definitely dumped some rain on the festival grounds!

After doing a pretty good job of keeping things dry, the rains eventually dissipated, and we were able to close up shop for the night and head back to the hotel. We’re back at the hotel an hour earlier than expected, but excited to be dry and in bed for the night! Nice long days ahead of us the rest of the weekend.

Off to bed!