We arrived around 2 PM and after picking up our bracelets we strolled the expansive grounds in the warm sun as we were staying offsite at a hotel and didn’t have to setup camp. We chatted up other friendly fans who had also traveled from around the country and anxiously awaited the band’s soundcheck.
When 5 PM passed, Alan and I tired of standing in the heat, opted to further explore the campgrounds and see if we ran into any friends. After a quick loop we returned to one of the main roads to find the other festival goers walking away from the entrance and overheard ‘This is worse than Coventry’. We both assumed this was a severe over reaction to the soundcheck being cancelled but then soon heard grumblings to check phish.com for the announcement that the festival had been cancelled due to unclean water in the area and at the festival. After confirming the news we stood stunned, in disbelief that Christmas had been cancelled. Not even being able to comprehend how the event we had traveled to from across the country had been nixed at the 11th hour.
Curveball was to only be my 2nd festival since Big Cypress 18 years earlier. I’d opted to break my streak of 4 consecutive Dick’s runs to attend. The first night was to be Alan’s 100th show and it was his first festival since Coventry.
Festival Phish is special Phish. The afternoon set. The secret late night ambient set. The art. The Ferris wheel. The fan game shows. Immersing yourself in what you love with others who share the same passion for 72 hours. I was really looking forward to finally meeting many people I'd engaged with on Twitter in person and none of it was going to happen.
We wondered aimlessly for the next hour or two and stopped to bum beers from another fan John who had driven up 17+ hours solo from Jacksonville, FL. We've since learned there fans traveled from as far away as Alaska, South Korea, New Zealand and Germany. Some had even driven cross-country making our 12 hours of travel seem easy.
We wondered aimlessly for the next hour or two and stopped to bum beers from another fan John who had driven up 17+ hours solo from Jacksonville, FL. We've since learned there fans traveled from as far away as Alaska, South Korea, New Zealand and Germany. Some had even driven cross-country making our 12 hours of travel seem easy.
After sleeping on it we decided to still try and make the most of the weekend and visited the Watkins Glen State Park and Gorge, enjoying the hike to the waterfalls followed by a swim in the park pool. We chatted and shared stories with other fans in a downtown Watkins Glen pub over a beer and then headed East to Cooperstown to visit the Baseball Hall of Fame which Alan – a huge baseball fan had never been to. That night we stayed in a rural, kitschy hotel/boarding house - meeting a number of interesting people - most of whom had heard about the cancellation and expressed their condolences. We enjoyed fireside drinks with a lake view followed by a delicious seafood meal before seeking shelter while a massive thunderstorm passed through. Living my entire life on the west coast, thunderstorms just aren't something you get to experience.
Next we headed south for a surprise visit with my in-laws in New Jersey – hiking, swimming, riding their zip line and dining at the family restaurant and pub before flying home Sunday night.
The situation was unfortunate and a massive disappointment but we made the most of it and won’t be deterred from attending the next festival.
-@blazeonbob & @alanstern7 #alanandbobnotatcurveball
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