Someone Recently Proposed an Essay Contest to Win Free Tickets to Go See WSP at RedRocks Ampitheater this Summer.
My response...
The time was short that it took to load the Acura hatch-back with a few bags of raggedy clothes including some worn tshirts emblazoned with logos resembling one off brands such as the 'Low Spark' slogan in reference to an old Bill Withers song. Or their was the forest green colored shirt with a label similar to that of John Deer tractor company but which instead said 'High Gear' as a reference to the popular Phish song by the same name. Such cultured swag is a necessity to be worn amongst those who understand the scene of jambands. Also included in the travel supplies were several extra pairs of sneakers in case the conditions called for more than just sandals. Their were a couple pairs of durable khakis that given their length seemed to abide by the fashion statement that most German travelers make for themselves as obnoxiously short. Pairs of polarized sun glasses hung backwards around a few of their necks as they quickly finished loading the vehicle and got ready to make their way onto the open road.
The three guys at the helm of this journey had for months been eager about this seldom opportunity to get away from the dregs of their normal routines which in all honesty wasn't too much to feel pity for. Both Justin and Eddie had for the past year or so bounced between a few restaurant/bar jobs working shifts that began in the late afternoon until the early hours of the morning as they kept folks happy by pouring glasses of quality craft beer, pushing sliders of pork, burgers or any of the other dime a dozen pub fare menu items that might encourage spending so that these two blokes could make ends meet.
Tim on the other hand, recently had been accepted to law school and since taken on a $10/hr position as a legal aid with one of the dozen or so arbitration firms in the metro Charleston area.
For the three friends, the preceding weeks had been intense in anticipation before taking a week long vacation from their respective routines to venture half way across the country to go experience a solid three days of live music for the July 4th holiday. They all had grown nearly stir crazy in excitement just a few days before the arrival of their determined departure date of June 28th. It was then that they would be embarking upon a full two day drive that in all hopes would transport them in tact across a twenty five hundred mile journey through familiar roads of the south, into the heartlands of the Midwest before arriving upon Golden, Colorado, the site of the multi day festival hosting the music group Widespread Panic. These three guys had developed the strongest basis of adoration for the renowned southern rock band during their years of college and since.
Over the last five years, the friends had sprinted around several hundred miles of geographic proximity to experience as many as they could of the nearby concerts from the band's tours that routinely seemed to never cease. This summer though was big as the three of them were venturing farther than ever before to witness first hand the amazing musical talent of their favorite band among a backdrop of natural canyon surrondings at the famed Red Rock Ampitheater.
These guys embodied a bit of the spirit not much different from the Merry Pranksters upon their tour bus 'Further', which for anyone who knows the story included Ken Babbs, Ken Keasey and Jack Kerouak venturing across the country in a mind altering escape during the 1960's counter culture endemic. But the slightly less exuberant group of three friends were rather more intent upon taking their own old jalopy to the highway as a means of saving on the cost of airfare but also for the adventure of a cross country journey which most certainly would be a memorable experience.
The drive would require alternating among Justin, Eddie and Tim at the wheel so that they could arrive unimpeded within their forty-eight hour time frame prior to the kick off of day one's activities on July 1. By the time their journey had progressed as much as a day and a half of driving, they soon began to hope that it would not be too much longer before their vehicle made it within a hundred miles or so of the state park where the venue is located. It was then that the guys would began to feel that sense of celebratory accomplishment of having made it thus far to their destination.
Surely along the way had been many gallons of spent gasolone, a few dozen discarded beer cans, rounds of fragrant billowed smoke, hours of live recorded music played, ample banter interspersed with sessions of annoying silence but with a solidarity along the way that only expected to culminate once their favorite band took the stage each of these forth coming nights of live performances. But also in the spirit of true adventue, they traveled with no previously purchased tickets and these loyal music pals would still need to find some way of gaining entry to the event. Whos got their miracle?