message 3 of 10
by John » Sat Aug 14, 2021 04:04 pm
I do a little bit of scouting around. I have 2 shows and there's about 2 hours between them, so I go wandering a bit. There's a long carnival midway with rides and games but I don't bother with that. There are a lot of vendor's booths with overpriced stuff, (purses, wallets, cigars, toys, T-shirts, hats, etc.). I usually try to find something there for the grandkids. There are a lot of food vendors there too, (most of it pretty nasty). I mostly stay away from the fair food unless I'm sure it's something OK.
There's a place I go to to get sasparilla but I think that's how I got too hot 2 years ago. It was about 100 degrees and it's a long walk to it. Although the tent we play in is open on 3 sides there was no breeze whatsoever so when I got back, I think I just sat there and boiled. During the last show I started getting so dizzy I thought I might actually have to go sit down, but like the stubborn jack-ass I am, I bulled my way through it and after that first hour, I felt fine.
There are a lot of other musical acts around but I don't usually get a chance to see them. We play in the main tent, (not to be confused with the main stage where the big name acts play across the street). It's the "Bud Tent" and it's kind of the "prestige" musical venue there. All they have to drink there is Budweiser. (You know how big Budweiser is in Missouri.) I rarely drink and I never drink while I'm playing so there's not much attraction for me there.
The main acts across the street play between our shows so when they're done, their crowd comes across the street to our "BudTent". Sometimes the bands come over and watch us. Lee Greenwood came over one year. Hank Williams Jr. came over and of course, everyone was buying him beers. Ted Nugent showed up one night. 3 Doors Down came over a few years ago and the drummer sat in with us. There were probably a few others but I wouldn't have known. John