Camping @ TRF

[Riot]

I am afraid that at some point, someone will decide to take things into their own hands & do security's job for them. Then there will be an incident. Guess which party, or parties, will be thrown out of camp & maybe get a complimentary ride to county?

That exactly what I think is going to happen... and I don't think many are far from it..

[KiltedPrivateer]

I'd like to think that many of us on this forum are level headed and prefer to b!tch and moan to our little groups than to actually organize against the undesirables.  It will be a very bad day for everyone if the rennie's at large organize against them though.

[Riot]

It really isn't a good idea, as those that try to stop it will be the ones getting in trouble or worse getting hurt. I've just heard enough about it to know I don't think many are far from trying to do soemthing about it.

[Glaodian]

Maybe as a group, we should get together on this.  And submit something in writting to the powers in charge. 

Just a thought.

[KiltedPrivateer]

The trick is finding a "something" that is legal, avoids bloodshed, but repulses the undesirables so much that they refuse to ever come back.  Wheres Breandan's creative mind when you need it (o:

[ravic]

KP, agreed. However, the people that read this & similar boards, level-headed or not, is a very small percentage of the actual ren population.

Where's that claymore picture Fraser posted awhile back? Sorry, just daydreaming a little.

[Morrigan]

If you haven't done so already, go to the texrenfest.com website and click the 'contact us' link, and submit a complaint.  Seriously, if you have a complaint, communicate it DIRECTLY.   A bunch of people bitching and complaining on a board that is occasionally looked at by Terre is one thing.  A SLEW of DIRECT communication about the exact nature of the problem and how it affected your TRF experience is another thing entirely, and far more quantifiable.

[Breandan]

The trick is finding a "something" that is legal, avoids bloodshed, but repulses the undesirables so much that they refuse to ever come back.  Wheres Breandan's creative mind when you need it (o:

Working on it. Unfortunately, it's going to take me pulling several grand out of my keester for the license renewals, training and licensure as bodyguard for the handful of people I trust enough to legally put my butt on the line for, some serious legalese on paper to make local LE happy and keep George the hell out of it, and insurance. however, by next year we should have a well-trained, licensed, legal, insured and squared away group able to at least protect the people in the camps. Shutting the idiots up is on faire's end, not much we can do about that, but I want to A) head off any vigilantism, B ) make sure that the people are protected from any assaults or the like, and C) establish "don't screw around here, you will wind up in cuffs in 0.003 seconds" zones where people can have fun in peace and safety. However, this is a bandaid solution, not a long-term or overall one, especially since we will effectively be operating pro-bono for the camps and losing a metric butt-tonne of money in overhead.

Overall, faire needs a serious security overhaul. On an average night out there I witness a dozen B or C misdemeanors and between one and three felonies that get ignored, and I'm just out there to have fun with friends, I'm not on duty. I will let that statement speak for itself, however I have a very strong professional opinion of the security situation out there. That being said, having worked at faire for twenty years I can guaran-damn-tee you there is no way George will EVER pry open the budget enough to increase security staff, private or off-duty LEO, so the campers are pretty much left to fend for themselves unless something explodes. Terre might be able to do something about it within the budget he has, but he's stretched pretty thin as it is, so I'm not holding my breath. No fault of his, that lies directly at Mr. Coulam's feet.

[KiltedPrivateer]

unless something explodes.

Which is what we want to avoid entirely.  It's been pointed out here before, the camp ground is not where the faire makes its profits.  One big snafu that gives the faire a black eye and the whole thing will most likely get shut down.

Then we can all use this thread to talk about the days when we used to be able to camp out at TRF and how great it was before the dark days of the battle that ended it all; In the long long ago; aka, the before-time (o:

On the other hand, that opens an opportunity for an entrepreneur to start up a private campground near by.

[Strange]

Maybe as a group, we should get together on this.  And submit something in writting to the powers in charge. 

Just a thought.

Particularly if you can talk real numbers.
How many people camp w/ McLot, or McShug, or PR, or Valhalla?
If we can get agreement that from most/all of the groups, and let TRF know you're representing hundreds of REPEAT campers/patrons, then you may get their attention.

[Breandan]

Sherwood gets it, big time, not just how to run camping, but how important and valuable of customers/allies the camping clans can be. Terre is rumoured to be taking cues from Sherwood, so this is not news to TRF management, but there's a difference in situation, size and internal politics/control that make it a lot more difficult there.

[Laird Fraser of Lovatt]

Flash bangs wrapped in flechettes... Dragons Breath shotgun rounds... punji sticks...trip snares... some of that stuff that Victor Charlie used to cook up, back in the day...

[Glaodian]

Flash bangs wrapped in flechettes... Dragons Breath shotgun rounds... punji sticks...trip snares... some of that stuff that Victor Charlie used to cook up, back in the day...

I was waiting on your response.  

[ravic]

Deer season starts soon. Maybe we can put out signs directing the ravers to the nearest lease?

[Strange]

Give them xmas reindeer hats...