TRF, How big is too big?

[Drudonn]

I was at TRF this past weekend, camping for the first time. I did notice that on sunday it was really packed--more so than I've seen it before, I believe. I had a lot of fun both days--nobody bothered me inside the gate. A couple of obnoxious drunks in the campground (who would yell at our empty tents and insist the tents didn't belong to us...  ) but there were also a lot of very friendly drunks hanging around--yelling "free soup" is a great way to make friends 

[Lord Virgo]

I am not a fan of big crowds either but I will suffer through it for the performers and vendors sake.  The more people in attendance then the more tips for performers and the better chance of vendors selling more wares.

[*Teach*]

I am probably one of the rare breeds that like crowds. I am a people watcher and TRF is a fantastic place for that.
Seeing a mundane get sucking into a shop by a hawker... hilarious!
Seeing a playtron interact with cast without missing a beat... fantastic!
Seeing a child playing with a fairy... wonderful!
The more people there are the more things there are for me to see and enjoy as the day goes by.
And more people for me to meet. I am just a little bit of a ham so having 30,000 new friends to meet works out well for me.

*and more people means more rum to share around!*

[-:-Juju-:-]

*and more people means more rum to share around!*

Aha! I couldn't agree more

On the topic note...this is a random thought I had this year while fighting the crazy traffic and crowds:

There should be a "Rennie Lane" that takes us directly there and allows us to bypass all the 'Danes and their lack of knowing where to go, how to drive, etc.

And a "Rennie Line" at the gate

Sort of like FOF for Scarby, but also on the road! lol.

Obviously this won't ever happen..but it helps me cope to think of great ideas like that while i'm stuck in traffic enroute to Faire and are so crazy excited to be going, but frustrated to no end that i'm not able to "beam me up scotty" and just "poof!" and be there!

[analise]

On the "rennie line" idea:

Well, there IS a separate line for season pass holders at MDRF (as opposed to the part of the gate reserved for all other ticket holders) so it can be done.

[The Bruce of Springstein]

Our group loves all sizes of Faires.  The way we see it there were large crowded towns and smaller villages.  We love to visit all but TRF is great because the size allows you to get lost in time. 

[-:-Juju-:-]

Our group loves all sizes of Faires.  The way we see it there were large crowded towns and smaller villages.  We love to visit all but TRF is great because the size allows you to get lost in time. 

You know, that's a great point and a refreshing way to look at it Never would have thought about that!

[Mead Swilling Lech]

You know, I love TRF but I completely understand the OP.  It's not all the "extra bodies" that bother me, it's the fact that it becomes harder and harder to find my rennie bretheren whilst among the masses.  And when they are found, it is virtually impossible to carry on a conversation..

I won't stop going to TRF, but I am very happy Sherwood is up and running and doing so well.  It gives you the faire experience, but it is a much more intimate experience where you're always running into your friends.

[Alessandra]

I am probably one of the rare breeds that like crowds. I am a people watcher and TRF is a fantastic place for that.
Seeing a mundane get sucking into a shop by a hawker... hilarious!
Seeing a playtron interact with cast without missing a beat... fantastic!
Seeing a child playing with a fairy... wonderful!
The more people there are the more things there are for me to see and enjoy as the day goes by.
And more people for me to meet. I am just a little bit of a ham so having 30,000 new friends to meet works out well for me.

Ditto on all of the above! 

[Queen Bonnie]

 I usually hate crowds- but I have had a ball at TRF this year. Many muggles attending- just is that many more to play with! Faire- big or small- I love them all! I keep a smile on my face and my wits about me!

[LadyStitch]

I'm with Teach. There is something about just people watching.  The shows I want to see we plan ahead and just mosey  our way there. We see things as we go, and dont' have to run from place to place. 

To be honest just finding a nice bench with a tankard is nice to do.  I swear the pink pirate had more fun just sitting and interacting with people on his park bench while myself and friend got fitted for a new bodice than just walking all over the place.

I'm not going to say the crowds going out are not a pain. (The Pirate and I got side swiped by another rennie last year, but we were in line so long we got all their info by being behind them in traffic, it made doing the report so much easier.)  If you are going to stay late, plan to stay late be it in your car or just hanging out outside the gate, or chatting with friends.

To be honest I far prefer TRF to another we went to.  It was maybe as big , but it had no way the atmosphere that TRF does.  I would take the crowds over the vibe I got at that other faire. 

As for will they add another weekend?  Don't know because to scedule of how bookings work out.   The faire management will have to take into effect how this will effect acts, performers and other things.   I just remember the griping that I heard from some vendors because they had to be away from family for thanksgiving.  They couldn't have a "normal" thanksgiving because of the added weekend.  Granted they were getting more buisness but at the cost of family. 

[Zardoz]

Other than a couple of acts I always see, I enjoy the people watching more than anything, but I really feel like even it's getting harder to do because of all the bodies.

I mentioned last years' Highland Saturday in my original post, but I forgot last year's Black Friday! Almost 38,000 folks! I think anyone who was in the middle of that mess would tell you that's too many people to do damn near anything!

I'm not sure that TRF adding a weekend (which I would assume would be at the front, not after Celtic X-Mas) is the "fix" for the overcrowding. Since the numbers continue to grow, it would really just be another crowded weekend after the first year anyway. 
Another option would be to enlarge the faire grounds by a few acres, but that won't make the lanes any wider. I'd favor relocating the pinch points in the current set-up, like stages in the middle of lanes like Dove Meadow, Mockingbird, Warfside, etc.. either to the 'new' acreage, or into the rows of shops like the new Polish stage.


I too am happy that Sherwood is up and running, we felt a much more intimate faire experience there.

[crashbot]

I prefer it on the scant side, but I understand the more people in the gate the better for everyone. This past weekend was right on the cusp of being to crowded for me, but I just found a nice bench and people watched. I do think some more investment from the mgmt would be nice to help reduce some of the bottlenecks and thin out the concentration of people in some areas.

I am not sure if another weekend would level out the crowds or not.

I am looking forward to heading to Sherwood for the first time, and maybe actually meeting people from the boards.  While I did meet a couple nice folks around my camp, I didnt meet anyone from the boards.

[Lady Renee Buchanan]

I'm being curious, since we've never been to TRF.  Someday, hopefully, but not in the immediate plans.

With that many people, are there enough locations to buy food/drinks, or are the lines horrendous?

At Bristol, when it's really crowded (sounds like the same scenario that you experience where you can just about move through the lanes), the lines at the food booths and drinks booths are awful.  Sometimes, we grab something when we first get there to tide us over past the mid-day crunch when we don't want to waste our precious time there waiting to buy something.  There, they definitely need more food/drink vendors (they don't have both in 1 booth), and I was wondering about how long the wait for food/drink is at TRF.

[Singed]

With that many people, are there enough locations to buy food/drinks, or are the lines horrendous?

There are plenty, there are lines of course but nothing I would term even approaching horrendous.  Food and drink booths are spread out all over the site and each of booths is very limited in scope, having only a few items, so folks who want a turkey leg go to one booth, steak on a stick go to another booth.  I'm there nearly every day it is open and rarely have to wait for more than a few people to be served before me. 

The worst is probably the hamburgers back in the German section, they are actually VERY good and do draw a crowd,  but generally the waits are pretty minimal. 

The only thing I really dislike is having to go to one booth for food and a second booth for a beer.