What are your best TBF memories?

[BluegrassDustin]

What I do remember was his reply.  "I didn't get up at 5 o @#$@% clock in the @#$@#$ morning so you could have <whatever>.  NOW DRINK!!!"  So I ordered a bloody too.  And the bartender did a shot.

[Hooch]

Another amusing memory from many festivals:

Watching the mad scramble for ponchos as a rainstorm rolls in....the sudden, almost instantaneous conversion of "festivarians in shorts and tank-tops" into "festivarians in blue plastic".

 Listening to: people bitching outside my office

[meanderingjeeper]

I was going to ask you a few days ago if the World Cup was going to be held during Telluride again this year.

Nope.  It was last summer and the US sure did not put on a good show.  At least it wasn't the same bad result as France in '98, but still not moving forward.  The old coach, Bruce Arena, got the boot and they've got Bob Bradley in as an 'interim' right now.

 Listening to: wdvx.com

[iain]

So many to choose from, but when Steve and Ed from Barenaked Ladies sang WHAM's "Careless Whispers" so passionately, accompanied by Chris Thile and a pile of other pickers at the Sheridan last year, I knew I had found paradise.  I sure hope Chris does a nightgrass again this year!   

 Listening to: the beep-beep-beep of radiocollared wildlife

[SteamboatPaul]

So many to choose from, but when Steve and Ed from Barenaked Ladies sang WHAM's "Careless Whispers" so passionately, accompanied by Chris Thile and a pile of other pickers at the Sheridan last year, I knew I had found paradise.  I sure hope Chris does a nightgrass again this year!   

I hadn't heard about that! Were there tapers there?

[iain]

I saw a small microphone set on the balcony, but I haven't seen the recording offered up anywhere.  There have been a lot of requests for that show, so if anyone has a copy, it would be super awesome if they could share it.

[Ron N Deb]

Ok my turn
1994 first TRide camping in Illium didnt have a clue
watching the Band playing the weight with the lighting behind the Mtn
Giving up my sweat shirt for the young mother for her child , cuase there was no shuttle....sorry had too
at 2 am in the morning

!996
First year in Town park
meeting Jeff Stampes, Billy , Kenny and Carolyn , Telluride Tom  Ma and Pa Biddle , Mac , Mike Hornick
and the rest of the Festivarians that are our Familly

theres a whole lot more betweeen there and the XXX of Fest
But The Biggest high point for me is when Deb and I got married , won the Freebox fashion show , and was part of Telluride Toms recieving his Life time pass ..all in the same year
so many storys to share !!
 

[TellurideTom]

Here's another story, unrelated to the music, but a good one any way.

I think it was in 1989. I was camping in Town Park, and had just met a guy and his girlfriend from Florida that was camped nearby.
He had trouble with his truck and rode his bike down to the gas station to buy a new battery. After he got back, he realized that he didn't have his wallet and started freaking out.
He said he had all of their vacation money in it, and couldn't get back home without it.
I told him not to worry, that it would show up, and if it didn't that we would all pitch in to get him back home. Later that afternoon he went down to the Sheriff's office, and to his surprise they had his wallet with all the money still in it.
We stayed in touch somewhat throughout the year, and a few months before the next years festival I called him to see if they were going to come.
He said "no, I don't think we can make it" and I told him to try. He called me back about a week later and said they were going to be there, but he wanted me to do him a favor.
I said "of course, whatever you want", and he said "we want you to be best man at our wedding"!
That was the second time out of three that I've been best man at Telluride weddings.
It's wonderful to have friends like that and share a wonderful moment in such a wonderful place.

[Hooch]

My group had a similar experience with a wallet and purse back in 2003.  One couple were newbies and he dropped his wallet at the gondola station in Mtn Villiage.  He discovered it was gone when he got into the festival and was lamenting that all their cash was in it.  He, of course, did not expect to recover the wallet and especially not the cash.  But....lo and behold....somone turned it in with all the money still in there.  He and his wife were very impressed by the type of festivarian crowd Telluride draws.

Also, my friend Janie lost her purse, but she's been going to TBF as long as I have so she pretty much sat back and waited for it to be turned in....and it was.  She even got a photo of her and the guy who turned it in. 

[Kaptain Karlos]

One beautiful afternoon at TBF, I was standing-up at my spot in the festival spacing-out and looking around at all the amazing sceenery when between acts, I think... Bela began playing Imagine by the Beetles solo on his banjo!  I about fell over.  His perfomance and stage presence was perfect.  I mean perfect!  This is one of many un-expected touching performances I've whitnessed at The Telluride festival and why I return year after year after year...

The Kaptain 

[Hooch]

Oh yeah!  I remember that!  Also, last year when Ryan Shupe And The Rubberband played "Rainbow Connection" with a very impressive Kermit The Frog imitation I remember I was heading back to the bathrooms when they started and had to stop, turn around and listen because I have a thing for the muppets.  I even have a tattoo of a muppet. 

 Listening to: Bluegrass music....DUH!!!

[meanderingjeeper]

I have a thing for the muppets.

But what about the Fraggles?


 Listening to: Bad Manners

[Hooch]

I never got into the Fraggles because my parents would not get cable TV when I was a kid.  When I finally start my own bluegrass band we are going to re-make all the Muppet songs like "Rainbow Connection", The Muppet Show Theme Song, that Sesame Street theme song, "Manamana", "Rubber Duckie", and the Muppet babies song where baby Miss Piggie refers to practicing neurosurgery on your brain.

Another good TBF memory: For many years my group has had a guy named Jim from Cortez, CO whom I never speak to between festivals nor did I even have his phone number until just last year.  At every TBF we all arrive, grab our usual spot, and I tell any newbie "Now just wait and we will find our friend Jim."  Inevitably a few minutes later we spot Jim wandering the aisles (in his trademark hat and chair), we all yell out his name, and the festivating then begins in earnest.  And that's how we always hook up with Jim.  It's always expected that he will be there and we always keep an eye out for him because he's an important part of our group.  Oh...and now our group is officially called "Utarpia" as of last year's fest.  All are welcome!!  Look for us to the left of the stage, a few tarps left of the repeater stack, and about 2 tarps back from the aisle.  I'll be the one sitting on a tarp in a low-back chair drinking something out of a stainless steel flask.

 Listening to: The sounds of silence...no, not the Simon and Garfunkle song.....actual silence.

[SteamboatPaul]

I have been racking my brain, searching the dark corners behind the petrified cobwebs to come up with the perfect "best memory". It finally came to me. It wasn't just one moment or event or performance. It was one whole festival.

The years do run together, but I am 99% certain that is was 1995. Those involved(you'll know who you are) can correct me if I'm on the space time continuum parts.

We had established Camp Triphi Acres over the past few years at the base of trail up to Bear Creek Falls from the preserve. We were ready for the Saturday morning land grab, poised to grab our coveted real estate. The time comes, and we find ourselves battling over our big tent spot with these unfamiliar campers. There were no harsh words, there were exchanged glances, some posturing, a little negotiating. The dust settled and had we both shifted our intended boundaries accordingly and every body seemed happy. Then the fun really started.

What had started as a slightly tense meeting of festivarians battling for the same spot became one big camp of really happy people. The week ended in hugs and "see ya next year"

This was truly one of the best all around festival experiences ever!

If you haven't figured it out yet, Kaptain, you were an intergral part of this experience, crutches and all. Meeting you and your krewe has been a occasion to celebrate over and over.

The music of Rob and Brandt alone and together with our boys Truffle.

The Bassjo, courtesy of David Bailey. 

The many exchanges of cocktails.

....and on and on ....what a great year!!!

[Kaptain Karlos]

If you haven't figured it out yet, Kaptain, you were an intergral part of this experience, crutches and all. Meeting you and your krewe has been a occasion to celebrate over and over....and on and on ....what a great year!!!

The year prior was Camp Run-A-Muck's first TBF in Town Park.  We were five people strong back then. We arrived late and got a terrible camping spot (right in the middle of a rocky pathway... The following year, I ABGAT'ed... arriving friday evening before the campground land rush and picked-out a killer spot for our expanded 12-person group to settle into.  Me and a couple Run-A-Muckers ran and tarped a huge area for our camp.  A few minutes later, Steamboat Paul walks up and sez "hey dude... I've got thirty people's tents to set-up, and you're in our spot".  I reply "Oh wow!  I didn't know about this returning to the same place thing.  We don't want to move.  Can we work something out?" (we do, and for that festival his camp and my camp share turf).  So, we each go about setting up our kitchens and communal areas, and I see Paul and a couple of folks constructing their kitchen and bar area out of scrap lumber.  We take the hint, and off we go into town to scavenge the construction sites for scraps.  We put together our own kitchen and bar under a big tarp boardered with 12-volt party lights and solar panels, get our personal tents set up, and commence festivating.  No sooner does Paul and wife Hillary come over and inform us that they are in the process of making ordurves for us and to get over to their bar and start chowing-down.  What a dude!  What a great neighbor!  Our camps festivate together in harmony without boarders.  They hang-out at our bar and we hang-out at theirs.  From time forth, Paul and I have been the best of festival friends... Hope I see you in Telluride...

Kaptain Karlos