Yes, you can survive 36 hrs at an event in the rain

[GrumpyDave]

Re: Yes, you can survive 36 hrs at an event in the rain

No Hank: Mr, haven't been to an event since 2005. and you were perfectly miserable looking for that stupid cat.

All this modern cameraderie that reenactors praise, means people feel an obligation to stay with their friends, but it means they'll leave when their friends do, too.

"Lead, Follow or Carry My Gear." We and our pears, without threat or bodily harm or pain of death at an event, can survive for 36 hours. And, we survive better together. I'm glad this didn't turn into a thread filled with excueses for "why I left", I'da gotten grumpy.

Ok, I admit it. I left an "add junk" at Cedar Creek many years ago, at about 1am on a Saturday; After the Confederates broke the night tatical and came into the Federal Camps, flag stealing'. We were out on a Picket Line and al lof the sudden there were Cornfeds runnin throught the drunkin' Irish Brigades camp. But then again, things got stupid and unsafe. I wasn' t alone. Ya-hoo.

Even the mention of that one still gives some folks a sore bottom.

[Matt Woodburn]

Re: Yes, you can survive 36 hrs at an event in the rain

Grumpy, Hank wasn't miserable on that cold snowy night looking for Pumpkin his cat until I found where Pumpkin curled up under my blanket, unfortunately way too close to the fire.:cry_smile

[Hank Trent]

Re: Yes, you can survive 36 hrs at an event in the rain

No Hank: Mr, haven't been to an event since 2005. and you were perfectly miserable looking for that stupid cat.

No, I was perfectly miserable, and pretty close to unsafe, when the plan was to abandon me alone in a cold hut for hours at that event. But looking for the cat around other reenactors was the fun part.

The only way I prevented unsafe conditions and continued misery was by taking things into my own hands and demanding help. Otherwise I would have left in a heartbeat. Heard I got criticized and singled out as weird for that. So what. I don't owe the organizers a case of hypothermia for any hokey scenario of a patient that nobody's caring for, nor do I feel any obligation to act nice in order to earn cameraderie points with people who clearly didn't care anything about me.

At another event, I was criticized for not being a rain pussy and not dropping out when others did. So you can't win.

All this modern cameraderie that reenactors praise, means people feel an obligation to stay with their friends, but it means they'll leave when their friends do, too.

"Lead, Follow or Carry My Gear." We and our pears, without threat or bodily harm or pain of death at an event, can survive for 36 hours. And, we survive better together. I'm glad this didn't turn into a thread filled with excueses for "why I left", I'da gotten grumpy.

Well, the bold part is true. But what happens if others leave, so they're not there to help anymore, or, on the other hand, are there but aren't offering help because they're fine, even if you're not?

If there's a way to find cameraderie in this hobby without being required to leave early when others do, I've never figured it out. I have found that in a lot of cases, if one goes to events counting on others to help you--as I wrongly thought would be the case as a hospital patient--you'll be out of luck. Lesson learned. But if you go with the mindset that you may need to get through it completely alone, then help from others just makes it easier.

Hank Trent
hanktrent@gmail.com

[Matt Woodburn]

Re: Yes, you can survive 36 hrs at an event in the rain

Hank, you toughing it out on that cold snowy night to look for your lost cat gave alot of us one of the best laughs of the event. Thanks for the memory.

[Hank Trent]

Re: Yes, you can survive 36 hrs at an event in the rain

Hank, you toughing it out on that cold snowy night to look for your lost cat gave alot of us one of the best laughs of the event. Thanks for the memory.

Nobody gets it. Looking for the cat was fun and easy because I was part of a larger group working together to have fun. Being abandoned alone in a hut overnight wasn't, and several circumstances came together to make it a serious health risk. Nobody seemed to care, then or afterwards. As long as they had their friends and were having fun, what did it matter that one reenactor had no one checking on him or giving him the help he needed? That's the cold reality, no pun intended, about reenacting, and about people in general I've found, but one expects it less among reenactors supposedly coming together with a common interest.

Oh well. I learned a hard lesson at that event, and now choose events and roles more carefully. But I do think it applies to the theme of this thread. If reenactors tout the importance of helping each other through an event as a group, they need to actually do it.

Hank Trent
hanktrent@gmail.com

[Bill]

Re: Yes, you can survive 36 hrs at an event in the rain

Hank,

I like to think I helped a little with your problem in the cold hut.

This has been a long thread, but I don't think this has been addressed. In my humble opinion, too many campaigners, especially Confederates, don't come to events equipped to handle poor weather. One thin blanket and a ground cloth isn't going to cut it when the temperature falls, or the rain comes. I understand the desire to travel light. At my age, I consider every ounce I carry; but I don't kid myself that I'm as tough as the boys of '61. Confederate, or Federal, I carry a heavy blanket, two rubber blankets, or one rubber blanket and a shelter half. If it's likely to get cold, I carry a second small blanket, that I can use as both a blanket and/or poncho.

If they don't have the necessary equipment to stay warm and dry, it's no wonder people leave events. I would suggest that event organizers make it a point to insure their participants bring the proper equipment to survive in poor weather.

Another option, would be to provide shelter in the case of rain. There's enough fence sitters, like myself, who could bring tentage for use in an emergency.

[Hank Trent]

Re: Yes, you can survive 36 hrs at an event in the rain

I like to think I helped a little with your problem in the cold hut.

You sure did. What you did is what should have been done proactively, rather than because I demanded it mid-event. Before the event, I suggested that if we were to have a "hospital" we should have a military nurse, and had originally volunteered for that role, but it wasn't permitted. The doctor decided to portray his role as someone uncaring, which he had every right to do and is period-correct, but...

This has been a long thread, but I don't think this has been addressed. In my humble opinion, too many campaigners, especially Confederates, don't come to events equipped to handle poor weather. One thin blanket and a ground cloth isn't going to cut it when the temperature falls, or the rain comes.

That's a great point, and the solution to a lot of problems. A person at an event with plausible but extra stuff, is better than a person who leaves an event. It's also a solution to what to do if you're sharing with others and they leave; if you have enough to get by on your own, you can stay.

It does require knowing your own necessities. I'll always need more cold-weather stuff than others, so even my poor Andersonville prisoner impression included an overshirt made out of a blanket. But I hate socks, can go barefoot better than average, and don't need to eat much, so that's where I'll show off my ragged southerness. Somebody else might be just the opposite, and need foot cushioning and a steady diet, but be happy with one thin blanket. Put everybody together, and they'll still give the overall impression of looking destitute, but with everybody giving up what's easy for them, but not sacrificing what they need.

Hank Trent
hanktrent@gmail.com

[LibertyHallVols]

Re: Yes, you can survive 36 hrs at an event in the rain

A person at an event with plausible but extra stuff, is better than a person who leaves an event. It's also a solution to what to do if you're sharing with others and they leave; if you have enough to get by on your own, you can stay.

I'm going to throw in a link to another thread here, inspired by Hank Trent:

http://www.authentic-campaigner.com/forum/showthread.php?18233-The-quot-Self-Contained-quot-Infantryman

You make some good points, Hank. The inverse of your statement, above, is that we have better individual impressions (as well as a colletive impression) when we work together than we do if we are forced to "go it alone" because our comrades ditch the event.

[GrumpyDave]

Re: Yes, you can survive 36 hrs at an event in the rain

“It does require knowing your own necessities.”

Everyone’s a bit different. For me, I can sleep on a pile of rocks in the rain and not even blink. But, I hate wet socks. I’ll carry 4 pairs if I even think my feet might get cold and wet. And, hot, cold or somewhere between I need coffee, especially in the morning. Otherwise, there’s not much I can’t live without, including food for 36 hours as long as there’s water o’ plenty. ( I call it a Civil War diet, lol.)

And, for some reason, while all around me are shivering in Greatcoats, as long as I have a scarf and sometimes mittens, I’m fine.

So it goes. Some of all of this is nothing more than mental preparation. If you expect the worst and it happens, you’re not so surprised.

Oh, does anyone have an example of two soldiers drawing a gum blanket and cutting it in half? Or, a soldier cutting up a crappy old gum and just using what was left over? I know of documentation that exists for blankets, but, how about a gum blanket? And, there’s documentation out there where federal soldiers drew an extra gum, expensive at a buck 60 but, well worth it, I’m sure. And, I know the last thing a soldier would want to lose was his gum and the (pretty much) most coveted federal item by a confederate soldier was a gum.
Anything out there on cutting gums in half? Common sense tells me it happened, I’d like to see something factual.

[Coatsy]

Re: Yes, you can survive 36 hrs at an event in the rain

From the event planner's perspective, which I can count myself as, nothing is more depressing than to see men leave because of "hive mind" mass exodus. If you've never planned a "campaigner" or "authentic" type of event, then you cannot even begin to fathom the amount of pre event work with research, getting the land secured, working with park officials, making the event WORTH coming to, hyping/advertising it, etc.

There has only been one event where I was on the planning staff, where we put the men in a modern building because of heavy lightening issue, and the park ranger asked us to do so. I had no problem with that, because I could see the park ranger's point of view.

Why plan a history heavy, campaign, or even garrison event if you know that the so called "campaigners" will just up and leave when things are no longer "fun" or "easy"? Granted a majority of the reenactors that I know do not do this, but again, this trend seems to have collected steam over the past 3 or 4 years. Maybe event organizers and military commanders have gotten too nice or lax with setting the bar/cracking the whip as a whole. Now, granted TPEB was perfect since we were on an island for the weekend. No one could leave!

[Prodical Reb]

Re: Yes, you can survive 36 hrs at an event in the rain

I enjoyed TPEB! Thanks Pete B.! We were our own captive audience weren't we! My preparation for the cold was right on the money! The ticking was great and I never felt the cold frozen bricks beneath me. Rifle racks were nice too! The commeraderie of my companians I enjoyed immensely fireside that night!

Looking foward to Fire on the Rappahanock too! What is it w/Mr Beruzek and boats?

[unclefrank]

Re: Yes, you can survive 36 hrs at an event in the rain

Embrace the suck!