SCUK Summer Bash 07

Duration	3 days
Starts on	Friday 29th June 2007
Ends on	Sunday 1st July 2007 (389 days ago)
Location	Tamworth Snowdome and a nearby field, United Kingdom

The Summer Bash is back for its 6th year.

Details

Review

Ahhh, the glories of a true British summer. Perhaps we should have known better than to schedule this year’s summer bash on the weekend between Glastonbury and Wimbledon, but here at SCUK towers we live by the adage; “fortune favours the brave”. With the heavens dark, gloomy and threatening, and three fields stricken from our camping choices for being slightly damp (or two feet underwater) we sought higher, drier ground and found it within the Priory Park go-kart track grounds, and crossed our fingers.

Arriving on site a touch late on the Friday we were greeted by a hardcore contingent of Tamworth locals and SCUKers who had travelled far and wide to celebrate summer, and we were rewarded with a clear evening in which to pitch camp. Without a specific roof (the old one having fallen foul of slightly over-zealous spring cleaning) the old ‘AIM seires’ tent took a touch longer than usual to make waterproof, but lashings of tarpaulin, polythene sheeting, rope, cable ties and of course duct tape soon sorted that out. This would make the ideal home for our man with the sound – Tony B. As Tony set up the audio side of things, we built the new addition to the Summer Bash – the ‘Tent-in’ Cinema Screen. With a selection of Comedy and Snowboard films on offer, it was to provide a welcome distraction should the weather do what the Met Office was warning of and quite literally ‘rain on our parade’. With some beer and some beats we joined the group for a good ol’ fashioned dance round the campfire.


Unfortunately, the Met Office turned out to be pretty spot on with their predictions, and we were woken on Saturday morning by the drumming of rain on the sides of our tents. Although some appeared to be happy to let the rain cancel all our planned activities allowing them extra time in bed to sleep off their hangovers, we had other things planned. Although the rain may have put the kibosh on our extensive sporting plans for 5-a-side Football, volleyball and shoe golf, new activities were sorted with the arrival of birthday boy, Mr Tamworth Snowdome himself – Gary Baker. These hastily formed pursuits included petrol driven radio-controlled car Evel Knievel style jumps, damp kite flying near power lines and a 2 ½ hour BBQ building session. The soundtrack to the day was provided by SCUK pop-pickers with their CDs and Ipods out, each trying to out-do each other with the choice of tunage. With the smell of BBQed food too much for people to resist, we finally managed to coax people from their tents, and as the charcoal from some slightly over done burgers and bangers settled dodgy stomachs further, we got a convoy together to go and hit the Tamworth Snowdome.

Of course, the smart SCUKers had pre-booked their session and were entered into the prize draw to win a FREE stay at the Dragon Lodge in Tignes for the coming season. Tim Sandy’s dulcet accent on the mic soon had everyone fired up as we hosted 10 minute jam sessions on all the toys that Stu Leonard and his crew of Tamworth shapers had lovingly prepared. T-Shirts and Beanies were throw down for the best tricks on most of the jibs, including an impressive session on the almighty ‘Slayer’ rail, but we also included a best Quarterpipe trick to prove that the UK has got more than just jibbers. It being Gary’s 35th Birthday, he was a little bit inebriated by this point, and had a bit of an issue with his own Snowdome security staff who were refusing to let him on the slope. He managed to give them the slip and received some of the biggest cheers of the night for his hits on the Grand Prix kicker. Dunx also bought his ‘Ebay-puchased, 1967-original, staples-for-bindings’ Snurfer, with not a metal edge or carbon torsion beam in sight. This provided a novel change for a few of the riders that night, some finding it easier to navigate the Tamworth dog-leg than others.


A late bar held many peoples attention and as the sore heads and delicate stomachs of the morning were easily forgotten with the adrenalin still coursing through their veins, we got back on the beers. Expecting a full scale party to be continuing in the field upon our return, we were intruiged to be greeted by a pitch black and quiet site. It turns out an unfortunate fight broke out between the generator and a Volkswagen Polo and suffice to say, the generator came off worst. With no tunes or light, and the rain continuing, we did the only thing that we could: corralled a few cars, turned the headlights on and blew some vehicular speakers. The damp and muddy dawn that greeted us on Sunday morning was more like the Battle of the Somme, and although for many it was the last thing they wanted to do, camp had to be disassembled and tents packed up. With a hearty BBQ breakfast in our bellies we packed up camp and said goodbye to friends new and old, vowing to see them again if not soon, then at next years booze fuelled extravaganza. I think it is safe to say that this little experiment proved that fortune does indeed favour the brave.


Many thanks to Stu Leonard and the Tamworth Crew for preparing an awesome park for us, to Tim Sandy for his hilarious Mcing on the night, to John from Dragon Lodge for once again provinding us with an amazing prize for all pre-booked SCUKers, to Gary Baker of the Snowdome who spent the weeks leading up to this event scouring the countryside surrounding Tamworth for a suitable field and then spending his 35th birthday with us in the mud, and finally to all the hardcore SCUKers who turned up and braved the elements. I doff my cap to you all. Roll on next year, and global warming.

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The event profile for SCUK Summer Bash 07 can be maintained by SCUK or the event organisers. If you want a login and password or have any information you think we ought to be displaying here for SCUK Summer Bash 07 then email dunx@snowboardclub.co.uk

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     10 April, 2008

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