Craziest thing you did to get to a PJ show?
Last week I was in a rental car and ended up with a flat. As I finished my drive on a donut tire I was thinking about the last time I drove on a donut.... Aaaaah, yes, 2000, 6.5 hour drive between Boston and Philly/Camden for the 1st PJ show at the Camden E-Centre (what it was called then; who knows how many bank names it's been through by now?).
I'd already left Boston a little later than I wanted to in my efforts to get there for the support band (Sonic Youth), and it was raining and therefore everyone forgot how to drive and there was traffic. I feel like I was still well north of NYC when I got a flat tire. I was SO PANICKED, and also don't remember having AAA then, but there was a gas station with tire service right off the highway exit so I was super lucky. They put the donut on, but I had no idea that you can't drive on a donut like you can a regular tire. I was reminded last week that you're not supposed to go more than 50mph on a donut, but here I was: didn't know that, but more importantly now LATE for a PJ SHOW... so I FLEW down I-95 going at least 85mph the whole way, plus it was raining at points, so flying, speeding, in the rain... on that donut.
I'll never forget arriving and parking at the E-Centre... I have mostly, my whole concert-going life, not been one to listen to the band I'm about to see on the day of the show. I prefer to just listen to whatever and have the live songs be my fresh intro to that band that day. But on this one trip, I was listening to a '95 San Jose show when I arrived, and I'll never forget the experience of arriving breathlessly, listening to whichever live song they were on on that boot, then shutting off the car and immediately hearing live "Present Tense"! I actually paused, turned my cd player back on, listened to the cd, then enjoyed/relished shutting it off to hear live PJ. And then I rushed the hell in (Present Tense meaning that I'd missed the first 12 songs, unfortunately).
So I unknowingly took a big risk and flew for hours down I-95 going 85-90mph on a donut tire to get to a PJ show. Maybe not crazy so much as highly NOT recommended, but how about you? What have you gone through to get to a PJ show?
I'd already left Boston a little later than I wanted to in my efforts to get there for the support band (Sonic Youth), and it was raining and therefore everyone forgot how to drive and there was traffic. I feel like I was still well north of NYC when I got a flat tire. I was SO PANICKED, and also don't remember having AAA then, but there was a gas station with tire service right off the highway exit so I was super lucky. They put the donut on, but I had no idea that you can't drive on a donut like you can a regular tire. I was reminded last week that you're not supposed to go more than 50mph on a donut, but here I was: didn't know that, but more importantly now LATE for a PJ SHOW... so I FLEW down I-95 going at least 85mph the whole way, plus it was raining at points, so flying, speeding, in the rain... on that donut.
I'll never forget arriving and parking at the E-Centre... I have mostly, my whole concert-going life, not been one to listen to the band I'm about to see on the day of the show. I prefer to just listen to whatever and have the live songs be my fresh intro to that band that day. But on this one trip, I was listening to a '95 San Jose show when I arrived, and I'll never forget the experience of arriving breathlessly, listening to whichever live song they were on on that boot, then shutting off the car and immediately hearing live "Present Tense"! I actually paused, turned my cd player back on, listened to the cd, then enjoyed/relished shutting it off to hear live PJ. And then I rushed the hell in (Present Tense meaning that I'd missed the first 12 songs, unfortunately).
So I unknowingly took a big risk and flew for hours down I-95 going 85-90mph on a donut tire to get to a PJ show. Maybe not crazy so much as highly NOT recommended, but how about you? What have you gone through to get to a PJ show?
Post edited by JH6056 on
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No good "getting there" stories but oddly enough a good E-Center story. 2003. Few of us went to the show. We park and it turns out the guy i barely knew sitting behind me in the car had no tickets. Instead he carried a case of beer with him, exited the parking lot, and walked around Camden for four hours. Made drinking buddies with a few locals who were in between addresses at the time. We found him on some weird street an hour after we left the venue0
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Whoa, did someone in your car know that guy? Or how did he even come to go there with you?
Interesting sense of adventure he had... walking around Camden with a case of beer, I'm sure he did make friends!0 -
I also flew out of Boston during a snowstorm in Dec 2002 to Seattle for those Showbox Riot Act shows, and the plane had to be de-iced like 4 times, which made me seriously wonder if 1) I was even going to make it to Seattle at all, and 2) even if I COULD get to Seattle, maybe I shouldn't be trying to in that weather?? But eventually they did that 4th de-icing and we were off... and did arrive safely. That just felt crazy, but wasn't actually crazy I suppose (although my dad thought I was insane).0
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Not Pearl Jam, but for Eddie's last solo show in San Diego on his first tour in 2008 I bought a plane ticket and concert ticket at 1am the day of the show. Flew out that afternoon with a layover in Denver. Literally landed at 7:15pm in San Diego, got in a cab straight to the venue and sat in my seat at like 7:45pm. Saw the concert. After the concert ended I got a cab back to the airport and caught a 6:30am flight back home. I would never do that again.0
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Sounds completely exhausting! How was the show, did it feel worth it?0
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Saw a post on here by a 10c member in Chicago who had an extra ticket to Lexington 2016 and wanted to share a ride with someone. I lived in Michigan, had the day of the show off and the day after off and thought why not? Talked to the guy on the phone, seemed legit. My family thought I was nuts to go somewhere with a perfect stranger. My son actually thought his mom had lost her mind
We met up in upper Indiana and drove the rest of the way in his car. He was a super nice guy and the show....well the show was fantastic and I am so glad I went.
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I vaguely knew him in high school and I remembered him years ago only listening to rap. He came along with one of my friends for some reason. Still not sure why LOL. Never saw the guy again after we picked him up somewhere in Camden and drove him home. He had actually walked a good distance from the venue. Good times.JH6056 said:Whoa, did someone in your car know that guy? Or how did he even come to go there with you?
Interesting sense of adventure he had... walking around Camden with a case of beer, I'm sure he did make friends!0 -
Too funny! People do what they do...cp3iverson said:
I vaguely knew him in high school and I remembered him years ago only listening to rap. He came along with one of my friends for some reason. Still not sure why LOL. Never saw the guy again after we picked him up somewhere in Camden and drove him home. He had actually walked a good distance from the venue. Good times.JH6056 said:Whoa, did someone in your car know that guy? Or how did he even come to go there with you?
Interesting sense of adventure he had... walking around Camden with a case of beer, I'm sure he did make friends! 0 -
I quit my job to go to 3 shows on the last Euro tour.
Tickets went on sale and we put in for them figuring it wouldn't happen. We got them all 3 and planned a vacation on a whim.
I'll never have that much fun again in my life, it was an amazing trip. Hiking the Dolomites, Kayaking the Adriatic, climbing in the Austrian Alps, getting lost in Venice, 3 shows that each blew away the best shows we've seen in the states, amazing food, beautiful (not obese) people everywhere...Monkey Driven, Call this Living?0 -
Riding with a total stranger! That does feel like a big risk, but I did the same thing except not for PJ (and in my case I got to the other city on my own but roomed with a woman I'd never met). My family thought I'd lost my mind too!RunIntoTheRain said:Saw a post on here by a 10c member in Chicago who had an extra ticket to Lexington 2016 and wanted to share a ride with someone. I lived in Michigan, had the day of the show off and the day after off and thought why not? Talked to the guy on the phone, seemed legit. My family thought I was nuts to go somewhere with a perfect stranger. My son actually thought his mom had lost her mind
We met up in upper Indiana and drove the rest of the way in his car. He was a super nice guy and the show....well the show was fantastic and I am so glad I went.
Funniest part was, the woman I shared with, her adult daughter was also worried about her, and she was on the cell phone trying to establish a "safe word" with her mom so if I turned out to be psycho, her mom could call for help. So I could hear her daughter say "Ok, let's have "umbrella" be the safe word" and then in the room with me her mom would say "Ok, umbrella is the safe word." and I'd hear her daughter shriek on the phone "MOM! STOP REPEATING THE SAFE WORD!! No one else is supposed to know it!!!" but then they'd pick another word and her mom would repeat it.
For me, I'd texted my husband with all her info, in case he never heard from me again. I was already in the hotel room with her when my husband texted me "Oh, I deleted that text. Was it important?" No, not at all, you just won't know who did it if you never see me again now...
Needless to say she turned out to be great and we had a great time.
It can be tricky but I've been really lucky meeting up with PJ fans (either to get tix or use their extra ticket), have met nothing but really nice folks. Glad you had a great time, and what a show you saw!!!0 -
I had flown from Minneapolis to Kansas City for work.
Picked up a last minute ticket for the Lincoln show from a Canadian 10 Clubber who's friend backed out on him. He was also nice enough to offer me the other bed in their hotel room.
Drove the 3.5 hours to Lincoln show. Took a quick nap. And drove the 3.5 hours back to KC to catch my early morning flight back to Mpls.
Good times, totally worth it.
/also Ice Bowl - Alpine Valley 2000Post edited by CM189191 on0 -
That sounds amazing!!! But what happened with work after that? Are you in a field that has that many jobs, you just got another one?rgambs said:I quit my job to go to 3 shows on the last Euro tour.
Tickets went on sale and we put in for them figuring it wouldn't happen. We got them all 3 and planned a vacation on a whim.
I'll never have that much fun again in my life, it was an amazing trip. Hiking the Dolomites, Kayaking the Adriatic, climbing in the Austrian Alps, getting lost in Venice, 3 shows that each blew away the best shows we've seen in the states, amazing food, beautiful (not obese) people everywhere...
We need to know this for the next tour, in case others want to quit their jobs! 0 -
Sounds like a lot of people went through crazy travel logistics for both the Lincoln & Lexington shows... but damn, WHAT SHOWS you saw!!! Cool that you made it!CM189191 said:I had flown from Minneapolis to Kansas City for work.
Picked up a last minute ticket for the Lincoln show from a Canadian 10 Clubber who's friend backed out on him. He was also nice enough to offer me the other bed in their hotel room.
Drove the 3.5 hours to Lincoln show. Took a quick nap. And drove the 3.5 hours back to KC to catch my early morning flight back to Mpls.
Good times, totally worth it.
/also Ice Bowl - Alpine Valley 2000Post edited by JH6056 on0 -
I skipped an ethics class in grad school for front row Kansas City 03' - prof docked me an entire letter grade for skipping cos' I arrived the next day for class sunburnt & wearing an 03' tour shirt. Only 'B' in my program. Worth it though!www.cluthelee.com0
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In 2009 I decided to go to Chicago night 2 a couple days before the show since I was off from work on Monday and Tuesday that week (the show was on Monday night). So I bought a plane ticket to fly out of Tampa early Monday morning, and back to Tampa first thing Tuesday.
Got up at 3am Monday, because I still had an almost 2 hour drive to the airport from Gainesville. Decided to check TM real quick before I left to see if any tickets were released. Luckily there were. Right next to the stage! So I bought a ticket and headed to the airport.
Arrived in Chicago, walked around the city since I now had my ticket secured. Had a great time sightseeing. Headed to the arena to pick up my ticket, then hung out at the pre-party near the venue. When I was walking in to the United Center they checked my bag (it was a book bag, which was my "luggage"). The guy looked at the contents and obviously looked at me like I was a lunatic since he saw a toothbrush, deodorant and a change of clothes, lol. He told me I would have to check the bag at some office. Little did he know that I was super stoked with that since I'd been carrying the damn thing all day!
Enjoyed a great concert with a great seat. Picked up my bag, then took the train back to the airport. I slept on a bench at O'Hare since I didn't book a hotel room (guess this could qualify as the "crazy" part).
Flew back to Tampa in the morning, drove back to Gainesville, and was at work the next morning.
My friends and family still say I'm crazy for doing that, but I can honestly say that was one of the best days of my life.0 -
It's so cool when all the details of a trip like that just flow into place... as they did for you! Awesome!pjruss said:In 2009 I decided to go to Chicago night 2 a couple days before the show since I was off from work on Monday and Tuesday that week (the show was on Monday night). So I bought a plane ticket to fly out of Tampa early Monday morning, and back to Tampa first thing Tuesday.
Got up at 3am Monday, because I still had an almost 2 hour drive to the airport from Gainesville. Decided to check TM real quick before I left to see if any tickets were released. Luckily there were. Right next to the stage! So I bought a ticket and headed to the airport.
Arrived in Chicago, walked around the city since I now had my ticket secured. Had a great time sightseeing. Headed to the arena to pick up my ticket, then hung out at the pre-party near the venue. When I was walking in to the United Center they checked my bag (it was a book bag, which was my "luggage"). The guy looked at the contents and obviously looked at me like I was a lunatic since he saw a toothbrush, deodorant and a change of clothes, lol. He told me I would have to check the bag at some office. Little did he know that I was super stoked with that since I'd been carrying the damn thing all day!
Enjoyed a great concert with a great seat. Picked up my bag, then took the train back to the airport. I slept on a bench at O'Hare since I didn't book a hotel room (guess this could qualify as the "crazy" part).
Flew back to Tampa in the morning, drove back to Gainesville, and was at work the next morning.
My friends and family still say I'm crazy for doing that, but I can honestly say that was one of the best days of my life.0 -
Too funny, you didn't just skip class, you showed up next day with a sunburn and tour shirt LOL!!! Not many bands that are worth it but you picked well2-feign-reluctance said:I skipped an ethics class in grad school for front row Kansas City 03' - prof docked me an entire letter grade for skipping cos' I arrived the next day for class sunburnt & wearing an 03' tour shirt. Only 'B' in my program. Worth it though!
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I put in for the Fenway 1 showing in Boston thinking if I got it I can just take a bus up from NYC and if i couldn't go i think it was only $1 so not much of a loss. I won a pair but i didn't think anything of it for a long time. Not until I saw on the forum someone offering a ticket to Fenway 1 or 2 (my choice) if i gave them my extra. I then planned a weekend trip up to Boston on spur of the moment (it was that weekend) and I was able to leave Saturday morning, go to the showing, go to Fenway 2, leave Boston on a bus at like 1 am and got to work 7 hours later. needless to say i had 0 sleep
but it was an incredible weekend! PJ: 9/29/04, 5/12/06, 5/13/06, 6/22/08, 6/24/08, 6/25/08, 6/27/08, 6/30/08, 10/30/09, 10/31/09, 5/18/10, 5/20/10, 5/21/10, 9/3/11, 9/4/11, 10/18/13, 8/7/16
eV: 8/4/08, 8/5/08, 6/21/11
SG: 10/4/08<-- MET STONE!!!0 -
It was a factory job, good pay but shitty work conditions.JH6056 said:
That sounds amazing!!! But what happened with work after that? Are you in a field that has that many jobs, you just got another one?rgambs said:I quit my job to go to 3 shows on the last Euro tour.
Tickets went on sale and we put in for them figuring it wouldn't happen. We got them all 3 and planned a vacation on a whim.
I'll never have that much fun again in my life, it was an amazing trip. Hiking the Dolomites, Kayaking the Adriatic, climbing in the Austrian Alps, getting lost in Venice, 3 shows that each blew away the best shows we've seen in the states, amazing food, beautiful (not obese) people everywhere...
We need to know this for the next tour, in case others want to quit their jobs!
I got a different job a few months after we got back.Monkey Driven, Call this Living?0 -
For Washedinblack91:
You're so lucky, what a weekend!
Besides, sleep is overrated anyway...
Rgambs, that was still one heck of a risk, but good for you that you pulled off the financial side of quitting your job and not getting another one for months! In some ways that might be the craziest one so far Post edited by JH6056 on0
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