6 Fest Blog: The Aftermath

Blogger's Note: The following is a chronological account of 6 Fest. The most recent post will appear at the top with a post time underneath (the above time is when this intro was posted). All video except the video clips at the bottom from 3 Fest, 4 Fest and 5 Fest are from me. All photos are from me too, unless noted. I'll respond to any comments I get in a post. Enjoy the blog! -- CR

Sunday Morning, 11:29 a.m. Cars are still stuck in the mud. Chances are, those who drove to 6 Fest parked in mud; walked 2.64 miles of hilly terrain back to campus, while covered in mud and intoxicated.

Today they'll be covered in mud again after trying to push their four-door sedans through a torn up field.

This poor girl in her jumbo Ford Explorer couldn't get out with a truck towing her. She said her Four Wheel Drive was broken.

This truck doesn't look like it has a prayer.

That's enough about the party goers and the woes of getting to and from 6 Fest. What about the locals?

The NEWS published a plethora of letters last year from residents complaining about trash, vandalism and trespassing. But with traffic flowing better, students weren't walking through yards as much, urinating in whatever spot looked best. Trash speckled along the road to the site this morning. But it wasn't too bad.

Okay, the site looks like a muddy landfill. But the owner doesn't seem to mind.

"I think it turned out pretty good," said Brad Ervin, son of the Big Red Barn's owner Scott Ervin. "It's our land, and we try to keep the trash contained to this area. The event really helps the whole community."

Scott Ervin has been working with Dominic Petrozzi, the Fest creator and organizer, since the first year. Ervin said the Fest organizers are always easy to work with.

"I'm sure the Stop-N-Cop sold all their beer," he said. "People selling ice, coolers and now the car washes are going to make some money too. The Sheriff's deputies are making good money too."

He has about three neighbors, Scott said. But the rest of the land surrounding the Big Red Barn belongs to him. So the trash from the site wouldn't blow into anyone else's property.

Scott and his family own about 577 acres of land, most of which surrounds the site, according to the Athens County Auditor database.

The final say in 6 Fest will come from the Sheriff's Department. I'm guessing they didn't arrest too many people. The print story tomorrow will have the details on that.

I did notice the Ohio Investigative Unit writing citations for a handful of students.

Those undercover officers will pluck partiers even if they aren't causing a disturbance. Then they will ask the person for age verification if the partier is holding alcohol. They will cuff and cite any underage drinkers. Those violators will spend a morning at the Court House soon after. Ohio Investigative Unit has jurisdiction in the city and the county because they're a state agency.

I could not get a hold of Petrozzi as of Sunday 1:40 p.m. But once I get him, I'll post a final attendance count.

So I'll end with a quote Petrozzi gave me before the event.

"Every year the rumors of us not putting on a fest become more and more boisterous. The truth is, I hope to be talking to the Athens NEWS about 28 Fest."

Enjoy the random photos:

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7:40 p.m. Imagine mud so thick it could digest a pair flip flops in under a minute. 6 Fest attendees were covered in muck. No one seemed to mind.

If you're shirt didn't have mud on it, you were ostracized.

Mud wrestling surpassed beer pong and corn hole for this year's drinking game of choice. But no violence broke out (from what I saw). It was all good fun. Young people blowing off steam.

Traffic flowed better than past years, as I indicated in an earlier post. And the Sheriff's Department had a nice set-up that made me feel safer than last year. My concern was for the worse case scenario, how will emergency vehicles get into the Fest. That was not the case this year.

Transportation remains 6 Fest's lone controllable problem.

Ten school buses served 6 Fest goers. Catching a bus was the big problem (left, line to catch shuttle back to Court Street).

Alternative options to the shuttles didn't work out so well either. I was lucky to get my car out. I worship at the shrine of Four-Wheel Drive.

You are at the mercy of the road if you skip on the shuttles. The lucky ones hitch hike.

The biggest foe to Fests will always be the weather. A few, short downpours led to mud, mud and more mud.

I saw this guy walking up a hill. I didn't think he would make it. Good thing he found that stick. He found a nice resting spot in that kiddy pool a few minutes later.

Lots of guys got into altercations at the event. But none of them broke into a melee from what I saw.

I dubbed this girl, Mud Girl. Notice how no one seems to think she's crazy or anything. Mud was trendier than Uggs and Northface fleeces.

That video will be the highlight for a lot of people.

Something seemed to be in the mud that made people crazy. Nothing got too out-of-control, like Palmer Fest last week. I think it's because they regulated on stopping fires, and the partiers used the mud to unleash their aggression.

Columbus resident Alex Meinhart best sums up 6 Fest here.

Okay, that's all I have for now. I'll post more photos and videos tomorrow after I go examine the aftermath.

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1:00p.m. The Athens County Sheriff's Department figured it out. Last year's traffic jam seems a distant memory. It took me 15 minutes to drive and drop off a car load of people and beer. That took 90 minutes last year, and I had heard people who waited in traffic for two hours.

I talked to one of the deputies, and he told me the officers are committed to keeping traffic moving. They aren't letting people drop off right in front of the entrance. The one way road functions flawlessly. The only problem I can think of with traffic will be if more cars show up and try to turn the country road into a two-lane street.

The downside is the $10 parking fee. At least they laid hay down this year so maybe your car won't get stuck in the mud. And the chances of mud are high.

We got a short down pour about 30 minutes ago, and I was told the 6 Fest site may have got some hail. It looks like it may have broken up. The weather report looks like rain may come and go for a while. Weather.com says 50 percent chance of thunderstorm after 7 p.m.

That could be bad news for the people who decided to walk.

Because I don't want to pay for parking multiple times, I'm going to go out the fest for a few hours, come back and post, then drive back out there at midnight and tomorrow morning. Though this plan could change with the weather.

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Six days after the Palmer Fest incident and the out-of-town students are piling back into Athens for Saturday's 6 Fest. The buzz from the Athens resident's regarding last week's student block party culminated with the more popular day-long music and drinking party leaves one question.

How will partiers behave?

"Police will be out there to make sure everything is safe and to control traffic, but they don't want to do a lot of paper work or worry about the little things," said 6 Fest organizer and Fest creator Dominic Petrozzi. "We're hoping the students notice this and be respectful. Remember this isn't the same law enforcement group involved with Palmer Fest last week (because 6 Fest goes on outside of the city limits, unlike Palmer Fest)."

About 14,000 attended last year's 5 Fest (each year has a corresponding number plus Fest), leaving behind a trail of empty beer cans, red cups and beer pong tables. Bumper-to-bumper traffic led to students walking through resident's yards to reach the greener pastures of the Big Red Barn, 293 Stage Coach Rd.

Sure, students can deal with an inconvenience in order to reach a good time, but what about getting emergency vehicles into the location?

Petrozzi coordinated with the Athens County Sheriff's Department and the Ohio Highway Patrol to set up a comprehensive traffic plan.

Petrozzi hired Ohio University football players for security in past years. But this year he has hired 20 professionals for security. Two ambulances and two fire trucks will also be present. There will be 20 porta-johns to help solve the public urination problem.

Petrozzi said he expects the crowd to exceed 15,000 this year. The formula is the same as every year - BYOB for over-21, local vendors selling food, no glass, rap artists playing from 12:30 til 11 p.m. The list of artists can be found on the left column of the 6 Fest Web site. Tables and lawn chairs are okay, but no furniture.

Ticket prices have gone up to $15 pre-sale and $25 at the event. The increase comes to pay security and law enforcement. Plus, Petrozzi has teamed his venture with Don't Break the Bond, a non-profit organization that assists the families of incarcerated parents.

"This event has moved beyond just an OU student festival, it's state wide," Petrozzi said. "It get's more expensive, but we feel good because it's such a good cause."

That's the set-up for tomorrow. I will have more all day to give party goers updates before they venture out and to give non-party goers a chance to see what happens at these fests. The idea for this all day blog is to combine video, photos and text to give the best tell the story of OU's highest attended event (Halloween 2008 estimated around 15,000 in attendance, so the two are close).

As the day goes on, the most recent events will appear at the top of this page. When the day ends, that may be edited so the most interesting parts stay at the top. Feel free to asks questions in the comment section.

Check out these YouTube videos from the last three years: