The Great Outdoors

OK, this one could take awhile. Let me just say that The Great Outdoors experienced more than the great outdoors these past few days.

Thursday was business as usual. A trip up north to Thief River Falls, MN to play at The Rusty Nail. Nothing out of the ordinary. We saw a few friends and had a good time.

Friday, we headed to Valley City, ND for a street dance. As most of you know, we have been having a few days of wet. We drove through a small but mighty rain storm. The closer we got to Valley, the better the weather. We arrived in Valley City about 6:15pm. We started setting up the equipment. About three quarters of the way finished, we had to wrap the gear in tarp, and sit in the van to wait out the rain. It came quick, and lasted about a half hour. No problem, there was a Taco John stand right next to the van. We just had dinner while waiting.

The sky cleared, and we got set up and played. Good time. We do enjoy the atmosphere of a street dance. Children running around screaming and having fun. We got a few dancers, and we even got to see some friends from SD and Fargo. Overall, a good day. Kind of long, but still a good day.

SATURDAY. We were excited about playing the Red River Valley Fair in West Fargo, ND. Travis Tritt was playing the grand stand, and we were in the beer garden, on a covered flatbed stage that could close up. While we set up our equipment, we got to hear Travis sing a few songs for sound check. The day was absolutely gorgeous.

Out of nowhere, the skies grew dark. We decided to start wrapping the gear in tarp again. The rain started coming down. No problem. We’d be done covering everything in one minute. Suddenly, wind started rushing through the fairgrounds. It felt like the stage was going to take flight. Everything was shaking, the tarp went flying across the beer garden, and then the light trees started falling. I managed to catch one, and then had to hold down my keyboards. Peter ran to grab the other light tree and SMASH!!! They hit the ground. I lowered the light tree that I caught, then handed the keyboards off to Stubby to set in the back of the stage and out of harms way. We pulled the gear back into the covered area of the trailor. My rack tipped over from the wind. I ran to close the front of the stage. It closed, but still left a gap. Wind was blowing the rain into the trailor, and then the rain turned to hail. We got pelted by ice in the month of June. That’s North Dakota for ya.

When it all let up, we started to assess the damage. The lights were all bent out of shape. At least a few bulbs are gone. Everything got a little wet. My rack, was visually ok, but who knows what damage is there. We will have to wait till we can set it up to see what else is wrong.

Frustrated, and WET, we headed to Pistol Pete’s to blow off some steam. Travis Tritt’s show was canceled. Tritt’s drummer, and Wendell Cox, his guitarist, showed up at the club, and we had a blast. While I was in Stampede, we did a show in Macon, GA opening up for the final concert of Atlanta Rhythm Section with Ronnie Hammond. Wendell Cox was playing guitar for the concert. I had worked with Dennis Yost of the Classics 4 years before, and was excited to meet the band that did the actual recordings. That was a great time in itself. Wendell and I had a  good time remembering the show, and just listening to Avalanche on stage at Pistol Pete’s. Tritt’s drummer got up and jammed with the band. Nice.

Sunday, the band and I headed to Menomonie, WI to do a Stampede Reunion show at The Pioneer. Because of hanging out so late, we got to Menomonie just after Earl’s band, Cruzin Coyote hit the stage. On the break, I set up my fiddle, and mic. I did a set with Cruzin Coyote. They were kind enough to let the rest of the band get up a do a short set. We played for about 30 minutes, and then Earl’s gang got back up. I stayed on stage and we closed out the night in typical Stampede fashion. I know there will be some photo’s coming, so keep checking back. We had some fans make the road trip to Menomonie. A few Fargo folks, and several from the cities. It was wonderful seeing all the people at The Pioneer again. Good food, and way too much fun. Just like I like it.

Tonight I am resting up for the studio tomorrow. I took a nap already, and am heading back to get some much needed sleep.

Thanks for listening.

Ramon