First stop Yves de Manoir. It’s the hockey. “Anytime between 7 and 8,” I’ve been told and Curtis books me a pass for half seven, pleasantly late. Turns out security have decided last entry is at half six though, but thankfully they aren’t maniacs at YDM. They let me in – so long as I’m unloaded and out by 8am. It’s just a stack of pallets and bags, some tools – things for the derig. Soon all the stuff that we sent out will start to come back. My van is sealed. I always seal it now, even if I’m told I don’t need to, because if I’m not sealed someone’s gonna make me open the back and then they’ll make me carry everything to their x-ray, and then they’ll radio someone who isn’t there and then they’ll get me to wait or invent more problems, and I’ve got stuff to do.
I unload the pallets. I’m out by 8 and back on the road. Early drops are easier in this city than many cities – I can come home late in the Luton and park it on the verge opposite my window. Nobody regulates parking in this town it seems. People put their vehicles in places you’d never dream of leaving them normally. In London it’d cost you a fortune. In America it’d be impounded. Here it’ll just sit there until morning and you barely see one more badly parked van in a sea of badly parked vans. I’ll take all my forms and passes upstairs with me cos I’m paranoid and sleep two minutes from the van. Passes all go in my shoe so I don’t forget them. Out and straight to work in the am, usually remembering my lenses.
If it’s humanly possible I’m not gonna bother trying to get into the van gate unless my load literally can neither be carried or hauled onto a trolley. I did it this morning as those pallets would’ve been a tough carry. They’re thorough but reasonable at YDM. I might grow old waiting for some of the van gates to open, were I to wait. I’d sooner carry three heavy boxes around than try, half the time. I’ve grown jaded.
I’ve learned the location of pretty much all the logistics areas – not all, but most. Some of them have had to change halfway through the event, like the ALX drop which is now miles from the van gate and involves a flight of stairs, but they were kicked out of their tent. All their cardboard boxes have consequently munged in rain. Their stuff is going to come back messy and it’s not their fault. They’re working around it as well as they can. It’s always been a tricky venue, that one.
I’m tooled up with enough info now that, like GRP, most places can get a stealth drop at whenever time makes sense. I don’t have to stress about the clown show and can work to timings that make sense to me. There’s much to do. I have to carry upgrade passes for venues otherwise I can’t get in. I have scavenged begged borrowed and stolen loads of them. The first time I had it explained to me at Versailles when I had to hand a drill over the fence, it was an absurdity. “You have to have a specific upgrade attached to your badge or we won’t let you in.” “There are over fifty venues and I never know where I might need to go next.” “Yes.” “So I need to have over fifty passes just to be able to respond promptly?” “Yes.”
The warehouse has some now, to check in and out. Add to them the large quantity that I’ve begged borrowed and stolen, we now have enough to do our job so long as we pool resources. There are lots of other people who are drivers in all sorts of vehicles. Technically we shouldn’t even need the upgrade pass if we are in a van with everything done, but we won’t get past the cops without one for our venue. They don’t know what they are looking for really, apart from reasons to say no. So I go sealed even if I’m dropping by hand, carrying as many passes as possible, trying to remember to switch them onto my badge as that is a thing too – if it’s not attached to my neck it might not count…
And then sometimes they just wave you through. I guess I’m fixating on the times they don’t. When you’ve got a job to do you remember the impediments.
Trying for an early bed tonight despite the heat. I’m expecting everything to go bananas again soon so I’ll take my rest when I can.
AlBarclay 