6 Ways To Stay Safe At Big Events
As a rule I avoid crowds and big venues but I make an exception for Canton Trade Days and the State Fair of Texas. Usually I go prepared for large events, but I flubbed this time and learned a lesson about winging it. (Don't.)
The State Fair of Texas has come and gone. They say it's the biggest fair in the US. Over two million people attended this year despite a couple of weeks of heavy rains.
Thanks to a dear friend who gave us tickets, we went twice. :)
After our first visit, I realized that we were ill prepared, so we upped our game and planned ahead for our second visit.
Here are six tips that really helped us stay safe.
- Carry pre-moistened towelettes. We didn't have any the first time and we had to find a bathroom before eating our turkey legs so we could wash our hands. They were handy for after the turkey leg too.
- Mark your position on your cell phone's GPS map. The fairgrounds for the Fair are HUGE. Beyond huge. The fairgrounds itself is 277 acres, but getting to the parking area is probably twice that if you didn't get a good parking spot. We got lost the first time because we thought we would remember our parking lot. We didn't. It took us 45 minutes to find our car.
- Carry a bottle of water. Some places don't allow you to carry food or drink, but the fair did. Once our water was gone, I kept the bottle for a while and refilled it at a drinking fountain.
- Know your spending limits. We got free tickets to enter, but everything else costs an arm and a leg.
- Get a map of the layout of the venue. If there are no maps, give yourself some landmarks so you can get back to familiar ground. Can't remember your landmarks? Take a picture.
- Wear comfortable shoes. I cannot stress this enough. Back when I used to go to writing or book conferences, I wore gym shoes regardless of what else I was wearing. Sure, the women in heels looked stylish, but I'll bet they were grumbling about their feet at the end of the day.
We had a wonderful time at the fair. It's always great fun. For the first time, we went up on the Top o’ Texas Tower, 500 feet in the air. It gives you a 360 degree view of Dallas. Greg loved it, but I had butterflies in my stomach to be up so high.
Another neat attraction was the Midway Barker. You can't imagine all the things that went through my head when I saw him. I had to Google him, and no, he's not half a man. It's all an optical illusion and a darn good one.How often do you deal with crowds? Have you gone to any big events this year?
Have you ever lost your car in a parking lot?
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Comments
In answer to your queries: "How often do you deal with crowds?" Not often anymore, sensory overload plus inability to get out much due to either heat or past few months rain has curtailed trips for me for most of this summer.
"Have you gone to any big events this year?" Again the answer is No, really none around that interested me enough to try anyway.
"Have you ever lost your car in a parking lot?" Yes, and it was not pleasant because when did so was at a Mall in Austin years back. I walked out of a different part of the store came into the shopping areas and thought the car was stolen for awhile when could not find it for first 30 minutes or so. Then calmed down and on next try went outside correct door and it was right where I thought it should be, panic attack for nothing that time luckily.
Re: a lot of work
Actually, we were so prepared the second time, it was a breeze. We knew where everything was and we focused on the things we didn't do the first time.
Amazingly, we had good weather both days. We probably picked the only two non-rainy days in the whole 3 weeks of the fair.
I tend to struggle with finding the line between preparing and over-preparing, but I relax the more I know going into something. It's not always possible, but it helps, especially regarding crowds.
Although, back in the 70s I drove my little silver Subaru to Magic Mountain (now Six Flags). Seemed like EVERYONE owned a little silver car back then. Took us forever to find that thing. Now I like my cars to be memorable either in size or color! Plus, we now take a picture of where we parked the car. :)
We even made note of our landmarks, but man, it was a HUGE parking area that surrounded the entire 277 acres of the fair.
Although, I might make an exception if it were at a castle. :)