June
Phish Knoxville and Bonnnaroo
For the first week of June, Rachel was working and raging at the Wakarusa Festival in Arkansas and Sasha was exploring Tokyo for a few days. After flying back home to the D, he went to Cleveland to catch a Biscuits show and then got in the car with some friends to drive down to Knoxville. We met up at our friend Roxy’s apartment, where about 20 hippies packed in like sardines for two nights. The next night, we all saw Phish on UT’s campus. After that, it was a group caravan to the Bonnaroo Festival in Manchester. It was there that we decided to just go ahead and be a couple already.
Michigan Part One and Phish Midwest Tour
Having done so much raging, it was time to rest. We headed up to Detroit so Rachel could meet Sasha’s family and see what the D has to offer. Shortly thereafter, we piled into the Savinov family van to go on Phish tour. We hit Burgettstown, Deer Creek, and two nights at Alpine Valley. The van was returned (in poor condition) and we got to spend some quality time in the Mitten.
A huge family reunion picnic was held in Grosse Pointe, we hit a Tigers game, and we even paid East Lansing a visit so Sasha could relive some college glory days. We then spent a few days at Dan’s cottage in Lewiston, relaxing, boating, tubing, and playing drinking games.
July
Rothbury Music Festival
Next up was a return to Rothbury, where we both worked pre-festival, setting up the insane Sherwood Forest. During the fest, Rachel worked while Sasha raged. Highlights included carrying a couch in for SCI’s set and Sasha freaking people out with his Yoda mask and light saber.
All Good
From there we drove to the mountains of West Virginia for the All Good Festival where we worked both during and after the festival in catering, site ops, and more. In short, we spent a little time on a mountain, spent a little time on a hill.
Camp Bisco and Johnson City
For the fourth and final festival, it was only fitting that we were back in Mariaville for another Camp Bisco. The 2009 installment included Bisco sludge, condiment sandwiches, and other unforgettable moments.
A horrible 24-hour drive finally saw us in Rachel’s hometown of Johnson City, where we got some much needed down time, and Sasha got a tour of JC and got to meet some of Rachel’s friends and family.
August
Phish Red Rocks
Back on the road, we drove up to Chicago to meet up with a few friends. After one night there, we piled in Dave’s car and drove straight across to Denver. There, we saw Phish at Red Rocks, something we never thought we’d be able to do, and we got a chance to do some hiking during the day and partying at night.
San Francisco
A short flight took us to San Francisco, where we spent a day wandering around the Haight/Ashbury neighborhood before seeing another Phish show out in Mountain View. A few hours of sleep and it was back on the road.
Portland and the Gorge
We spent Sasha’s birthday driving up the coast, making a pit stop in Weed, CA for lunch and beers at Mt. Shasta Brewery. That night, we went out in Portland for the first time for dinner and drinks.
The next day, it was back in the car for the drive up to the Gorge. We camped out there for two nights and saw a few more Phish shows in what is easily both of our favorite venue. We drove back to Portland, slept in the airport, and headed back to Chicago.
Chicago
Our crazy summer came to an end in the Windy City, as a bunch of friends joined us for the summer tour closing show at Toyota Park (which, by the way, looked like a shithole after coming from Red Rocks and the Gorge).
In just over two months, we had been to four festivals and 13 Phish shows in 11 different states. We had spent a lot of time together on the road in a crammed car with smelly hippies. We had lived in tents, on couches, and in the legendary Savinov basement. We were out of money, serotonin, and shows to go to. With no other options available, it was time to attempt to be real people and look for some of those strange things called “jobs.”
