4Peaks 2021 Festival Report

In my last post, I described the adventure of getting to and from 4Peaks 2021. Today's post is about the festival itself. I had intended to also include my thoughts on the bands, but this got super-long, so I will post on that later on.

CoViD Fears

My first reaction to learning that 4Peaks Music Festival was going to happen was probably very similar to your reaction when you read that. I went: "WHAAATT?!?!" or "that sounds like a super-spreader event to me". In the days leading up to the opening day, I hit the CDC website multiple times a day to see what the delta-variant growth curves looked like, and then the Oregon Health Authority to see if there were any new county or state level mandates. As the country slowly turned red on the CDC map indicating community transmission was very high, no new state nor county mandates came out after the indoor mask requirement released on 13-August. We were prepared to abort our trip as we were leaving town, considering places we could camp instead if the festival was cancelled upon our arrival. Boo and I expected to spend most of our 4Peaks time at the bus, avoiding sharing any close space with others.

Pandemic Influenced 4Peaks

rare pic of me

We were very curious about how 4Peaks would change their set up to keep things safe. I should probably start with how they referred to the festival as "Mini Peaks", and the steps they took reflect that different thinking. First, they radically reduced the number of tickets made available. Most years, there are a few thousand people. This year, they sold 500 tickets and not all of the tickets were presented at the gate. As of Friday morning, you could get a ticket for free through FB. In prior years, there was a "Kidlandia" space for the kids to have a 4Peaks day-camp kind of thing with art, activities and performance artists. This year, there was no kid-specific program; in fact, there were very few kids at all. They omitted the "silent disco" at night, the tent for the smaller stage, all indoor vendor space and even the overhead sails. As a result, there were no public shaded spaces. They also shortened the festival by a day, removing all programs from Sunday. Last, there was no grand entrance for the concert bowl, making the entire ranch "the venue". While this could have lead to rowdy behavior throughout, I found the opposite to be true: the camping area was more mellow than prior years. Boo and I did not really experience the food and drink vendors, but I understand that they would not refill cups out of CoViD safety.

For our part, Boo and I approached even the more-safe festival in a reserved way. I previewed all of the bands, and selected 4 that we would try to see in person and another 4 on a slighlty lower tier that would be on an alternate / depends-on-safety list. Then, when the schedule was released, we adjusted plans to avoid opportunities to be in a large crowd. For example, we caught the early bands of the day on Friday and Saturday when no one else was in the concert bowl: super safe, and included one band from each of the 2 lists: Stephanie Anne Johnson/HiDogs and the Fair Trade Boogie Band, respectively. Two of the bands on the first list played opening (Thursday) night. Opening night is always light at the stage, so we could see Maxwell Friedman Group and Elektrapod within the bowl without being within 2 meters of others. In contrast, the biggest names closed the large stage on Friday and Saturday: Hot Buttered Rum and New Monsoon respectively. For those acts, we did not go near the concert bowl: way too crowded, too intoxicated and too unmasked.

Yoga

Boo and Hapy

In more contrast to prior years, this year Boo and I did the 1-hour under-the-open-sky yoga on Friday and Saturday morning. It was really good, helping to work out the kinks from sleeping in the bus in 7*C (mid-40*F) overnight temps. There were probably about 50 fellow yogi's both days (some different, some of the same faces). I was one of probably 5 men, which was totally fine, but does make me think that for a single person seeking a female companion, s/he could probably not find a better place than a yoga class to find a centered female who is taking their emotional, spiritual and physical health seriously. Boo and I both found the overall festival very therapeutic and I believe that started with the yoga. In an aside, I started doing yoga for exercise when CoViD19 closed my gym, and even now, after my gym is open and charging me every month, I would rather do yoga at home (GymRa.com) than push weights in a public, enclosed gym. I am in the best shape, my most limber, of my life and that is from almost-daily yoga. Could not recommend adopting this practice more.

Camping

Regardless of which bands we went to go see, our camping spot was 50 feet from the main entrance to the concert bowl / vendor area, and almost straight-from-stage. As a result of our location, we could clearly hear the low end, and most of the high end coming from the stage. We could understand the announcements from the stage, and even make out the vocals from bands who had a clean sound. Some of the mid-range was lost, but that was a small price to pay for being safer.

The location for 4Peaks was the same as the last few years, but the venue was oriented very differently. The stages were in an area which was usually blocked off, and the usual camping area was blocked off this time. Instead of camping on angled desert scrub, many of us were on mostly flat, soft green grass. Hapy was set up near the RV's (where we were directed), on a corner next to one of the water stations so there were many passersby.

We laid out the large carpet, set up the lot couch, the kitchen, the canopy, the solar collector and Boo's shower (See Camp Shower). Of all the things that drew attention, it was the shower that drew folks over to learn the what's and how's: from the dollar store, get one kiddie pool, one hula-hoop, 2 shower curtains and 2 sets of curtain rings: $6US and you have a shower stall. Add a solar water heater (a black bag with a shower hose and nozzle attached to it) and you have a shower.

The Zamp solar collector connection to the luxury battery worked flawlessly, keeping our cabin and under-canopy lights running at night and all of our devices charged all weekend. We were able to offer charging service to folks, and play our stereo before the stages got going in the morning.. and by late morning the battery was fully charged again. Love that desert sun. I was unable to get the furnace to fire up, however. The initial draw for the glow-plug is just too high for a deep-cycle battery to support. I will have to integrate a typical car battery and figure out a switchable in-series path so I can add that battery just for the initial startup of the furnace. Something to let the back of my mind work on.

Meeting People

We have always made new friends at 4Peaks, and this year was no different. As I indicated above, our designated camping spot was right next to the area water supply. So, anytime someone in the general area needed water, there was an opportunity for a "hey neighbor" connection. Since we spent so much time away from the crowd in the bowl, we met and got to know a lot of our neighbors, like "the Brothers" (Glenn and Jimmy L-to-R) pictured here who had the camping spot behind us.

"the brothers"

We met many people who had also been going to 4Peaks for years, meeting only one person for whom this 4Peaks experience was their first. I imagine those who made it were the folks who were paying attention (since tickets sold out so fast) and who made 4Peaks a priority over the years. As a result, the folks we connected with were pretty special. Often, our connections started the same way: with how we are all trying to avoid crowd contact, followed by a CoVax information exchange and then talking about whatever... the bands, camping, vendors, outfits, etc. After the first few statements, it was like any other festival exchange, except for the 2 meters of grass between us.

Unlike prior years, we were not doing shots, swigging wine with folks, or hanging out in each other's camping spaces. I imagine some attendees did that, but neither Boo and I nor any of our immediate neighbors were hosting folks within their canopies. 

Thanks Stacy

Hapy in lower left

Ultimately, Stacy and her staff did an amazing job of holding a (Mini) 4Peaks that resonated like the early years. It was stripped down. No Kidlandia, no silent disco, no national touring acts. It was a regional reflection of a festival while not feeling like it was in the middle of a pandemic.

Boo and I love 4Peaks, but there's no way to truly express it. Driving in through the gates, I felt tears of joy welling up. I watched someone fall into tears, and then into another's arms at the end of the second yoga session, moved by the words of gratitude expressed by the instructor: thanks simply for us all to have a forum, a place, for a few days to re-center, and remember how we choose to be. I will be watching for the pre-sale notice for 2022, ready to go again already. Hope to see you there with us.

That's it for now. Next weekend is Hapy's 50th Birthday; I'll post on that later on. Thanks, as always, for following along-

4Peaks 2021 Road Report

With CoViD-19 impacting all facets of life, it came as a surprise to me that the fine folks who run 4Peaks were going to hold a festival this summer. In March, they set the date in August, rather than their usual mid-June. At the time, it was reasonable to assume that the vaccinations and such would make for a safe-enough festival experience. I will post all about the festival itself later. Today is just about the getting there and getting home.

Getting Outta Dodge

As you've read before, Boo and I like to leave the night before the day we intend to arrive somewhere. This is especially true when driving Hapy. Boo took departure day off from work, so while I finished up project work for our days away, she got started on our departure preparation. The night before, I had pulled everything not bolted down out of the bus, and stacked our gear in the car canopy space. This made for an easier, and much earlier departure. One thing I forgot: my toolbox. Gulp.

Unlike pretty much every other exit from home, this time we left in daylight. We filled up with B20 at our usual filling station (30+mpg again) and hit the highway. I noticed along the way that the engine missed a few times, and that continued throughout the trip. In fact, there were times when Hapy laid down some black smoke, and even threw a code. I think it was the fuel since we did not have that experience during our round-trip to Leisureland a couple of weeks earlier. I will use standard dino-diesel for this next fill-up and see if the stumbling goes away. I have not had a bad tank of fuel from Sequential before, but after that bad fuel experience in 2019, I know the symptoms. This was similar, but not nearly as bad. I mentioned the wind sheer in my post about the drive to Leisureland. The passing trucks and crosswind were more noticeable south of Portland, before reaching the OR-22. As I drove, I thought about ways to remedy.

Dash Light

It had been a few weeks since the drive to Leisureland. Recall that I discovered that the dash light for the speedometer was not functioning. Well, after a few weeks passed, and all that daylight driving... I completely forgot about it. The dash light did not resolve itself. So, about the time I passed the correctional institute on OR-22 as it started to grow dark, I turned on the headlights and, again, the dash light did not illuminate. Unlike the drive down I-5 a few weeks earlier, this time, I was driving on a windy up-down state route. So, I could not just point the bus in the right direction, and mind my speed by watching my RPM's. Instead, I just drove slower. This, I am sure, infuriated the few other cars sharing the highway with me, but I decided that getting there was more important. Besides, there are passing lanes every few miles so any inconvenience by my speed was quickly resolved.

Getting to Bend

We arrived in Bend after 10, and headed for the WinCo. After our late-night dinner at the WinCo on our way south to Eugene a couple of weeks earlier, it was just too easy. And funny. Again, the store had few fellow shoppers, and we grabbed a salad and a sandwich. We ate in the parking lot, and decided that this was where we needed to get groceries for the festival anyway, so we motored around to the rear of the store and vagabonded. We awoke before 8 the next morning and hit the WinCo for fest-food. We shared the store with a large group shopping for a camp. They literally had 20 shopping carts or more filled with food. One cart had just large flats of eggs. Fortunately, we checked out through a different line, but wow, that was something to behold.

We were still hours early for the opening gate, so we found and visited nearby Sawyer Park. We enjoyed a picnic lunch, and sat by the river for a few hours until it was entry-time. All of the pictures except the last one on this post were taken there. We followed the multiple turns to arrive at the festival grounds, surprised at how different everything looks after 2 years. We passed a new high school, through multiple new rotaries, and then the gates. We were waved through to possibly our best festival camping spot, at least since Chinook, where we had green grass underfoot and the music clearly reaching us from the stages.

From Bend to SkiBowl

4Peaks ended on Sunday without any morning events. This shortened the festival by many hours, and effectively encouraged everyone to leave earlier. Boo and I were no exception, being on the road home by 11. After the crosswind experience, we agreed that we wound try the OR-97 to OR-26 (north then west) route home instead of the usual OR-22 to I-5 (west then north). The departure from Bend was lovely, and we stopped at Quince Park in Redmond for a picnic lunch. There were a handful of young families enjoying the play structure while we used a stone picnic table. Then, we were back on the road north through Madras and on to Mt Hood.

This part of the trip was very similar to the last time we drove this way with GratefulEd in 2017 (See 4Peaks Road Report 2017) with several pull-overs to let Hapy cool down (his high temp only barely crossed 200* twice), and to let traffic pass. Unlike that trip in 2017, however, we were driving into a gusty off-center headwind that battered Hapy relentlessly. I found that I had to slow way down (under 40 mph) just so I could keep him predictably between the lines. So, our original reason for driving this route (less wind impact) was foiled.

The drive from Madras to Government Camp is 62 miles. For the first 40, it is open desert with little to buffer the wind, and only 1 lane traveling in each direction. The last third of the drive, however, is through increasingly dense forest, so the wind eased up, but the incline shifts from sporadic to constant. So, we pulled over a few times even after reaching the forest. By the time we reached Government Camp, I was ready to not be behind the wheel for a little bit. So, we stopped at SkiBowl and visited the spot where Boo and I spoke our wedding vows in the snow. It looks very different in the summer, with a stone patio and a big event tent in the area, but we used the location of the trees to guide us to the spot.

From SkiBowl Home

This last leg of our journey was the easiest. We pulled out of SkiBowl and continued west on US-26, but from Government Camp westward, it is all downhill. We pulled over in Sandy for a snack (in the bus), but otherwise drove without event. Hapy stayed cool, and there was no noticeable wind impact. We chose to avoid the interstates and took OR-212 to OR-224 into Milwaukie and then crossed the Willamette River over the Ross Island Bridge. Even crossing the bridge had less wind than the central Oregon desert had.

Ultimately, we arrived home before 6, stretching a 4 hour drive into 7. As much as I lament how hard the driving is in the wind, I will say this much: driving a bus in the wind forces you to be present like nothing else. Most folks, who are driving modern cars can afford to think about other things. No sooner do you leave somewhere then you are thinking of tomorrow or what you're going to eat for dinner or something. Not in Hapy, not in the wind, no way. You are extremely in the moment, twitching the steering wheel against the wind gusts, fighting the pitch, noting your speed, the engine temperature, the cars behind you, the cars coming at you... there is no tomorrow to think about; you need to survive this moment. So, for others, who left the festival, and were mentally in their old paths by the time they got home, I was very much in the same mental state as I was when I left the festival, albeit more tired.

Reflecting

I write all that down so that as I address the things that may be contributing to Hapy's handling, I will not forget the gift that these shortcomings provided: living in the moment... for hours. As I sit in reflection, I also recognize that this was another successful trip that did not include a flatbed towing us home. Consider too, this trip included no wrenching of any kind, no tweaks to any systems. In fact, this trip did not even include a tool box. 

As I try things to address the handling, I will post them here so others can follow. I do not intend to do anything before Hapy's birthday out of concern that he not be road-able for that. I might try adjusting his shock absorbers, but even then, I could break off a mounting stud and then he's stuck at home. As with all trips, there is a mental list of things I would like to look into, but handling needs to be first.

Thanks, as always, for following along. I will post about the festival and the music later-

Zed Primed Again

I get that this is becoming almost comical in how cyclical the priming on Zed (1979 280ZX) has been. Today's post is another "Priming the 280ZX" posting. As much as I would like to say it is the last, I know there is one more primer shooting day coming, when the body kit arrives.

I did this work around another heat wave here in the Pacific NorthWest with temps pushing 40*C (104*F) at the peak. I spread out the final prep work over the full day Saturday and shot the primer Sunday morning. All of the other final sanding was after work in the heat of the day the week prior, causing me to literally pour sweat. Anyway, off we go.

Why More Primer

First, the obvious question... why more primer? For starters, this shoot was black 2k primer intended as the final coat of pre-paint. Hi-build primer can absolutely be your last coat of primer. In the reading I have done, many people have had great success with shooting their base/color coat(s) on top of the hi-build. I decided that I wanted a harder shell underneath the base than the hi-build provided. Also, the primer immediately under the paint is what is exposed when you get a rock chip. I think the light grey would show more than the black. Consider too, the color of your primer has a subtle impact on the color of your base coat, unless you put extra coats of color on to cover that. I felt that the black undertone beneath the gun-metal grey would darken the grey. Last, through the final rounds of Bondo, I sanded through to bare metal in a few spots. Those, at least, needed priming.

Preparation is Key

If you have read any of the posts about my efforts on Zed, this section is probably moot. Still, it is worth underscoring the importance of getting the panels as flat and straight as you can before you start spraying. Why? Because the paint is a very thin film of color laying on top of whatever your body shape is underneath. So, if it is lumpy, bumpy, or even deep scratched, it will show through. I performed many rounds of Bondo application and sanding, each time getting a little better at it, and each time getting the panels that little bit nicer. My final process has proven effective: mix a small batch (250ml / a US cup or so), applying slightly too much Bondo to the imperfection area on one pass (and don't touch it once it's applied), sand with less coarse paper (150 grit) for shaping and 400 for smoothing, and last, circle issues for further repair with chalk. This worked for me, and would probably work for others. The higher grit number means you use more paper and it takes longer to get the shape. I hand-block rather than use a DA orbital sander, which is additionally slower. I found this to be a fair price to avoid over-sanding.

Once sanded and smooth, the dust needs to be removed. Pigpen, my shop vacuum, is relatively effective at removing dust. The dust is so fine and Pigpen is so old that dust finds its way around the filter, creating a small cloud of dust around the canister (hence his new name of Pigpen, from Peanuts). I followed the vacuum with blowing compressed air on the panels (after the dust cloud passes) and then I set up for shooting. Since this shoot included the insides of the hood, tailgate and doors, there was considerably more prep than the last few cycles. I repaired the masking at this point as well.

For this spray session, I also prepared the hinges. I started with spray cleansers, but found they were not efficient with the 40 years of grease embedded in the hinge works. So, I grabbed a bucket, tossed in a dishwasher detergent pod and dropped the parts on top. I filled the bucket with a garden hose and then moved the parts around with a pry bar. I let the parts sit for an hour or so, agitating the bucket or moving the parts with the prybar periodically. I drained the dark grey wash water and rinsed the parts with the hose. All of the grease was completely gone.

Set Up

With the panels off the car, I need a wide area to shoot everything. I use a second carport space, laying a big blue tarp down as a floor. This keeps the dust away and protects the driveway. Onto the tarp, I arrange the panels to I can easily move from one to the other without drooping my air hose onto wet paint nor creating a weird maze to navigate while trying to spray. Once arranged, I blew off the panels again with compressed air and then cleaned the panels with oil/grease cleaner (Oil Eater). I do one last check, by holding the air hose and walking the area, making sure I can get to everything.

I have gotten relatively quick at getting the gun ready now. The 2k primer is a 4:1 mix. So, for a 20oz ($20US<) Harbor Freight purple gun that means 16oz:4oz of paint to reducer. I pulled a clean pickle jar out of my glass recycling to use as a mix jar. With a measuring cup and water from the kitchen, I marked a 16oz line and a 20oz line on the jar. My process was to pour in 16oz of primer to the first line and then add reducer to the upper line. A quick mix, and pour into the gun and I was ready to go. Doing it this way gave the air compressor time to catch up to me.

The Shoot

I checked my spray fan against some of the masked off glass, as well as the underside of the hood (it was flipped upside down so I could shoot that side first). With a decent fan, I started shooting around the radiator support first. I figured if there were any mishaps, better they happen in an area that will be almost completely hidden from view later. There were no real issues. I had a few "tiger stripes" where the gun would sporadically not produce a paint fan... resulting in what looks like a tiger stripe. I believe this could be attributed to either too much air pressure or a crappy gun. I will recalibrate for the next shoot. Overall, though, the primer laid down very well. Once all of the undersides were done, I sprayed out the rest of that batch and flipped the doors, hood and tailgate over. Then, I shot them. One thing I did this time was take advantage of the 1/2 squeeze on the trigger to blow air: If you press the trigger halfway, compressed air comes out, but the opening isn't big enough to pull paint. So, I was able to quick-blow the panel immediately before spraying. This trick will be more useful with the color, but it was good to practice it.

After I was done, and the primer all dry, I looked back over the spots where there were significant Bondo sections (again, not thick, just a wide area) and they look very good. Even the middle of the hood, where all eyes will be most of the time, the center ridgeline is exactly centered and looks just as I intended.

The pictures on the right show the before and after of the passenger rear quarter panel. I think they show how careful work can produce some pretty great results. I really like the satin glow. It shows the body contours very well, allowing me to look for remaining imperfections fairly easily when compared to the hi-build which sat flat. Everything looks pretty amazing to me, and I do not intend to pursue any additional rounds of Bondo on these panels nor the main shell. That is a huge milestone.

Next Step Musings

I am still waiting for the arrival of the body kit that I ordered in June. This is not a supply chain issue, really, it is about a manufacturer getting their business back operational after a CoViD shut down. I understand that my kit has been produced and is in transit. Depending on timing, I may 400-grit sand what I just shot and then plan for base coating the areas which are going to be either under the kit or under other body panels (like, maybe paint the front supports for the fenders, for example). I know I want to do those on a different day than the rest of the body, but I don't know how far ahead I want to get without the body kit in-hand. I understand that these kits are really one-size-fits-none-perfectly. So, there will probably be some shaping at least. Regardless, these kits need to be minimally surface sanded to remove the gel coat for paint to adhere. Last, I have read some advice about leaving newly formed fiberglass panels in the sun for a week so they get nice and warm help to complete their off-gassing / curing. Apparently, they will behave better over the long term if this is done. I recognize it sounds a little odd, but this came from someone who does these body kits all the time, so I'll trust it. If the kit arrives soon, I should still have time to finish the prep and paint before the weather turns... assuming the weather stays warm/dry until the middle of October like it usually does/used to. If necessary, I will switch it up and paint everything I can, leaving the body kit for next year.

Anyway, that's it for today. Thanks, as always, for following along--