Chapter 58 (cont.)

 

WILBURFEST '94

​The line waiting to get in to Wilburfest '94, courtesy of Charlie, UD '94This was the year when, in the weeks (or even months) leading up to the event, the town of Newark REALLY started talking about putting an end to Wilburfest. I guess their argument was, “How can it be considered a private party, when it affects everything outside of it?”

 

Courtesy of Jen, UD '93Wilburfest did happen in 1994, with a stern “You’re being watched,” hanging over it. 5000 buttons were printed and sold right out, at $6 a pop. Band line-up was The Verge, Homegrown, Mustard Seed, Gangster Pump, Grinch, Mother Nature’s Blacklight Rainbow, No We Are Not Food?, and Montana Wildaxe. The Review even ran a “Wilburfest 1994 Survival Guide,” right before the event with the show rules, and helpful hints that included, “Don’t wear good clothes.” And how right they were…

 

Load Warrior: My Name Is Mud

 

It rained. It made mud. It rained some more. It made more mud. And it was impossible to avoid getting mud on you, the question was how much mud got on you. Most people didn’t care, and hey, I’d like to point out that Wilburfest '94 was three months before Woodstock '94 (aka Mudstock ’94).

 

Anyway, when my friends and I finally made it back to Sypherd after Wilburfest, I offered to do everyone’s laundry. Hey, if I was gonna try to save my Redsand t-shirt, I might as well put out the offer to the other mud people. I really fucked this up; I put all the muddy clothes in the same wash, so everything was basically just swimming in the bottom of the Ganges River. No amount of detergent would counteract it. After the wash cycle ended, the clothes that had been just spotted with mud, now had a uniform brown tint to them. Hey, I tried.

​Rules for Wilburfest '94 posted at the entrance. Courtesy of Charlie, UD '94

Charlie on Wilburfest '94…

 

I lived in 67 East Cleveland, right across from Wilbur Street from 1992 to 1995. All I knew, was that Wilburfest came to Delaware before I did.

 

I organized Wilburfest '94, it was passed on to me by Jen, and the fact I was willing to organize it and hold meetings at my house. We had a committee comprised of Wilbur Street residents, local music buffs, and anyone else willing to work on the thing. Bands submitted tapes and the committee voted on them, and the bands with the most votes were asked to play.

 

I didn't get to see many of the bands in '94, since I was patrolling the parking lot of Herman's. He didn't like the event since it interfered with people being able to park and go into his store. He was a really nice guy, so I patrolled his parking lot to help with the problem. Most people were compliant, but some were assholes as I recall.

 

The pre-party was held at my house on East Cleveland. I also tried to put together a "Kids Clean-Up Crew" and we made badges for them. The local kids and I ended up digging aluminum cans out of a muddy pit the day after the event, until someone informed us that's where everyone had been peeing.

 

One thing I do know is that it cost a shit-load to print those buttons. I had to put it on my credit card and pay it back, and I think it was like $1,000…seriously! Once we started selling them I made it back, and that's the only time in my life I’ve used a credit card.

 

Favorite Wilburfest memories: Grinch during the storm in 1994, and Tree of Life when we were dancing on the roofs of Foxcroft in 1991! I had such a blast during my involvement with the local music scene in Newark, DE. The East End sure housed a lot of great music, memories, friends and interesting folk I'll never forget.

 

David Muddiman on Wilburfest '94…

 

It rained all day. I was working with The Nazarites at the time, but they didn't try to get a slot that year, so we sat on the porch, meeting everyone coming and going. Everyone was muddy from head to toe. At any one time there would be 200 mud-covered people walking along East Cleveland, and trucks would slow down to look at the girls all wet. The police were already working to stamp out Wilburfest. They had a police car, an unmarked car, and a paddywagon. They arrested as many underage people holding beers outside the event as they could.

​Courtesy of Charlie, UD '94

Boobs, Butts & Beyond: The Hitcher

 

“In 1994, the lacrosse team got back in town the day of. I was on about an hour of sleep, and it was raining. Everyone was covered in mud and using the backyards of Wilbur Street as a slip 'n' slide. I walked back to 65 East Cleveland, took off my muddy clothes in the basement, went back out onto Cleveland, and started trying to hitchhike naked. Obviously cheap alcohol enhanced the experience.”

 

- Chris, UD '96

 

Scarred for Life

 

“Mudfest '94. The backyard was a mud wrestling free for all, but there was also this nice mud hill that we turned into a wet 'n' wild ride. Unfortunately, the base of the hill was the Wilbur landfill. My leg got a sizeable gash; I think it was a broken bottle that got me, and boy did it hurt two days later when I was sober.

 

Luckily, this dude living next door to us in Sypherd was a junior EMT or something (at least he had a gash-fixing badge from the scouts), and nursed me back to health with his tackle box of good meds, wraps, and salves. It was like voodoo magic, though I have a nice scar to show off my last Wilburfest. I will use it to teach my children how much fun drinking can be...er...I mean...”

 

- AB, UD '95Fourth floor Sypherd bathroom, post Wilburfest '94. That's my roommate displaying a muddy leg, and there's a gash under there somewhere. (Genitalia censored.)