Mount Shasta

DAY OFF IN MOUNT SHASTA!!!!

Lake Shasta has always been a place where my family went on vacation, so it was like a new version of a family vacation. All of the Warped Tour folks rented house boats for one huge party!!! The only thing people were saying was "this is the best day of Warped yet." There was so much going on, whether it be the BBQs on the house boats, wake boarding or just floating on inflatable rafts. It was all so much fun! Arturo was lucky to be on the double decker bus WITH A WATER SLIDE!!!! In total there were probably 10 house boats with so many different characters on each boat.

My favorite part about today was joining Roger from Less than Jake on his fast jet boat and went wake boarding... well I didn't wake board because I don't think i would be very useful if i break an arm the last week. However, it was really fun seeing your best friends face plant.

Canada

Canada has been the most amazing few days on the tour!!! Both Vancouver and Calgary left me wanting to spend more time in those areas.

First off the Calgary show was so much fun, it was on an old race track that they were shutting down the very next day to turn it into a land fill (fun fact). The main reason why I loved it there so much was because the kids were so very polite!!! There was no teenage angst, nor was there any negativity entering the venue; even when we didn't have their T shirt size they would say "please" and "thank you."

Canada is the home country for a few bands on this tour, Alexisonfire, Lights, and Silverstein. Alexisonfire is most definitely the home town heroes of Canada; when they walk around the lots in America they can most-likely go unnoticed; however, over here, they have to have a full S.W.A.T. team following them. Their tent had a constant 15 person line waiting for a tee shirt (another reason why I love these kids they wait in a perfectly formed line and waited their turn for tees).

I was lucky to be able to catch Alexisonfires set at the end of the day. I walked on stage about ten minutes before show time to get prime seats for this set, which is on the side of the stage next to the sound tables. From the main stage, you have a very good view of the entire venue. There I was able to look out into the crowd and there were kids only in front of the stage, no where else in the whole venue. I had never seen anything like that for any of the sets. It was so bizarre; yet so cool to see. After a few minutes of making small talk with the family of one of the members, they took the stage and the crowd went CRAZY, and nobody was standing still. I looked directly across the stage and there was Arturo bobbing his head to the sweet beats flowing from the speakers, we made eye contact and just started laughing and he gave me thumbs up. At one point, I saw this hat come flying to the stage and fell right on Dallas' guitar petals. He reached down and put the hat on; the crowd went insane and it seemed like everyone and their mom threw up different pieces of clothing in hopes that one of the members would wear it.... and they guys put on 60 percent of every clothing item thrown up on stage, and after a minute or so of wearing it they would take it off and throw it back into the crowd. It looked like a feeding frenzy in a shark tank after forgetting to feed them for a week. It was a complete mad house. After they finished up their set, I had to wait a minute to exit the stage after the band and I looked out to the crowd and people were crying, I don't know if it were happy or sad tears but it was a sob fest.


The second Day was in Vancouver and that was an adventure to say the least.

Detroit

Birthdays and Mustaches? what more do you want when you are in Detroit Rock City?

The only thing that mattered in Detroit was Little Erin's 20th birthday!!! She is one of my many bunk mates, and for her birthday we got her a cake with Hanson on it... Yes, Hanson the three brothers who struck it rich through their one hit wonder "Mmmm Bop." Eating Taylor's face, was the most bizarre thing ever. Jasmine made Erin this massive card which she got a ton of bands, friends and crew to sign which was so nice.

Oliver Peck (the warped official tattoo artist) threw the fourth annual Mustacho Basho Party, and it definitely lived up to its reputation!!!
When you entered the bar the first floor, there was one party bar and then you make your way up to the second floor where it was all couches and more of a lounge. The top floor was where we hung out all night. On this floor, there were pool tables, tvs everywhere and an open bar, and everyone was having fun!!! It was just a massive "whose who" of Warped Tour. This night, the barricades were broken down between the bands and the sponsors. The sponsors bus with the production crew and we leave the lots before any of the bands; therefore, mingling is normally out of the question, but with a late bus call in our favor, we just got to hang out. Not to mention when you are around a ton of people wearing mustaches its a good conversation starter. It is always nice to just get out of the typical warped environment and just spend time with people you like to be around. As bus call came close, we (bus 14) made our way back to the stadium all dancing through the streets wearing fake mustaches singing "Time of our lives" "Dont Stop Believing" and my personal favorite "Total Eclipse of the heart"... it was a great way to end the night

Denver, CO

Sunshine in Denver made for a lovely day, but the hail lightning and thunder at night left the hometown heroes 3oh!3's fans all wet!

To start off the day, the band The Maine took the Hurley stage but mid way through their set the huge inflatable dome overhang lost power and deflated onto the stage. It happened so fast that midway through a song,they dropped their instruments and ran for an open area. The audience had a good laugh.

3oh!3 has the worst luck with weather on warped!!! Every time there might be a chance of rain, they are always stuck playing during the heaviest part of the storm. As they took the stage at 8:30, you could see the lightning in the distance with the shadow of rain falling from the clouds. As they began the set, the wind picked up and the clouds moved in faster than expected. I was standing behind the sound board as Jr and Geary ran franticly around trying to put plastic over everything and move all the wires to higher ground. Geary and JR are the two guys on tour that if something went wrong, they would be there to help. I have a lot of faith in them; however, they were in a sheer panic which made me more nervous than I had ever been!! All of the sudden a bolt of lightning crackeded across the sky, and Geary ran over and grabbed their equally frantic stage manager . Then he ran over and cleared everyone off the stage (which means their was a real emergency.) Jr grabbed me and Whitney and left the stage into the main loading truck with all the security guards. As people attempted to get into the truck, security was yelling at them telling saying they weren't allowed in, making them run for cover. The rain was beating down so hard it sounded like bullets hitting the tin truck. Then Nat jumped on the mic and announces that they have to cut their set short and they will only play one more song!!! So what do u do when you feel like u might die? You dance!!! So Jr, Whitney and myself danced our fears away to Starstruck in the back of the truck. Marble sized hail were like bb's, pelting people who were trying to find shelter. As the band wrapped up their set, and then ran into their bus, the clouds parts and the rain stopped... Did they get the short end of the stick or what?!?

When we returned to the bus, we dried off while we played the board game Apples to Apples and drank hot tea!!! Thank u Denver for the unexpected day!!!

Nampa, ID

Mud fights and an up hill battle!

Once again a rainy day on a muddy hill. This was a very odd set up day
in Nampa ID because all the trucks located on the top of a grassy hill,
and the rain pouring down it made it the most difficult day of Warped
tour. It wasn't just the steep down hill trek,but also doing all of
it while your hand truck tires are getting stuck it the thick mud.

The rain really puts a damper on the whole day at Warped. Because we
are all stuck in our tents the full day in fear of that one freak
cloud that will dump gallons of water on your tents or a strong wind
might come about and blow your tent into the middle of a mosh pit
where angry hardcore dancers might take their aggressive behavior out
on your tent. Luckily we were place in front of two stages that Arturo
and I rarely visit; Smart punk and Hurley.com. When u are on this tour
you get into show routines for instance I love watching the Bouncing
Souls so I make sure to take my break during their set. When you
are placed in front of stages you don't visit it opens your
ears to new things.

Sences fail really made a good impression. In the midst of their set, the out spoken Buddy
( singer) said "you are surrounded by mud.... let's see what you can do
with it." within seconds the crowd opened up to this massive mosh pit
with the moshers turning into the mud slingers and the outside
people dodging mud wads. The beach balls that normally thrown by the
crowd were swiftly exchanged for clumps of mud which turned
their set into a muddy war ground. I had never been one for mud, so I
was thankful I had the shelter of my tent and could admire the art of
war from a distance. It was just fun for the kids to have the experience of
a mud fight in the middle of a fantastic live band like Sences Fail.

Old Bessie is officially going to the junk yard :-) we are getting a
new bus as on Sunday!!! Movviinn. Onn upp to a fffaannccyyy busss!!!!
As long as theirs no mice I'm stoked!!

Chicago update by guest blogger Michelle!

This past Saturday, August 1, Warped stopped in Tinley Park, IL. I had a really interesting time because I went with friends who had been to Warped before and some who hadn't been.

Some of the highlights on the five stages were Alexisonfire, Scary Kids Scaring Kids and Less Than Jake. I also got to see an upcoming Chicago band, White Tie Affair, an electronica/pop/punk band play in the amphitheater. This band accesorizes their show! They had two yellow balloon men with "TWTA" printed on them.

I got to see the Boulder electronica band, 3OH!3 from backstage with a bunch of their fans. It was exciting to see the stage set up, the crowd dancing to their high energy performance, and guys and girls body surfing to the sing along.

My friends who had been to Warped before loved seeing Warped Alum bands like Bad Religion. My friends who had never been, were a bit overwhelmed by everything going on.

Even though it was chilly and rainy, no one seemed to mind the weather. I don't think the fans would let it interfere with their plans! I think music festivals are the best shows to go to for all the variety of bands and to be with fellow music fanatics!

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Mother Nature I'm one rainy day way from kicking your butt!!!! Yes, it was another rainy day in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. My one dream for this day was to recreate the opening scene from Laverne and Shirley, but it was swiftly canned at sight of the weather forecast. .
With the crazy weather it makes life very, very difficult to go out watch a set or meet new people because Arturo and I need to man the tent together in case of an emergency.
We have seen many tents go flying during this kind of weather which taught us to be safe than sorry.

After break down, the trailer on the back of my bus turns into the hang out spot for a lot of different people such as Bouncing Souls and their crew. As we were all hanging out, a bike gang approached us on their bright, pink Hannah Montana bikes. I realized it was the set up crew (such manly men). David told me to go get my bike because they were going on an adventure. Now, I'm not one to turn down any sort of adventure, so I dashed to my bus and hollered to the Bus 14 Bike Crew ( which is made up of Whitney, Erin and me), grabbed Ringwald and made our way to get to the Bus 4 Crew. When Terri says "don't worry guys just follow me," it could go 2 ways, good or bad; however, because we were all together it was bound to be amazing. We all ventured out of the venue following the bends in the lake, taking dirt roads,and gravel paths. All the boys were singing "The Time of Your Life" from Dirty Dancing at the top of their lungs. As we looked ahead, we had arrived at a huge Light House off a short pier! You could only see faint lights in the distance with tug boats circling. There was a period of about 10 minutes of silence... Which is unheard of because we all are very loud people. It was all too perfect. We made our way back just in time for bus call and we called it a night.

Looking forward to tomorrows Mustacheo Basho party in Detroit which is thrown by the Oliver Peck!!!

Georgia

Due to a series of beneficial events, or some might say, unfortunate events, I was able to see 3 bands in one day!
After checking out Breakdown's set, I wandered over to the Hurley Stage to hear Alexisonfire's most awe inspiring set. Between Dallas Green's powerful vocals and George's constant low screams, their performance was one of the most crowd pleasing sets in Atlanta. There were so many crowd surfers that George announced from the stage that more security was needed. A full security team was added in place to catch the kids and control any rushes to the stage. They had a few songs left in their set when I noticed the wind starting to pick up and the sky started to become gray and murky. Definitely my cue to head back to my bus.

I was headed back to my bus, when I heard Junior, the head of security, calling my name from a mic at the main stage, saying "Molly, do you know what it's like to tell 2000 screaming girls in the middle of a thunder storm that All Time Low's stage has been switched?" Then the audience morphed into a form that looked like a massive school of fish swimming away into the shelter of the amphitheater. In stead of heading back to my bus, I had to head to the ATL stage too.

The lot was empty and as the winds were blowing tossing tents around, I felt like Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz. I only had a about a 100 yard walk, but with the rain coming down like bullets and thunder and lightning were crashing it seemed like an eternity.

The amphitheater was full by the time Big D finished their set, and there was a nervous energy as Valencia was about to go on. They have never been in front of such a huge audience. They have a punk/ pop vibe, just like ATL, so I think this was the perfect crowd for them. Even the set up crew started to dance before their next set up. When Valencia finished up their set the security told everyone on the stage that they had to leave and stand outside. I was walking towards the door and Geary (head stage manager) looked at me and points to the direction of the sound booth. I was slightly confused, and he walked over and said "you can stay and hang out in the sound booth." I was beyond excited!!! As the band took the stage the crowd of fans (who had waited two hours to see them) went insane. The intensity of the excitement filled the entire amphitheater, and then Jack started playing the rift for their newest single, and there are no words that can fully explain everything I had seen. After that one song I realized it was almost bus call and I had to make my way back to my home on wheels.

I do believe this has been the most rain Warped has ever seen... rain rain please please go away!!! tomorrow we are in OHIOOO!!!

I was so excited for this series of unfortunate events

Orlando , Florida

It's 10am in Orlando, 90 degrees with 80% humidity and when you breathe in it feels like you're drinking hot water. Two guys, totally unaffected by the heat, are driving up to us in a beach cruiser with drinks in hand. As they get closer, I realize it's Greg and Bryan from the Bouncing Souls. They came straight to hug Artie and introduce themselves to me. We got to chat for a while about the usual topics like: where are you from? what do you do when you're not on the road?...If I were only 16 again!

Florida has the "no cussing" on stage rule, and police were there on both sides of the stage to either issue tickets or arrest the offender(s)...A little too severe in my opinion, and every band that walked onto the stage made some remark about how mental the law was, and pushed the envelope a little, but always on their best behavior. Less Than Jake did have the hardest time censoring themselves. The band members banter alot between songs and as one member would start to swear, he was cut off or "rescued" by another band mate.

We break down at the last hour of the concert, of course, that's when the headline band starts. I did get to see glimpses of Greg wearing a white suit diving into the crowd. The Bouncing Souls are the perfect band to hear while breaking down because they take your mind off the lifting and heat, and from the peeks I stole, I'll try and catch as many sets as I can.

Erin, my bus mate, is from Orlando, so after the show, we jumped in her car and ventured out to her parent's house. It was so nice to be in a family environment. Her mom got us pizza and salad, and we just sat outside with her family and Hollywood Lies, a band that she manages. It was awesome to be out of the bus for a "home delivered" meal...not to mention I got an awesome "mom" hug!

Goodnight Orlando Helloooo Miami

Boston, MA

Having the flu on warped is the most difficult thing ever!!! I would take heat stoke over the flu any day!!!. But lucky for me today I woke up after the three days of sleep and felt well!!! That was until I opened the door of bus 14 to see that it mad raining :-( Thank goodness I invested in a pair of rain boots, because when it rains it pours, and the show must go on. The bands play with all their hearts and the kids keep dancing. It's still beyond me how some kids can show up wearing next to nothing knowing it's raining... just looking at them made me cold!

I have realized that I love selling CBGB merch on the East coast because everyone has a story to tell; whether it be a "I saw this band play there " or a "my first date was there " story, it makes everything way more fun. The stories keep things interesting because each one is new and different.

Tomorrow Bouncing Souls join the tour and I am so excited!!!

Camden, NJ

I'm living my life in open parking lots and every venue seems similar to the next . It's a shock when it's a venue that is not cement and gravel. Camden was was no different; however, there was one thing that separated it from the rest, it looked out to Philly!!! It was a pretty tame day, considering that the forecast called for Rain... Which it did. But it was a lot of fun too because Donovon (Arturo's assistant last year) came out to see what it was all about, and needless to say, he was AWESOME!!! We compared Arty stories, talked about common things people ask, stories from last year vs. this year. He brought a few of his friends who were hilarious, it seemed like had been friends for years.

The weather was so strange !!! It started off pretty hot, humid and not a cloud in the sky, but as the morning went on, the wind slowly picked up and by the time doors opened it was completely overcast. We weren't expecting a DOWN POUR...with thunder and lightning!!!!! Arty and I finished packing up our set up around 6:30 at 7 the bus 14 crew got dinner; but as were all walking back it started to really rain. Then as Jasmine and I get back to the bus, we realize that our share bike was outside... Instead of waiting it out we got this brilliant idea to pack it up in the under carriage of the bus. Needless to say that was a bad choice! It took us 30 minutes of trying to put it in the bay while being rained upon and surrounded by thunder and lightening. We finally finished and were soaked from head to toe... The rain stops. Everyone got a really great chuckle out of that one... Except Jas and me.

Our friend, Erin was smart and waited out the storm. She told us that her friends were opening up for LFO... She didn't even have time to get the O out her mouth before we had our wallets in hand asking where the closest taxi was. (for those who don't know LFO is a boy band from 2000 who had 2 hits) Jas, Christine, Rob Baptist and I crossed the bridge to Philly with our dancing shoes tied tight. As we arrived to the North Star Bar everyones faces just lit up at the thought of seeing LFO. After waiting for an hour they took the stage...It was incredible

Buffalo, NY

Rollercosters AND Warped...The best Warped yet!!! So today we were in Buffalo New York, and it was awesome because there was an amusement park at oneside of warped and the actual fest on the otherside. During the day you could catch all your favorite bands riding the rides! Everyone was really antsy all day because we knew that fun was at our finger tips!!! Right after Arturo and I closed down, I met up with the bus 14 crew and went on a few rides. It was difficult for us to walk through the park because we all have so many friends on the tour that at the end of the day we all like to just talk to friends about the days events, and so something as simple as walking from one point to another takes 20x longer because we are a group of huggers and high fivers.

I feel like I should take a moment and talk about the boys that make my life happy!!!These guys are the set up crew/ security !!! Terri, Cody, Danny, Dave, Junior, Tiny and Nate: these guys are so wonderful, and they are willing to help me out in any way shape or form (not to mention they love to dance). It's hard enough being a girl on this tour, and they go above and beyond the call of duty to make things easier. The help out by loading the dolly or carrying my bins or tent from one point to the next or if u just need a hug (Junior is the man for hugs). They are also the funniest people on the tour. There has been many nights where I'll be sleeping and they will be in our bus singing "Blue Moon" to "help" all the girls fall asleep. Any time there is a BBQ with music, they are the guys on the dance floor with the moves, and if u aren't dancing, Terri will throw you over his shoulder and drag you on the dance floor.(trust me it happens every night). They are the liveliest bunch of fellas and I'm lucky to have them on my team.

One last thing!!! We are still doing sign ups for the Ramones CBGB giveaway so stop on by the tent and check it out!!!

Scranton, PA

Today, we didn't have the usual rush of kids entering at the gate. Instead, they were slowly shuttled from the parking lot at the bottom of a hill to the concert set up on a massive hill. It made the day seem a little less rushed.

The band I caught today was Underoath... Aaron, the drummer is the equivalent to Animal from the Muppets, completely insane on the drums!!! For most main stage bands, the drummers are the farthest away and least connected with the crowed; however, Aaron (who is also the singer) is wild on the drums, and stands on his kit to sing. I was so entertained by their set! I had to run and get Arturo so he could see them.

Also we had a surprise visit from Tiffany who is the Warped Pit reporter She stopped by the tent to do a little interview about CBGB, the virtual tour and Ramonesworld.com for her blog. So keep an eye out for the interview on warpedtour.com

Columbia, Maryland

I have come to realize that the East coast is ten times more lush and beautiful than the West coast. During our summer months everything is brown and dried out, but here we seem to be placed in these beautiful forest like environments which bring to life the empty lots we're playing.

Today was a really hard day because one of my favorite busmates left :-( Joseph works for Green peace and took two weeks off to join the tour. He added so much life and personality to our bus that it was really hard to say goodbye. He was so peaceful and calming all the time that it feels like i lost part of myself.

There was one random WTF moment of the day and that was when Fat Mike just walked on our bus just to hang out... Now that doesn't just happen on Warped. For those of you who do now know him, Fat Mike is like the Godfather of this tour; he is the singer for NOFX. He thought that tonight was a great opportunity to meet us lovely folk on bus 14. He just held court, telling us stories for close to an hour about random things like what his songs are really about... definitely a night I doubt I will never forget.

Hartford

The catering truck broke down :-( it is difficult to set up all of our stuff without eating a good wholesome fruit breakfast.... an empty stomach made it painful. Not to mention they were rolling the food carts past every five minutes just to taunt me. THANKFULLY, I have amazing friends in Hartford who were willing to go out of their way to bring their starving friend Taco Bell.

Today was definitely a great day because it was so nice to see familiar faces!! We had Rob from CBGB's come and see how we run everything, and I had my best friend Patrick come out. It was magical for me because when you are on tour for a really long time seeing one familiar face in a sea of kids is one of the best feelings in the world... not to mention, he hugs like a mom, which was needed more than the food he brought me.

The first band I ever saw while standing on the stage was Coheed and Cambria. Today, I had the greatest feeling being able to get my friends backstage passes. Patrick, Matt and Jerry really LOVE Big D and the Kids Table; and luckily they were on at 7:45 so I told them to meet me at the back door, little did they know I opened the door and they followed me on stage to a group of screaming people and Big D even walked past them. Their faces were priceless because I could tell they wanted to play it cool but they were singing along, laughing and then pointing at their friends in the crowd. I felt like a mom watching her child walk for the first time.

Montreal

Leave it to me to be the only person pulled off the bus at 3 o'clock in the morning at the Canadian boarder to get my passport double checked...While all my busmates were sleeping off the day before, I was standing in a long line with neon lights beaming into my eyes. After about 20 minutes of standing around, I was finally allowed to rest my head on my pillow again.

BUT HEY I made it to Canada!

French Canadians dance rain or shine!!!! We were in Montreal in a massive rain storm, and suprisingley it was a LOT of fun!!!! We walked into the gravely lot at 7 in the morning with the sun shining and a soft breeze, but 4 hours later the wind picked up, the clouds moved in and the mist began to fall. Thirty minutes later, the mist turned into a full blown down pour. The crowd didn't even budge.

3oh!3 were on the main stage during the heaviest part of the storm. As I looked behind me, water was flooding the stage. All at once, we began sweeping off the standing water, making makeshift drains out of tarps and lifting up all the wires off the stage... and 3oh!3 KILLED the show. They didn't let a little rain stop them, and every time I turned around, they were dancing and jumping into the crowd.

When I ran back to the tent, I notice that our tent was transformed into the shelter for the kids trying to escape the rain. Arturo and I just hung out with the kids and talked about music, and cultural differences. We had to quickly pack up the merch so they wouldn't get rained on, and when the storm let up a bit, we packed up our truck and made the long walk in the rain back to the buses.... just to be woken up again at 3am to boarder patrol (don't worry i didn't have to leave the bus)!


Forward

Just like home

Every day I think I'm going to wake up in a city similar to the day before, but it never is. This morning I felt like I was home in San Francisco. Today, Warped is set up under three cross bridges with an industrial city as a back drop. Even though I'm not home it feels pretty damn close.

It's Nick from the AKA's birthday, so we made massive signs and hung them all over the "Skull and Candy" stage. He didn't see all the signs, and Josie, the keyboard player had to point them out to him. Nick was so surprised and his expression was priceless.

It was an easy, perfect day!

Hello PA

I woke up in Pittsburgh to bright sun rays seeping through the cracks of my tour bus window, and when I stepped out of the bus, I was surrounded by Simpson types clouds and the greenest trees. Usually, I wake up in the desert, and I was a bit thrown.

Today, the crew grouped all the stages together,and normally there is a little bit of distance between stages. There wasn't much quiet time today, and by the end of the show, my ears were a bit shot.

We got to set up in front of the Hurley stage today! I got to hear bands that I hadn't seen yet on the tour....Alexisonfire, A Day to Remember, The Maine and The Gallows....all from the comfort of my tent!

I got to catch up with some old friends too! Emmure played to a huge crowd at the "Kevin Says Stage" I met them a few months ago, when a friend of mine was on tour with them and Atticus. It was good to see some familiar faces! The singer, Frankie is such a welcoming guy. His arms are made for hugging and that is just what they did!

Goodnight Pittsburgh! Off to Ohio!

The Prize

Bessie the Bus deserves to be scrap metal. Last night, all the power went out; no phones, no computers, no fridge, and just when you thought it couldn't get any worse, I realized the bathroom door is electric. Enough said!

On a lighter note, today we arrived in Houston. The parking lot was all dusty gravel which left us all with a coating of film, and all I ate all day was dust. I am always surprised to see how many people know who Arturo is. He is always signing autographs and getting his picture taken. It's really cool too see how much respect people have for him. I'm also asked a lot about CBGB, and the most common question is " what does it stand for?"

So I'll propose this to anyone who can tell me what CBGB stands for will get a free water...That's liquid gold!

Nice Adam, Bad Bessie

The other night, I met Adam, the drummer from the Architects. We joked around for a while, and he asked me to stop by his set. I really didn't know what to expect, and I had no preconceived notion of what my ears were about to hear. Within the first 10 seconds, I was hooked. They're everything you look for in a REAL pop/ punk band. The high speed pace and their upbeat vocals make it sing- along worthy.

Onto another subject: My bus is about to receive a one way ticket to the junkyard. It was easy for me to forgive old Bessie for the god awful sulfur smell coming from the bathroom, but when the AC broke, she took it too far. She deserves to forever roam free!

New Mexico

Our day in New Mexico was amazing. It was sunny, breezy, and the kids were so nice! They were interested in lots of things from what bands were playing to what I do in my spare time. Arturo's cousin and his family came to the show too. He was curious about Jeffree Star because his cousin's daughter wanted to see him. Arturo came back to the tent alone about 10 minutes into Star's set, shaking his head. I figured he’d heard the Myspace's celeb tranny hip-hop writer sing his little diddy "We want C*nt?" But Arturo is too polite to say anything to me about it.

During my spare time, I usually hang with the production crews, but today I hung with The AKA's! Mike the bassist, is one of the nicest guys on the tour. His tent is next to ours, and in the mornings they play a lot of Lady GaGa, and he tends to sing along loudly. When "Poker Face" came on, I couldn't stop laughing at him. He pointed at me and yelled, "This song was just 4 you!" I know we're going to bffs! later in the day. I was really thirsty and hot, and there was Mike with 4 cans of water for me. His band and crew, all 6 of them are amazing. Hands down the best high fiving band on tour!

Yesterday was a day of swimming, massages, amazing food and the softest pillows my head has ever touched. Today, I'm not so relaxed. It's 110 degrees, I'm out of water and we're one of the last ones to get our merch. I'm in Arizona, and with this heat, I know what hell feels like, and there is no way to escape it.

I spend 45 minutes outside the tent, and today I was able to catch The Ataris. When I heard them play " In This Diary, " I felt like I was 14 again at a middle school dance. I can honestly say that they are one of the few bands that sound the same live as they do on their records! A few months ago, The Ataris played a show called "Hoodwinked" where they played an entire Misfits set. Today, they played a few songs with their spin on it. I thought I wouldn't care for it, but they played a great 30 minute set with lots of energy.

My favorite part about this job is people watching. The characteristics from state to state are so different, whether it's the style that the kids are wearing or the way they act in general. It's really interesting to watch from a step back. Whoever said that all Americans are the same has never been on tour.

After the show tonight, I'm looking forward to watching "Planet Earth" with my Baby cake friends. Our tv on the bus has no sound, so my British mates will ad lib a commentary, and I'm sure they will be so funny.

Ventura Tales from Warped

Ventura's show was the best one so far. Arturo and I have almost nailed our morning set up. It was also the first day that I was able to get out into the swarm of kids and see what Warped was all about. I got a great spot in front of the main stage, but I lost my voice because I had to yell over the bands to talk to kids about our tent.

It was my first time seeing Anti Flag and I was so impressed! Their stage presence was so captivating; I couldn't take my eyes off them during their 20 minute set. They are really interactive with their fans too. At one point the bass player called out to a girl in the audience who had sang along to their entire set. She was thrilled.

Ventura is near the water, and the winds were kicking up and having their way with the tents. At one point, a gust of wind took our backdrop and a clothesline full of shirts. The poor guys next to us had a tiny tent and they were always on the verge of being blown away!

I got back to the bus around 6pm, and my bunk mates informed me that our call was 2:30 AM because Warped was hosting a movie premier. There are 3 boys from the UK on my bus that I adore. Paul, Matt and Joe own a clothing company called Baby Cakes, and we all walked to the premier together. They are so funny that they even made watching a movie called "Summer Bummer" worth the trip!

We're off today and we'll be at a resort in Arizona, so I'll be hanging by the pool!

June 27, 2009 - San Francisco, CA

I knew I was home in SF when I woke up on the bus to the sweet smell of the salty bay water. We were in a rush because the doors were opening earlier than usual, and the buses were late. Arturo used his Jedi mind tricks to persuade all the loaders that they needed to bring our 6 heavy bins to our tent. The morning was organized chaos. The first order of business was to set up the tent, then hang the flags, set up all the merch tables, and finally set up the computers and monitors for the CBGB virtual tour . We had a few hours of technical difficulties, but we got it up and running.

I think the virtual tour has been really successful and people are telling me about their history at the club. One person told me about their first date there, and some else told me that he broke his wrist there. I like hearing all these stories.

At 5:30 we tore down and packed up everything we set up this morning. We're all sun burned from the rays reflecting off the bay. It got up to 100 deg F and my SPF failed. Someone told me " The coldest winter I ever had was a summer in SF"I think they lied. Now, we're off to Ventura!

June 26, 2009 - Pomona, CA

Today was the official first day of Warped. The field was empty the night before, but by morning had transformed into a city of tents. When I got there, I didn't know where I was, but when I saw the Ramone's and CBGB's flags flying high I knew I had found my second home.

Arturo and I didn't know when doors were going to open, but then the kids started to flood the open grassy areas looking for a good spot to watch the bands from. I wasn't sure what type of person would visit our tent. I wondered if they knew the history of CBGB or if they were familiar with the Ramones? Were they just trying to be cool? As each person came up to the tent, I sensed they had respect and understanding for Ramones, CBGB, Arturo and me, and that made me feel more at ease.

My favorite part about the job is doing merch because it gives me a chance to talk and bond with fans. There weren't any bad vibes, and the fans got it. They knew the Ramones, and they knew the club. I'm really looking forward to the next show in San Francisco, my home town!

Hello everyone!!!!

My name is Molly Torres and I am COMPLETELY thrilled to team up with Arturo Vega on this Summer's Vans Warped Tour!!! Together we will be representing CBGB and Ramonesworld.com. Throughout the two months on tour I will be updating this blog with pictures and crazy stories of what life is really like on tour!!! So to start off the very first blog let me start with a short background. I am 21 years old, I attend Diablo Valley Community College and San Francisco State University. At SFSU I am dabbling in the sound engineering program learning how to produce/ mix song and also live concert sound. On any given night you can probably find me catching a local show.
To give you a better idea of who I am, I asked my friends to ask me different questions and here were the top five:

1) What are the three things you will miss while on tour?

1) My moms hugs, she is the best hugger I have ever met, nothing beats a moms hug.

2) Daily Showers.

3) In-n-Out grilled cheese… yes they do more than burgers

2) If you could ask any person (dead or alive) one question what would it be?

I would as Meatloaf ‘You would do anything for love BUT what was the one thing you would not do?

3) If you were to walk into a room and have one song play as you walk in what would the song be? Barracuda by Heart

4) Five items you HAVE to have on the road with you?

1) My Nikon D-40

2) My Fluffy pillow

3) Dry Shampoo

4) Fabreeze

5) flower hair clips (when you are around that many guys, to keep it girly put a flower in your hair)

5) If you were to choose a five person dodge ball team with you who would you choose?

Micheal Cera, Oprah, Big (from rob and big) Paul Rudd, and Helena Bonham Carter.