The uber VIP section upstairs was Heaven. The gritty downstairs dancefloor and mega-party section were Hell. Together, up and down formed a fine balance of debauchery and chaos known only to the town of Whistler.
The doors opened at the Savage Beagle at 10, and within an hour, the walls were being pushed out by the mass inside. The party officially went down to celebrate the return of the Orage Masters, and to blow up the start of the festival. With an open bar in Heaven all night, it wasn’t long before many of the patrons were sent to Hell. But don’t fret, everyone returned to Heaven in the end.
The Beagle stayed at capacity all the way up closing time, when everyone was kicked onto the street, and an impromptu drum circle exploded out of the Nowhere. It was second Heaven. With Josh Bibby helping to lead the masses, hundreds of people stuck around to jump up and down, sing chants of Olé and bang the wooden promo boxes… Phish Tour’s got nothing on Whistler after dark. Nothing.
Like all good things, the night’s festivities had to come to a close eventually. I think security officially shut us down somewhere between 5 and 6 am. Partying in Whistler may just be the greatest thing in the world.
So until next time (aka tonight), check out the photo gallery on the right…
Special thanks to the Mike, Jeff and the crew at the Savage Beagle. These guys made it easy and you should to to the Beagle asap and blow your paycheck. Also to “The Ritz” costume shop in Boulder, Colorado.
And of course, thanks to Orage, Kokanee and Sue and the gang at Watermark Communications who helped finance everyone’s good time and subsequent hangovers.