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Outdoor Gigs: How cold is too cold?
- Thread starter lo_freq_geek
- Start date
Wofford College, March 2013, outdoors, was in the 50s when we started, 38 F when we finished. I had fingerless gloves, but I couldn't really feel my fingertips through the last set. What I remember most is between sets they played Thrift Shop over and over....
These are $34.95 from Orvis. I still have a much older pair of these that I bought in green specifically for winter steelhead fishing. I still use them and they still work very well. Because they are synthetic fleece they keep your hands warm even when they get wet - they don't absorb water. The idea behind them is that they keep the blood in the palms of your hands warm which helps keep the tips of your fingers from freezing. If they go beyond your knuckle and are messing with your dexterity a bit, just push the one(s) that come over the knuckle back under it and they stay like that pretty well. They stretch nicely with your hand as you're playing.
If these synthetic fleece ones get wet, just ring them out and your body heat will sublimate the moisture in about half an hour or so. Stay away from wool ones. When they get wet, they hold onto the water and get really heavy because they absorb water and stay wet. Plus wool ones always have little bits of wool threads sticking out that can be quite annoying. I've used my fleece ones a couple of times for cold outdoor gigs. Primarily I use them for winter steelhead fishing. They are a big help.
Click on the name to go to the Orvis page where you can get them - Fingerless Stretch Fleece Gloves
I don't like doing outside shows under 60 degrees, but we did do one by Lake Michigan in late October. The air temp was 44 degrees and we had about a 15mph wind. It was frighteningly cold
I played outdoors one night where it got down to 3C. It was a ridiculous thing to do but it was a private booking by a long time supporter of the band and we felt we had say yes. I have no idea what could be done about it other than having some common sense and declining the booking.
Last winter, I played an outdoor gig and the temperature was 28 F. I froze my ass off! this was definitely too cold. Never again! but just in case, I packed some Little Hotties handwarmers in my gigbag. That would have helped...
Time to beak out the old incandescent PAR64 lighting cans, 1000 watt heater in each of those babies.
20 of those hung low should do it, might need more power though..
20 of those hung low should do it, might need more power though..
What was that old Eric Clapton song ? Propane !!
if it's below the 60s (fahrenheit) there are not going to be a lot of folks that want to stand or sit around outside and watch a band...
Got during covid outdoor gigs...A couple of these do wonders..
Mr. Heater 15000 Btu/h 300 sq ft Infrared Propane Tank Top Heater - Ace Hardware
Mr. Heater 15000 Btu/h 300 sq ft Infrared Propane Tank Top Heater - Ace Hardware
Flashbacks to high school marching band in the American heartland. We would consider 48F balmy some of those late autumn Friday nights.
I remember mixing antifreeze into our valve oil for marching band in winter well below freezing. We would have used plastic mouthpieces for the brass had hey existed.
Cover your head. Have a windbreak of some type in case the wind starts blowing.
