Truck rolls, tech gear damaged on way to festival.
Let's help our festival production team get back on their feet after their truck rolled on the way to Whare Flat.
Dunedin, Otago
Whare Flat and Wellington Folk Festival-goers will be well aware of the hard work done by Simon and Michelle for the superb sound and light we enjoy at these events — and for a fraction of what this sort of production would really cost. As many of you will also know by now, on the way to Whare Flat their hire truck got run off the road by an oncoming vehicle, and flipped. No one was hurt. Apart from the $3,000 excess they're up for on the truck, and hiring another one, there's a yet-to-be assesed amount damage to their gear. They've been generous to us for years; now let's help them out.
Aotearoa NZ Folk Alliance's involvement (page creator)
The Whare Flat Folk Festival (of which I am an organiser) has enjoyed the generosity of Simon and Michelle in providing their equipment for merely the cost transporting it, annually for the last ten years.
About us
Mike has been a key person in the New Zealand folk music scene for over 30 years, both as a musician and a club and festival organiser. Mike established the Kiwifolk website in the very early days of the World Wide Web, and has maintained it as the go-to resource for local and international acts wishing to tour New Zealand or any other interested person wishing to explore the NZ folk scene.
In addition Mike has run an old-fashioned email list-server (nz-folk@kiwifolk.com) since 1993, which has become a much loved resource for the NZ folk community the world over.
Use of funds
The excess on the truck insurance is $3000, damage to gear (mostly cases and racks) will also be in the thousands.
Latest update
Everything Back in its Own Place 23 January 2023
Simon and Michelle were in attendance for the festival wash-up meeting and pot-luck dinner at the clubrooms last evening. They report that they had been able to get the gear back to Christchurch with the help of Simon Musgrave who found a truck and drove it there for them. The gear has been stripped and cleaned and will be back in service as soon as replacement cases are acquired — if anyone has any tips for removing road tar from panels, they would be gratefully received.
Once again, they express their heartfelt gratitude for your generous donations.
A word about insurance. As any working musician will tell you: you can have your nice instruments and gear insured as long as it just sits at home. The moment you start using it for gigs or other paid work, the premiums escalate ten-fold. It is just prohibitive to insure your expensive kit if you use it professionally. Simon and Michelle find themselves in exactly this position: if they insured their equipment for its full value, they would have paid the price of it in premiums in just a few years. It's worth thinking about that when you see your favourite musician pull out their vintage Gibson or Martin guitar at the local pub gig. Its the risk they take to bring you something special.
Cheers
Mike
Latest donations
Kia ora, on behalf of Simon and Michelle, many thanks for your kind donation. They are somewhat overwhelmed by the support. Ngā mihi nui, Mike
Thank you Old Pog. :-)
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