CAPTIVE IN COVENTRY

Reports from behind the lines in the Coventry 'Green-Zone'

Day 1 - Wednesday
Day 2 - Thursday
Day 3 - Friday

Greetings from behind the lines.

SATURDAY EVENING AUG 14:

Saturday evening sunset over RT. 5

As the afternoon wore on it was obvious that the crowd
was in a much more subdued condition. People were tired.
They realized that they weren't going to make it to the first set.
They continued to exhibit the by now trademark Phishhead determination
and good cheer, but you were seeing more glazed looks in their
eyes. And it wasn't from all of the legal and illegal substances
that were floating around in their vehicles and their bloodstreams.
These people were exhausted.

A booming business sprang up suddenly with the onset of
Phishhead exhaustion. The 'Kingdom Pickup Taxi Service' was
now available. For anywhere from 10 to 25 bucks a ride,
local pickup trucks were taking people up and around back
roads and dropping them off at Airport Rd.from the north.
Exhausted Phisheads could cut off a 4 mile stretch of their
ordeal and save about 3 hours. a little late for the opening
set at 5 O'Clock but they could probably make the 2nd show on time.

Anyway we were getting pretty exhausted ourselves so we closed
up shop, said good by to our temporary mobile neighbors and
went in to have some dinner. But it turns out that we needed
milk, beer and a few other things. So we treked about a mile
down RT. 5 to Royers Mini-Mart to load up on supplies and see
what was happening downtown.

Coventry Saturday PM

We trudged up the hill to Royer's and stocked up on the essentials.
Unlike up in Newport yesterday, the Royer's were thrilled to be doing
a land office business right in the thick of the traffic flow north.
They were also very impressed with the overall demeanor of everyone
coming into the store. Something to the effect that Phishheads were
"a wonderful bunch of people".

Along the way we found out that the last of the Phishhead vehicles on RT. 5
had just passed by Croteau's Auto Repair in Irasburg about 3 miles south
of us. Whoever was in that vehicle was the last one to make the
cutoff at 9:30 this morning on the Interstate. Everyone else behind
them was stopped from moving on north. I can't imagine what that scene
must have looked like at the Orleans exit ramp this morning.

We headed back home to have dinner and were surprised to
find along the way that a few of our freinds and neighbors
as well as the local authorities were questioning our origins.

Phishheads or Locals?
You Decide

2 local pickup trucks stopped us as we walked along the side
of RT. 5 and asked us if we wanted rides up to Airport Rd.
When we got back into downtown Coventry the State Trooper
at the Coventry Station Rd. barricade asked us 'where we thought
we were going' as we trudged back up along the side of the pavement.
Maybe it was Rosa walking behind the beer in the stroller that did it.

We got home and ate dinner. Around 7:15 we noticed that there were
no cars in front of the driveway. I went upstairs and looked out
the bathroom window. Sure enough it was empty. The Phishhead parade
had passed our 5 1/2 mile marker for good and was headed down river
to Airport Rd.

The Bridge Saturday Evening

Saturday Night