Losing your car sucks!
Remember where you parked the car – you might be keen to get into the thick of things when you arrive, but trying to find your vehicle amongst thousands of others when it's time to go home will take the edge off the weekend a bit.
Collapsing tents suck!
Test putting up your tent before you go to the festival – if you arrive late, there's nothing worse than working out how to pitch your brand new tent when you’re tired... in the dark... and it's raining. Do a dry run in your back garden first.
Stinky loos suck!
Don't camp near the loos – no one relishes a trip to the festival khazi (unless you're the Manic Street Preachers and you've brought your own portaloo), but don’t add to your woes by camping too close or downwind from the toilets. And if you need to 'go' at night, take a torch!
Robbery sucks!
Leave the valuables at home – security in a tent isn't great, so the less you take the less you stand to lose; and keep your cash, cards and keys on you at all times and if need be, hide them in a money belt.
Dressing down rocks!
Dress for comfort, not for style – the celebs might get away with designer clothes for the sake of the paparazzi, but you won't have access to the VIP section and won't have a proper shower for three or four days, so wear something you don't mind getting dirty and smelly.
Keeping in touch rocks!
Bring your mobile, but not your iPod – festivals are like small towns, so take your phone to keep in touch and meet up with your mates. Most of the phone networks offer charging points. But do you really need your MP3 player? It's a music festival after all!
Downloading STUCK rocks!
Don't lose your friends – download the STUCK app to your iphone for free at
stucknow.com so that you can locate your friends easily if you get lost.
Water rocks!
Drink water – at least some of the time! If there is sun, it'll stop you getting dehydrated, especially if you're drinking a bit more alcohol than usual.
Fruit and nuts rock!
Bring some food supplies – tofu burgers might be part of the festival experiences, but eating out all the time can be expensive, so bring something like cereal bars and crisps to snack on. Dried fruit is particularly good as it is easy to pack and is full of energy giving protein.
The sun rocks! The rain sucks!
Sun block, sun hat, sun glasses... wellies? Prepare for all weather conditions, even if you set out in blazing hot sun. The last thing you want when you get back to work is sun burn... or pneumonia because you didn't wrap up warm.
E-coli sucks!
Wash your hands! If you do nothing else to address your hygiene and cleanliness, make sure you wash your hands after you've been to the loo. E-coli is all too easy to contract and it will ruin your festival experience and will linger for several days after.
Wet wipes rock!
Wet wipes aren't just for babies – those solar powered shows using recycled pond water might be great for the crustys, but why waste hours queuing? Invest in a pack of wet wipes from the baby care section of the chemist and keep the worst of the grime away with a 'lick and a promise', as my mum would say
Rock...rocks!
Get a Life – Enjoy yourself, meet people, have fun, get down and party like it's 1999. You’ll be back to work before you know it, so make the most of it. Tune in to Absolute Radio or visit the
Absolute Radio Live site to keep up to date with all the festival and live news.