I know this is a camping party, so do I need to bring a tent? What else should I bring?
Yes, you should bring your own tent and camping gear. Other good supplies are: rain gear,
a flashlight, bug spray, a portable chair (for watching the bands), and clothing for chilly nights.
Also, if you are not going to attend on Friday, consider arriving around noon on Saturday,
because good camping spots go fast.
Do I have to bring any food or drinks to OttoFest?
If you could, please bring a dish to share. We provide the meats, veggie burgers, rolls, clams,
condiments, beer, wine, tea, lemonade, and sodas, but you can bring the salads, snacks, and desserts.
For more ideas on what to bring to the party, write Jeannie at jeanus [at] yahoo [dot] com. We likely won't
have free space to store any food you bring, so please keep it in your cooler until Saturday. A good idea is to put
your food into one or more big zipper baggies. Those will be more easy to store in your cooler and you won't have
to worry about finding your serving dish on Sunday morning.
Can we light camp fires at our sites?
Yes, but only if your site has a fire ring. Otherwise, please share your neighbor's fire ring,
and of course don't build fires in the paths. Also, we stock firewood for the big fire in the
food area, so please bring some logs from home if you'd like a personal fire. You may be able to
buy some firewood from roadside stands as you drive toward OttoFest.
Can I bring my little Timmy and his pet dog Jaws to OttoFest?
No, please, for the safety and comfort of our OttoFest guests, there are no pets allowed. Also,
please leave your children at home. OttoFest is an adult party, so we ask that
everyone keep that in mind.
There's a lot of people making things happen at OttoFest. What can I do to help out?
Aside from enjoying yourself, safely, it would be helpful if you put recyclables into the correct bins,
clean up your camp site, and take your garbage with you. Although camp sites are typically left pretty
clean (thank you), many volunteers have to carry huge garbage bags back to Buffalo, because we have no garbage
collection at OttoFest. Also, please try not to set up your site on a path. See our
OttoFest Etiquette page for more info.
Who are the OttoFest "hosts?"
The hosts are members of the organizing committee--people who contribute significantly to OttoFest.
Prior to OttoFest, hosts are responsible for
preparing the land; finding and ordering food, beer, wine, and other supplies; and finding and signing the bands.
During OttoFest, hosts are responsible for keeping the party moving smoothly, so please help them to
do so. After OttoFest, hosts and volunteers pick up cigarette butts and other garbage, wash dishes, etc.,
which takes all of Sunday and most of Monday. That is why it is important that guests check out by 3:00pm on Sunday.
All the hosts pay full price for their admission to OttoFest, so the main (if not only)
benefit to being part of the organizing committee is the sense of community and accomplishment when the
party goes off without problems. If you are interested in being part of the OttoFest organizing committee, write us
on our Contact Us page.
Are you guys making money off this party?
No, we are not. OttoFest is a not-for-profit party, and all monies go
to party expenses, improvements, and repairs (e.g., stage, dance floor).
In fact, a few of the committee members spend hundreds of their own dollars to buy food, etc.,
and get reimbursed only when (and if) enough guests attend. We may occasionally raise or lower prices, which
reflects the cost(s) of supplies and deliveries.
Is this year's (2006) price higher than last year's?
Yes, regrettably, we had to raise the price by $5. We were happy to have been able to reduce the price by $5 for our
SilverOtto 25th anniversary party, and we have tried to avoid any price increase, but times have changed
(as times do). As you no doubt know,
gasoline is relatively expensive. We knew that, but we were surprised to learn how much the price of gasoline
affects the prices of all sorts of products. For example, starting in 2005, we paid extra for delivery of the
Porta-Potties, tents, and beer, and the meats and veggies are now more expensive (I guess they get shipped on
trucks). We hope that the $5 increase is not enough to keep you away from OttoFest, and we
hope that it will be many years until we must raise the price, again. Of course, we always encourage advance ticket
orders, which will save you at least $5. Remember, our one price includes all (parking, camping, drinks, dinner,
breakfast, hiking, and swimming). Visit the Theme Page
to print the ticket order form and order early.
Why does your webmaster use [at] and [dot] in the e-addresses?
He does that to avoid spam e-mails, because spam robots (scripts that read web pages to search for e-addresses) recognize the
at sign (@) and .net, and use those to identify e-addresses. Our webmaster adopted this style after he started getting
Viagra e-mails at his postmaster address. He figures that web users today are savvy enough to understand what he means.
If you have any other questions, feel free to write us at our Contact Us page, and we'll post the answers here.