FAQ

[Abby]

Q. When is the next Wrockstock?
A. November 5-8th, 2010.

Q. What do I need to have to attend Wrockstock?
A. An open heart and mind, along with a Wrockstock Pass and your name listed on a reservation at Trout Lodge.

Q. What time does Wrockstock start/end? What are the performance times?
A. We allow people to start checking in at noon on Friday and we ask that everyone but band members and staff try to leave by 1pm on Monday. The music starts at 8pm on Friday, and then goes from 2pm-5pm and 8pm til ? on both Saturday and Sunday. We generally have a Wrockstock Staff-run dance party in the Room of Wrockquirement after the performances.
That can run as late as 2am.

Q. What are your age limits? Can I bring my kids?
A. Wrockstock is a family event, we welcome wrock fans of all ages! We have many familes returning that have been at every Wrockstock so far, as well as Trout Lodge being 100% dedicated to family-style fun.
We ask that attendees 15 years of age and younger be accompanied by a family member while at Wrockstock.
Those 16 & 17 year olds who wish to attend may do so as long as they are staying in the same room with a chaperone who is 18 years of age or older who is willing to take responsibility for them. We will only allow 2 underage people per chaperone.

Q. How do I get registered for Wrockstock?
A. Passes are sold on our website... www.wrockstock.com
You will need to take the following steps.
1. Make sure you have, or are listed as part of, a reservation for the weekend at Trout Lodge. You can do this by calling Cat Dickey in Group Sales, requesting your room type, giving the names and ages of everyone staying in that room and then pre-paying for the first night on a major credit card. This will guarantee your room 100%.
2. Go to our registration pages on our website to register and purchase your ticket, known this year as your Wrockstock Pass.
3. You will also be able to purchase a ticket for the busses we are chartering to take you back and forth from the airport and also sign up for and pay for any NEWT activities once you have purchased your Wrockstock Pass.


Q. Why do we have to stay at Trout Lodge?
A. Primarily, it is to keep the group together, but also there is no other hotel or other lodging for 20 miles. Trout Lodge is a huge facility out in the Mark Twain National Forest, about 75 miles from St. Louis.
Wrockstock activites run very late and we don't want anyone to "accidentally" spend the night if they're not a registered guest of Trout Lodge. It's not fair to others who've paid for the right to stay there overnight, as well as shorting Trout Lodge the cost of an overnight guest. Also, we don't want anyone driving strange roads late at night or run the risk of someone drinking and driving.

Q. If Trout Lodge is so remote, is it safe for me and my family in case of emergency?
A. Incredibly so. There are more than adequate emergency services just minutes away, and every Trout Lodge staff member is trained in CPR and emergency response. There is also a doctor or nurse practicioner on duty 24 hours a day.

Q. Why are the rooms so expensive?
A. Well they're really not, when you take into account that your room cost includes all your meals, plus over the 40 fun summer-camp style activities that Trout Lodge offers. The average cost per person goes down a bit when you fill the rooms or cabins to capacity. Those on a budget may wish to find roommates also looking to save money in the Lodging section of our forums.

Q. I'm in a wizard rock band and we want to play at Wrockstock, what do we need to do?
A. Just be patient, I'm afraid. The bands that play the main stage at Wrockstock do on an invite-only basis to ensure the fans get to see their absolute favorites. We intend on rotating bands in and out of the roster to keep things fresh and to make room for up and coming bands, so your time may come at a future Wrockstock.
You may also consider playing in the Wampum Willow. See our website under "activities" for more info.
(Update to this answer: Pestering the WS Staff about your band getting on the mainstage, active campaigning or any other little stunts to try to force us into choosing you will only result in a longer time before we'll actually consider it, and that's a cumulative effect depending on how persistent you are.)

Q. Where does the money I paid for my ticket go?
A. Most of the money collected does go to help pay the costs of putting on such an event. We don't have any corporate sponsors, so we must pay for everything ourselves. Whatever we have left after we pay the bills goes to charity.

[Abby]

FAQ Part Deux......

Q. I'm 16 and my parents say I can go without them, why do I need a chaperone?
A. To protect us legally in case you got hurt or in trouble of some kind. Whether we like it or not, anyone under 18 is legally considered a child in this country and we have to take steps to protect ourselves from lawsuits.
Also... chaperones must be rooming with those they are supervising. That goes for parents and otherwise.
Everyone under 18 must be registered to and stay in the same room as their chaperone.

Q. Why only two underage people per chaperone?
A. Honestly... because we don't want a room full of underage people with only an 18 year old buddy of thiers to keep an eye on them. There is alcohol allowed at Wrockstock, as well as other situations that may arise that a young person could possibly (and illegally) complicate their life with, so we felt this was the best solution.  The person acting as chaperone will be the one to take any legal or parental heat for the actions of their young charges, not Wrockstock, Trout Lodge or the staff members of either.

Q. Even after all your explainations, this seems really costly to me. Why do you keep advertising it as inexpensive?
A. We understand that not everyone has the kind of money to spend on this kind of stuff as they'd like.
We feel that compared to any other event of it's kind, Wrockstock is VERY affordable for most folks.
On average, an adult Wrockstocker will pay about $350 for the entire weekend, that's for your ticket and room, which includes 3 meals a day.  Compare that to the average of $1000 that it costs to attend one of the academic conferences, and tack on food costs for 4-5 days in a major city and you're up to about $1200 minimum.
Granted, that still doesn't count your travel expenses and merchandise purchases, but still.

Q. Why do you have it in Missouri? That's nowhere near me! You should do it in CA, NY, FLA, (insert other state/city here)
A. In case you didn't know, Missouri is smack dab in the middle of the country, so in reality, we were being pretty smart when we chose the location. As well as St Louis having a very good airport that has flights to and from almost every other city in the country, with multiple airlines to choose from without being a confusing nightmare.
Also, many of us who are part of the Wrockstock Staff live in St Louis, so it makes it very easy for us to work with the Lodge, the bus companies, the airport itself. Imagine us trying to give you directions to someplace we've never been either...

Q. This all sounds like some hippy-dippy love fest with a bunch of nerds... why would I want to attend other than just to see the Wizard Rock band I like?
A. You don't, and we don't want you to. Enjoy Ozzfest and the frat parties, us nerds will be out in the woods holding hands and forming lifelong friendships.  

Q. Why didn't you invite [Insert band name here]??!?  I LURVE them!!
A. How do you know we didn't? Sometimes bands have other obligations.
We poll our attendees on what bands they want to see, so mainly the decision on who plays is made by the fans themselves.

[Abby]

Part Three!!!!

Q. I'm not from St Louis... how should I get there?
A. Well, you may drive if you wish. We recommend NOT using GPS devices to locate the Lodge as it is technically not at the address listed on the website. The directions on our site and the Trout Lodge site are the best course of action.
If you choose to fly, you will want to fly to Lambert St Louis International. We are working on arranging busses to shuttle people to and from the airport for a small additional fee. You may also rent a car at the airport if you wish.
Those riding the bus can arrive in St Louis at the bus depot at the airport and then catch the Knight Bus to Trout Lodge.
Those taking the train should ride the train to STL station, where you can then catch the Metrolink to the airport, then catch the Knight bus to the Lodge.

Q. I'm a vegetarian/vegan/celiac sufferer/extremely picky eater. What food options will there be for me?
A. Well, Trout Lodge serves all meals buffet style so you can pick and choose from what they are offering at that meal. They always have a salad or fruit bar at each meal, along with a meatless entree. Last year, we also had them set up the buffet so it was VERY vegan/vegetarian friendly and safe for celiac sufferers and they even put out gluten free vegan soups for lunch and dinner. We plan to ask them to do that again this year.

Q. My dad/mom/boyfriend/sister/cousin/Uncle Carl is coming along because I'm not allowed to go on my own, but they have NO interest in Harry Potter or Wizard Rock. Do they still have to buy a Pass and what else is there for them to do?
A. No, but they will not be allowed into any of the following areas: Room of Rockquirement, Craft Alley, the Wampum Willow or the Movie Dungeon without a Wrockstock Pass. They may enjoy the facilities and activities that Trout Lodge offers, but will have to make thier own arrangments with the Lodge for that stuff.

Q. So if meals are included, when are they and how are they served?
A. All meals are served buffet style, including salad bar, the legendary kids bar and a wide variety of desserts. They'll try to have some vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free choices at each meal. It's pretty much public school cafeteria/summer camp food, but well prepared with love and fresher ingredients.
Breakfast is from 7:15 to 9:30 am, Lunch is served from 11:15 to1:30pm, and Dinner is from 5:15 to 7:30.
For snacks or Elevensies, there's Honeydukes aka The Waterwheel Country Store. It's right next to the minigolf course, just at the base of the hill that leads to the Room of Wrockquirement.

[Abby]

Got another one to add to the list....

Q. Can I just come to Wrockstock for the day or just for one or two nights?
A. Sorry, but no. We are contracted with the Lodge for three nights. You won't be allowed to reserve a room for just one or two nights.
Also, we don't sell one day Wrockstock Passes. It's a 3 day event, so if you can't come for the whole thing, we can't really let you come at all. Wrockstock happens 75 miles outside of St Louis, it's not like one of those HP conventions where you can just come and go. We all go way out in the Ozarks, rock out and party for three days then we all go home. It's kind of like a very short session of summer camp or maybe like a retreat or a cruise.... either way, it's an all-inclusive, 3 day event.
(This is not to say that we won't let people leave if there's an emergency situation, we're not locked in or anything.)

Q. What is the photography/video policy for Wrockstock?
A.The only rules about taking photos at Wrockstock are:
1. The Wrockstock Staff reserves the right to use them for promotional use should we see something that was posted online that we love, but we will at least try to contact you first before we steal them. That would really only mean us putting them in the albums on our myspace and facebook, or using them on our website.

2. That nobody attempt to profit from the sale of any pix taken at Wrockstock... and other than authorized entities, the pix you take are just for your own enjoyment and sharing with your friends.
 
The rules are the slightly different for videos.
We're not going to allow live streaming with the exception of the internal situation we've already worked out.
You guys can record stuff from the audience and share it on your youtubes and stuff, though... but again, without collecting any form of profit.