Survived Oktoberfest 2011 - The Real One

[Bernhard]

I see it now. European EMT City get together.[...]anyone want to set this up?

Okaaaaay....well, if someone likes, I really could arrange something.

How does this sound: End of September 2012, near Munich, some tourist program through Bavaria including visiting several EMS related places, organizing ride-alongs in EMS for the interested ones, even including one day medical shift on Oktoberfest. And, surely, a civil visit to the Oktoberfest (if I know it soon enough we even may have a chance for a reserved seating, reservation starts next month and is usually full around January). Several days, even a week or two could be filled with action (accompanying families/spouses/kids could have fun, too)...

End of September the weather usually is great here, but there is no relevant EMS fair or something in this time frame, though. Only beginning of October 2012 there is a small rescue fair "Retter" in Austria 3hrs away, but I don't know if it's really interesting. Another possibility, including "Rettmobil", the leading European fair for EMS technics & vehicles (but not Oktoberfest) would be May, 9. - 11. In May 2012 I maybe able to organize an additional internship in a large disaster training excercise, but the date isn't clear yet

If needed, we even could offer both dates.

Munich has a large international airport with connections from almost everywhere, local transport could be organized rather easily, accomodation could be set up in hotels or private rooms (hotels wouldn't be cheap during Oktoberfest but I know some), food is always good here and I know the owner of the local liquor store...

Since the best ideas are those quick ones: Anyone real interested? Any date preferences?

If there are some interested I will open another thread for organizing this - if only one or two have real interest, it would be no problem as well.

[Chief1C]

I wanna go!

[Vorenus]

Well if I`m still hanging around in the area at the end of September 2012 (I`m working on it not to be like that ), I`d certainly pay a visit.

P.S.: Don`t get me wrong - I don`t wanna change the course of my life to skip the Oktoberfest, there are other reasons

Edited September 29, 2011 by Vorenus

[Bernhard]

Back to topic: here a well made recent video (and here a good one from 2009) about the medical service on the Oktoberfest - wording (mostly) in german but a lot of scenes inside and outside the main medical post. Not my shift, though.

Edited September 30, 2011 by Bernhard

[krumel]

The really hard ones don't work at the Festival grounds where cops and backup is always near... We work in the areas surrounding the festival ground.....Where people are more drunken, the corners are darker and backup is far away...

5 years working there, from the first day to the last day, From 7 a.m to 11 p.m. (or later.... ).... Hell, I miss it!

:punk:

Favorite guy during the octoberfest: (in 2008)

38 year old male, US Soldier, just back from Iraq.... Felt down some stair and was skilled enough in falling down to fracture both his ankles and rotate both his feet in a very interesting way...Both feets were showing in a totally "wrong" direction, rotated 180° (accompanied by severe tissue damage of course).... But this did not stop him from standing up and trying to walk down the street. He made it for about 20m then he again feelt and broke his nose...THIS made him and his friend calling an ambulance....

We took him to the ER, they took him to OR a few hours later..And the patient? Well, he fleed from hospital the second day after the operation....And was seen at the octoberfest using a wheelchair....

[Richard B the EMT]

I drink the occasional beer, usually at the New York State Volunteer Ambulance and Rescue Association's "Pulse Check" convention, educational confrence, and trade show, as I usually time it to when I know my car won't be used for at least the next 24 hours. Oktoberfest vendors would probably consider my patronage as a waste of space for derived income. Sorry.

However, it DOES sound like a whale of a party.

I'd always end up in scheduling conflict, between "Pulse Check", and the Jewish High Holy Days.

Just as a mention: the only time I was in a "Bavarian Beergarten" was the last time I was up in Canada, of all places.

[Bernhard]

The really hard ones don't work at the Festival grounds where cops and backup is always near...

For sometimes strange definitions of "near". Once my team was attacked by a drunk, team mate took injured colleague to medical post, I pinned the attacker down with two bystanders and called for police support. No cop available...(tent closing time is high time for LEOs). We constantly were attacked by other drunks who tried to free or help the "poor" man laying down below us. Eventually we managed to get other stretcher teams to the scene for assistance until police force came and took over.

Despite of the included suspense and the good feeling of surviving this, I this year really was very glad to learn, that our new outside container locations are within sight of a security/police standpoint. The last years I had my share of knife attacks, rumbling drunks and strange people to deal with on our old container posts ON the festival grounds.

And I am really not jealous of (sp?) the others outside at the surrounding streets, I like to watch them rolling by. I myself feel simply too old for this sh*t, in my age it's far better to treat some nice young lady's feet.

Hell, I miss it!

That's something noone seems to understand who didn't work there at least once.

[tcripp]

Bernhard, with all that "Octoberfest" experience...maybe you should come to Austin in June for our ROT Rally. Dwayne, you too.

http://www.rotrally.com/

Of course, probably not as sophisticated as the Octoberfest.

[Bernhard]

Last call: Oktoberfest 2012 starts 22nd of September, medic shift planning in progress, I may place one or two of you into it if it's your wish. See http://www.oktoberfest.de/en/

I drink the occasional beer, [...] Oktoberfest vendors would probably consider my patronage as a waste of space for derived income.

Considering the price for a beer there: no, it's not a waste for the vendors...

Bernhard, with all that "Octoberfest" experience...maybe you should come to Austin in June for our ROT Rally.

Not this year...how did it go?