Guide to the Swamp

#26
#26
S/o OP for making this thread. Will be in a similar boat as you, going down there with some friends for our first time in Gainesville. Made the trip to Tuscaloosa and Athens the past two years but it seems our sub-par play made our hosts rather gracious. Since we'll actually be favored this year in the Swamp, I'm not too keen on us being well received. One of my friend's dads that went to UF shared some nice Swamp horror stories with us. People spitting on Fulmer's wife, having tires slashed, even peeing over one of the stadium's interior walls onto the visiting section.

As I'm sure plenty of Vols fans are, we're waiting for UF's allotment to go on sale to the general public next week. As far as cheap hotels go, staying an hour outside of Gainesville off I75 should be a safe bet.
 
#28
#28
After looking at hotel prices in Gainesville and even in Lake City. I'd like to spend Friday night in Valdosta GA. It's only an hour and a half from gainesville.

And I think this game won't be played at noon I think it will be played at 4 on SEC network or 7 on espn 2.

Here is a list of SEC games that week. Alot of teams are playing D2 schools so I see us playing at 7 on ESPN 2.

NCAA Football Schedule | FBS (I-A) 2015 Week 4 | FOX Sports
 
#32
#32
Be prepared to feel less comfortable than you've ever felt in your life. Expect to feel like every inch of your body is covered with a towel just too damp to use after showering.
 
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#33
#33
crusse10 said:
Be prepared to feel less comfortable than you've ever felt in your life. Expect to feel like every inch of your body is covered with a towel just too damp to use after showering.
Click to expand...

You're not supposed to mate with them.
 
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#34
#34
We always spend the night in Valdosta, GA and park at the mall in Gainesville and take the bus over. Never had a problem with either of those.
 
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#35
#35
crusse10 said:
Be prepared to feel less comfortable than you've ever felt in your life. Expect to feel like every inch of your body is covered with a towel just too damp to use after showering.
Click to expand...

If Florida's climate is enough to make you feel less comfortable than you've ever felt in your life, you definitely would not have wanted to come with me some of the places I've been in this wide world, Crusse. :yes:
 
#36
#36
VFL-82-JP said:
If Florida's climate is enough to make you feel less comfortable than you've ever felt in your life, you definitely would not have wanted to come with me some of the places I've been in this wide world, Crusse. :yes:
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I see a military avi for you, otherwise I would've asked if it was a prison shower? :)
 
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#37
#37
triad280 said:
I see a military avi for you, otherwise I would've asked if it was a prison shower? :)
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Hehe, in some ways, there's really not a lot of difference between the two. Getting screwed is gett...well, you know what I mean. :)
 
#38
#38
VFL-82-JP said:
If Florida's climate is enough to make you feel less comfortable than you've ever felt in your life, you definitely would not have wanted to come with me some of the places I've been in this wide world, Crusse. :yes:
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Florida is fine in moderation. But being in the Swamp, it becomes way worse. The only time I went there, I was in the Pride. We even had to take our jackets off, which we basically never did. And it was still the most miserable combination of humidity, heat, and proximity to 90k other overheating bodies
 
#39
#39
crusse10 said:
Florida is fine in moderation. But being in the Swamp, it becomes way worse. The only time I went there, I was in the Pride. We even had to take our jackets off, which we basically never did. And it was still the most miserable combination of humidity, heat, and proximity to 90k other overheating bodies
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I hear you, man.

Eritrea, hottest place on earth (tied with the Outback of Australia). 140 degrees in the shade, before you add in heat index from a brutal, pounding sun. Makes the Mojave Desert in California feel like a pleasure. We just about built a combat airfield there in the early 90s for CENTCOM. Was weird, because there was a North Korean army outfit in country same time as us, though working on a different project. Sharing the coastal area with guys we normally faced off across the DMZ against was unique. But the climate was brutal.

Other extreme: Alaska in the field in the winter. Temps down to 40 below, occasionally even lower. You heat up the sleep tents to about 25-30 degrees, but no warmer, because you don't want to start melting the top layer of the permafrost and release the tons of mosquitoes just waiting for a thaw. So 25-30 is as warm as you ever get (except in the cab of a vehicle) until the exercise ends.

I'll take the sweltering Swamp any day. Well, minus all the ugly people, that part would be brutal, I agree. :)
 
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#40
#40
VFL-82-JP said:
I hear you, man.

Eritrea, hottest place on earth (tied with the Outback of Australia). 140 degrees in the shade, before you add in heat index from a brutal, pounding sun. Makes the Mojave Desert in California feel like a pleasure. We just about built a combat airfield there in the early 90s for CENTCOM. Was weird, because there was a North Korean army outfit in country same time as us, though working on a different project. Sharing the coastal area with guys we normally faced off across the DMZ against was unique. But the climate was brutal.

Other extreme: Alaska in the field in the winter. Temps down to 40 below, occasionally even lower. You heat up the sleep tents to about 25-30 degrees, but no warmer, because you don't want to start melting the top layer of the permafrost and release the tons of mosquitoes just waiting for a thaw. So 25-30 is as warm as you ever get (except in the cab of a vehicle) until the exercise ends.

I'll take the sweltering Swamp any day. Well, minus all the ugly people, that part would be brutal, I agree. :)
Click to expand...

that sounds awful, I agree. I'd go out on a limb and guess the kid who goes to UTC hasn't dealt with either of those extremes, though lol
 
#41
#41
My advice is:
Hold your nose
Enjoy the eye candy
Get the win
Get the heck outta dodge
Immediately take a shower to aggressively wash the nasty funky dirty Gainesville vibe off of you
 
#42
#42
VFL-82-JP said:
I hear you, man.

Eritrea, hottest place on earth (tied with the Outback of Australia). 140 degrees in the shade, before you add in heat index from a brutal, pounding sun. Makes the Mojave Desert in California feel like a pleasure. We just about built a combat airfield there in the early 90s for CENTCOM. Was weird, because there was a North Korean army outfit in country same time as us, though working on a different project. Sharing the coastal area with guys we normally faced off across the DMZ against was unique. But the climate was brutal.

Other extreme: Alaska in the field in the winter. Temps down to 40 below, occasionally even lower. You heat up the sleep tents to about 25-30 degrees, but no warmer, because you don't want to start melting the top layer of the permafrost and release the tons of mosquitoes just waiting for a thaw. So 25-30 is as warm as you ever get (except in the cab of a vehicle) until the exercise ends.

I'll take the sweltering Swamp any day. Well, minus all the ugly people, that part would be brutal, I agree. :)
Click to expand...

Again thank you for your service.
Being in a military family I truly appreciate the sacrifices made by those who serve.
 
#43
#43
SobeVol said:
Again thank you for your service.
Being in a military family I truly appreciate the sacrifices made by those who serve.
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Thanks, Sobe. Was my honor to serve. Now my role to support the younger men and women who are still out there doing it. And watch plenty of Vols football. :salute:
 
#44
#44
ATC_VOL said:
We always spend the night in Valdosta, GA and park at the mall in Gainesville and take the bus over. Never had a problem with either of those.
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I think I will do this as well found a Motel 6 for $52 in Valdosta.


When do you guys think the game will start?
 
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#45
#45
OP and others -- I hope this is an afternoon game -- night games at UF can be rainy and storm delayed that time of the year
 
#46
#46
508mikey said:
OP and others -- I hope this is an afternoon game -- night games at UF can be rainy and storm delayed that time of the year
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The two years I lived in Tampa, a couple of hours south of Gainesville, the summer/fall trend was showers in the afternoon, then clearing up in the evening.

This is because the heat of the sun on the earth during the morning and mid-day in turn heats the air just above the ground. That heated air rises, which leaves a local vacuum of low pressure which pulls cooler (and moister) air in from the adjacent off-shore waters. This moist air gets heated up in turn, and when it rises--by about mid-afternoon--it cools off, precipitating all that moisture out as rain.

The whole cycle cools off and stops as the sun gets near the horizon, so the evenings are usually pleasant.

At least, that's how it worked when I was there. Got in the way of watching Saturday afternoon football games because we were on satellite TV, heh.

Be better to have an evening game than afternoon, I think.
 
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#47
#47
VFL-82-JP said:
The two years I lived in Tampa, a couple of hours south of Gainesville, the summer/fall trend was showers in the afternoon, then clearing up in the evening.

This is because the heat of the sun on the earth during the morning and mid-day in turn heats the air just above the ground. That heated air rises, which leaves a local vacuum of low pressure which pulls cooler (and moister) air in from the adjacent off-shore waters. This moist air gets heated up in turn, and when it rises--by about mid-afternoon--it cools off, precipitating all that moisture out as rain.

The whole cycle cools off and stops as the sun gets near the horizon, so the evenings are usually pleasant.

At least, that's how it worked when I was there. Got in the way of watching Saturday afternoon football games because we were on satellite TV, heh.

Be better to have an evening game than afternoon, I think.
Click to expand...


NCAA Football Schedule | FBS (I-A) 2015 Week 4 | FOX Sports

After looking at the other SEC games that week we should have a night game imo.
 
#48
#48
Glad you started this thread OP. After reading through suggestions, I do believe I will park at mall and ride shuttle, $10 is not bad at all.
 
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#49
#49
Past two times we played Florida we parked 3 to 4 blocks north of the football stadium. Was $20 to park in one of the residents yard. We stayed away from the frat houses:)
There were some fairly large TN tents (with some awesome BBQ) just across from the stadium. They were having a pretty good time.
 
#50
#50
Lopedogg03 said:
Glad you started this thread OP. After reading through suggestions, I do believe I will park at mall and ride shuttle, $10 is not bad at all.
Click to expand...

No problem I've learned alot by starting this thread as well. Volnation is pretty helpful sometimes.
 
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