Will you attend a concert this weekend? Then you should keep your eyes open because you will surely get dragged here and there, wriggle in close contact with people and get involved with people who will dance aggressively and energetically. If the band is particularly good, it will cause a frenzy in the crowd. This experience, known as "pogo", is lived under the stage. It's fun, but it's also very intense. However, with some information and a lot of courage, you will be an expert in no time.
Steps
Step 1. Know the protocol and the unwritten rules
As unruly as it may seem, the purpose of the pogo is by no means to harm someone. Poging means vigorously wiggling and having fun while listening to good music. The "code of conduct", in practice, is a matter of common sense.
- Falls. If a person falls, help them get up and make sure they are okay. She'll probably laugh and thank you before reuniting at the pogo or leaving if she gets hurt. This rule is fundamental: you must always help people who fall.
- Don't reach out: it's wrong. Never try. Girls who pog are not necessarily groupies and, in any case, they must be respected. If she doesn't take revenge, the guy who witnessed the scene will take care of it. Not only is it wrong to do it, it's a bad experience for a girl. Unfortunately, it happens. If you notice something odd, and it happens, reprimand the culprit. The more respectful pogers will usually intervene to get him out of the crowd or to keep him from fighting.
- Don't hit anyone: it's not a fight! If you inadvertently hurt someone, it's a matter of good manners to shake their hand or pat them on the back. Make a friendly gesture and apologize (the gesture of the horns and moving your lips sharply to express an apology, so that you understand what you are saying despite the music, they work). Also, keep in mind that if you start arguing with someone, you will be surrounded and outnumbered.
- Help people get out of the pogo. When you find yourself out of a crowd that is poking extremely violently and you see someone who can't get out, help them, as long as you can handle the crowd. It is always appreciated.
- Drag away those who are sick. If a person is unwell but no one is helping them out of the crowd (which is common at particularly busy festivals), ask the people around you to help you lift them up and accompany them to the exit, where who will take care of it. duty. Before you help her though, ask her if you can - some people get scared if they are suddenly picked up by someone.
- Don't be disrespectful. People on the edge of the pogo are there for a reason. They don't want to participate, at least for now. Some will, some will not. A person who does not want to pog should not be grabbed and dragged into the crowd. Sometimes this action is ideal for starting a pogo. However, if the pogo is already underway and someone is leaving, don't force them to intervene. Also, remember that people who make fists in front of themselves don't even want to be touched.
Step 2. Be aware of what is about to happen
You need to be objective and recognize that you could get hurt. Surely you will be covered in the sweat (and perhaps also the saliva or blood) of complete strangers. Although the goal of the pogo is to have physical contact without getting hurt, the unpredictability and the risk are not indifferent. Much of the danger comes from the type of music played. Ska will be more relaxed, while metal and some styles of punk will be more dynamic. If you are considering a debut in the world of pogo, remember the potential consequences and make sure the game is worth the candle.
Step 3. Dress right
Wear old or shoddy clothing, which can be stained or damaged. Your outfit should also be comfortable and light - you will sweat during the pogo.
- The shoes should be exactly your size and tightly laced. If you lose one, it will be hard to get it back. Meanwhile, the unprotected foot will be trampled. Boots or Converse are recommended.
- Take off your studded cuffs and other dangerous accessories, as they could hit another rowing machine (or you can hurt yourself). Avoid all items that can be grabbed (chains, wallets attached to pants with chains, long necklaces, and drop earrings). Unusual piercings will be cool too, but they could be a danger to others and yourself in the crowd.
- Never carry bags or backpacks with you. In the crowd, they are a danger to you and those around you. Give the items you have with you to a friend. Don't keep anything in your pocket while you poke! You risk losing its content.
- If you can see reasonably well without glasses, take them off and give them to a friend who is not poguando. Better yet, put your contact lenses on at the concert.
- Your shirt will likely be grabbed and pulled, so it's best to wear one that covers you well. If you are a girl, better wear one with sleeves, not a top.
Step 4. Be on your guard
Whether you are in the middle of the crowd or outside, you need to keep your hands, and more specifically your arms, prepared. You don't have to look like you're about to hit someone, but you certainly don't have to assume a position where you run the risk of your hands getting trapped at your sides. Your face may be accidentally hit by a person's head heading towards you, catching you off guard.
Step 5. Watch and observe from the side
Are the people participating in this pogo particularly brute? Are they just having fun or are they looking for a fight? Spot the difference between the pogers who want to have a good time and the fools on duty who run from point to point beating people. There are several types of pogo. Adapting to any situation is an important step if you want to have fun.
Step 6. Participate by staying on the edge
Push people back into the crowd and help the guys who are about to fall as they stand on the edge of the crowd. There will be people who will jump back and forth, side to side, up and down and wherever it happens.
Step 7. Go around the pogo area
You will continue to push, push, and pog with other people in the crowd. Eventually, you will be able to control your direction and figure out how to move. Maybe it will happen during the first experience. Follow the speed of the crowd. However, pay attention to the breaks. Typically, any pogers who know when a song has a break will step away from the crowd and pick up the moment the piece starts up again. Make sure you know the music or are ready for breaks if you still don't know how to snooze.
The dropper is a musical "blast" present in many genres of metal, hardcore, alternative music, punk rock and other types of music. It occurs when a song goes from a normal rhythm to a breaking point, when every rower is loaded with adrenaline. It is a kind of pass to the pogo. If you are not familiar with music, it will be difficult to understand what to do. Knowing what to expect, you won't be caught off guard by this sudden discharge
Step 8. Open the mob
Sometimes the pogo is performed in very crowded places. When this happens, the crowd will have a natural tendency to push the outer edge of the crowd towards the center. Eventually, this will close the crowd, unless they are continually pushed back. Consumed pogatori generally react to this phenomenon by launching themselves in different ways towards the edges of the crowd. Basically, if the people at the edge of the crowd don't get in your way and don't let the crowd push them into the throng, the pogo will remain open. Here are some strategies for doing this.
- Step back by having several people lean towards the outside of the crowd with their arms outstretched.
- Group several people by making sure that their arms rest on the shoulders of others and that they jump around the walls of the crowd.
- Catapult from side to side using another person's momentum.
- Go around the pogo area creating a whirlwind of people running around the outside of the crowd.
- Try all the moves that make you swing, giving the idea that this movement will harm anyone who approaches. There are numerous hardcore dances that facilitate this. Get inspired by watching the crowd.
Step 9. Don't always move the same way
- You can just jump high. This move is typical of punk concerts.
- Try the cyclone. Cross your arms across your chest to form an X and grab another rower's hands in the same position, facing you. Turn around using the weight to get momentum. This is a good way to get a small crowd to expand or to leave space for the purpose of making further moves in a crowd. You can let go when spinning fast, but chances are you'll have a hard landing and get hurt. Or, you will bump into another rower, perhaps annoying him.
- Dive off the stage. Get out of the crowd and pass the security guards. Try to get on stage. Without interrupting the band or collaborators, dive into the crowd (make sure they see you coming). Lie down upon landing so that it is easier for you to catch yourself. But beware: in many cases you risk being kicked out of the concert for this move. Learn about the club's rules.
- Surf the crowd. You can start by diving off the stage or having yourself lifted onto the shoulders of two taller people. Getting someone to lift you up while placing your feet on their hands is risky. In fact, the people around you won't have enough time to see you arrive and someone (including you) will get hurt, and a lot! If you are relieved, make sure the people around you notice this before actually landing on them.
- Try the anaconda, a movement made by two people. It would be best to give it a try if you have enough space. One person's legs must wrap around the other's waist, so that his hands touch the ground and his legs are elevated. The standing individual should support themselves on their quadriceps and lift their entire torso upward. The person with his hands on the ground should push his partner to help him stand up. Doing it repeatedly is fun and will make you laugh a lot.
Advice
- If you are on the edge of a crowd and you see a short person or a girl, do not get in the way to protect them or take them away from the crowd thinking it is necessary. This makes the concert less enjoyable. If you feel the need to help someone on the edge, stay by their side without hindering them, only intervene if they really need a hand.
- When you have had enough, you will understand. Pogo takes a lot of energy and you will get tired a lot. Maybe it will happen to you after an entire concert or after the first time. When it happens, take a break and enjoy music out of the crowd.
- Keep yourself well hydrated. It's hot in the crowd and it's all sticky. In short, it will be like training hard in the gym! Make sure you take some water with you, as the prices are too high in concert venues (for example, a bottle that would typically cost you 50 cents there might cost three euros). You may pass out if you become dehydrated, and passing out in crowds could be lethal.
- Go with friends and stay with them. This way, you will have a point of reference and could save your life. If there are a lot of people, set up a place to hang out after the concert if you get lost. It is horrible to wander aimlessly for hours trying to see them again in the midst of a restless crowd of 600 people.
- If you decide to participate in a particularly wild pogo, remember the rules indicated in the article, because otherwise someone could be trampled or even killed.
- If you can't stand the shoving and want to get out of the crowd, don't bend down. You risk falling and being injured by people who will step on you unintentionally. Place your hands close to your face and use your arms to keep your balance as you try to get out of the crowd. Don't panic. It is better to stand straight and take longer to get rid of it than to rush and risk falling. Also, if you can, ask someone on the edge of the crowd to help you out.
- Don't drink while you poke. It's best to do this on the edge, especially indoors. A soft drink spilled on the floor can cause a domino effect among the rowers, and they could get hurt.
- Try to keep your arms up and your elbows in. Use your forearms as pads to soften impacts. Also protect your face and eyes while giving good shoves at the right time. Close your hands in fists, as if holding a dumbbell. This allows you to avoid aggressively grabbing / scratching / punching people. Plus, it keeps your fingers safe, so they don't painfully bend and snap.
- Find a safe spot in the eye of the storm. If you are in too much of a crowd and feel tired, the safest place is downtown. Just like on the wheel of a moving bicycle or a spinning disk, tangential velocity is lower at the point closest to the center. However, depending on the movement of the crowd, this advice is not always effective. Many times the people in the center are easy targets. While things can be quiet in the center, in some cases it is better to try to stay on the sidelines than to get trapped in this area, risking being close to aggressive people.
- In some violent pressures, walking slowly could overwhelm you. In this case, it is usually best to follow the movements of others until the crowd exits. As you approach the end, keep pushing yourself outward. People who are on the edge will help you do this.
- The crowds are chaotic by nature. You'll be less likely to get hurt and save yourself a lot of energy if you just go with the flow.
- If your hair is long enough to be tied up, put it up, unless you want to use it for headbanging. Otherwise, keeping them collected will be more enjoyable for everyone.
- If you find the shoe, wallet or other object, the "bon ton" of the pogo requires you to wave it in the air, so that the rightful owner can see it.
Warnings
- Avoid throwing yourself from the stage directly at the people who are pogging - they will be too busy colliding to grab you. In order not to get hurt, jump into the crowd surrounding the pogo. Make sure they see you and know you're on your way.
- People on the sidelines might try to avoid blows. So if you want to get out of the pogo, calm down and do it slowly, or you will be pushed back into the crowd.
- Be aware of your surroundings. If you go to see a band in a small bar or house, don't start kicking left and right and pushing people. Often these concerts have little or no stage, and nothing more than a broken band gets a show over quickly.
- While participating on the edge is perfectly acceptable, remember that, in most cases, you will push the rowers into their "blind spots". A violent side thrust can send a rower who has lost balance directly to an elbow or head that would otherwise have been avoided. Also, you can and will be specifically targeted for retaliation if you do this more than once.
- Don't smoke while you poke! It is not respectful according to the pogo "code of conduct". You risk getting someone burned, or the kind of person who would blame you for not helping another poger get up could burn you with your own cigarette.
- Watch out for guys wearing studded cuffs. They could hurt you and leave scars.
- Consider yourself very lucky when you participate in a pogo where most people follow the rules. Inexperienced rowers are more likely to make mistakes and spoil all the fun.
- You always run the risk of getting hit. As long as you aren't targeted by someone, keep your hands in the right position so you don't get hit in the face, and lean back, you'll be safe. But it is possible to get seriously injured while poking, so understand the risks. This experience can break ribs and noses. And people who create eddies will almost certainly get hit!
- While climbing onto the stage and diving into it can be great, remember that if you are stopped by security guards, you could be the victim of retaliation. This depends on the group in charge of the controls, but generally you risk being kicked out of the concert.
- If you are a girl, you will take more risks. It happens that in the crowd there are people who try to implement the good, old dead hand, because they feel protected by anonymity. If you are being harassed, watch the perpetrator carefully and don't hesitate to report the incident. Many will disapprove of this and act accordingly. Plus, you hardly have time to decide how hard to hit a person, so both boys and girls get the same shoves.
- At some outdoor festivals, tents are set up near the stage and crowded areas. Beware of the dangers and obstacles in these situations. Nothing spoils the fun like hitting a tent pole and having a concussion or losing an eye to the tip of a curtain. If another pogatore has a bad experience, try to help him, notify those present and ask that they send a security officer or a doctor.
- If you've done something to get targeted by a much bigger, more aggressive rower, it's generally worth getting out of the pogo for a while. These people can isolate their victims and do their best to strike as hard as possible. This can hurt you and quickly ruin the concert.
- You can dance more quietly in other areas, certainly not in the pogo. Don't start waving your arms and dancing in the middle of a Wall of Death. Probably (this depends on the type of concert) many people will not react well and may pog more aggressively or violently towards you. If you want to dance, go ahead, but away from the pogo.
