Whose clothes are those?
It's a Wimbledon-themed post today! Ruth sent in this lovely photo that she took at the Wimbledon museum just last month. Thanks for sending it in! Let the clothes be your guessing game for today... probably a very quick one.
Ali C and I have been emailing back and forth about Wimbledon, too. She's an experienced queuer; I am a total neophyte and have been asking lots of questions. Below are the informative parts of our correspondence, which Ali graciously agreed to share. I hope it will encourage lots of other newbies to try queuing as well. (By the way, Ali said nothing of big equipment, but I've found websites advocating tents, foam beds, portable bbqs... I'm not joking.)
Ali: Ground passes - yep, I think they usually sell a lot of them [ed: 6,000 according to websites]*; I'd say you should be OK arriving on the first tube of the morning (around 6AM or so) if you just want a grounds pass. Henman Hill is a lot of fun, but by the end of the first week, you'll also be able to catch a lot of great doubles matches on the outside courts. I saw Amelie and Kuzzie playing doubles a couple years ago, and it was tons of fun to watch.
(I'm watchng the Dementieva-Safina match as I type this, and wowee, Elena just let out a big scream after missing an easy putaway. That girl's got lungs. And she's got black bike shorts! Who dresses her?!)
I will say that if this is your first time at Wimbledon, there's nothing like sitting on Centre Court and watching one of the "big names" play. Going to Wimbledon at all is fantastic, but getting onto a show court is an amazing experience. However, to get show court tickets, you probably do need to queue pretty early. I'm planning on getting there around 3AM both days and just dozing in the street and then on Henman Hill for a bit. =)
Other than that, I'd say, wear layers, because even a 6AM it'll be pretty chilly, but by noon it usually warms up a whole lot. Don't forget your sunscreen and/or a hat. And plan to get everything you need for the day into a smallish backpack, because you'll need to go through security. (I'll be schlepping cameras and lenses, so I need to get Ros's advice on that!) Bring water, but I usually just buy my food there. It's probably expensive; I don't honestly remember.*
Me: 3am queuing? You are a stronger woman than I am, for sure.
Ali: *As for lining up at 3AM - it's not that bad. Really. I slept a bit, did the Daily Mail crossword, ate bacon baps, and talked to the people in the queue next to me. Once we were allowed into the grounds, I watched the practice courts for about 15 minutes and went and took a long nap on Henman Hill. (I would recommend doing that unless there's a noon match you really, really want to see...) It's not too bad - one of those great experiences in life, you know?
Of course, if it's raining....that's another story. =)*
Me: Out of sheer curiosity, where on earth do you go to the bathroom when you're on line for 7 hours?
Ali: *You just hold it. I mean, how badly do you WANT to see Roger??
Kidding, kidding. There are port-a-loo facilities not too far from the queue. They're not great, but not terrible either, as I recall. You know, when desperate....*
There you go, folks, straight from a reputable source. Stewards supposedly also patrol the line, and you get numbered cards to help keep you in order. Left luggage facilities have greatly decreased in recent years, but are still available (to leave those bbqs behind!).
Discuss Wimby, sleeping out for tickets, and anything off-topic below, as always. And keep sending those photos!
