Your best Big Day Out experiences

The crowds, the heat, the sweat, the crazy dudes wearing Statue of Liberty outfits - and, oh yeah, the bands.

Everyone loves the Big Day Out, so we asked Stuff.co.nz readers to send in their favourite memories of New Zealand's biggest music festival. A prize pack including a double pass and a CD prize pack was up for grabs for the winner, and a double pass for the runner-up.

The winners will be announced on Chris Schulz' The Hit List blog tomorrow. In the meantime, here's what you had to say:

Heidi: "Having the rocker behind me in the stands when Tool was playing a couple of years ago rocking so hard his hair kept on whipping me in the back of the head. Crack up!"

Tania: "Probably getting down to my underpants with a massive amount of people inthe boiler tent for Prodigy becasue it was so bloody hot that the sweat was condensing on the roof and walls ... so nasty but pretty awesome!"

Stacey: "My best Big Day Out memory was when I was 14. It was my second BDO. My cousin had traumatically died a few months earlier and soon after his death we heard that his favourite band, Jane's Addiction would be playing. I went with a friend and my Dad. My friend and I went wandering around, planning to meet up with my Dad later. When Jane's Addiction started playing I rushed back to where I had last seen my Dad but I couldn't find him anywhere. Then the opening notes for my cousin's favourite song Jane Says  started (the same song that played at his funeral). I looked up and looking straight at me was my Dad! It was a beautiful moment and one that will stay with me forever. I truly believe that my cousin was with us for that special moment.

Wal: "Seeing Arcade Fire was another memory highlight I won’t forget. They were insane live and the huge Canadian group were worth every cent to see them play their erratic and highly entertaining brand of music – the crowd singing Rebellion (Lies) was awesome."

Morgan: "Rage Against The Machine were playing a blistering set (of course!). I was right on the edge of the barrier right outside the 'D' & some guy (obviously half mental) was not only singing along to the vocals but the guitar tracks & solos aswell! This was okay until the unavoidable shift in crowd forced his face directly into my ear for more songs than I'd care to remember. My hands just happened to be stuck at my sides at the time. Luckily my friend I was with managed to save my neck (literally) from the ensewing chaos and give this guy some back too!"

Sarah: "My best BDO memory would be getting lost – I ended up walking around for literally two hours going in and out of reception and looking like loser Nigel No-mates. In the end I got so frustrated and agitated I told my friends I would be sitting at the V tent like the loser I looked like, and I would be the one waiting looking all sad and lost and pathetic. After a very raucous welcome, we had THE most fantastic time dancing and being idiots, drinking beer in the beer tent, being hit up by the MTV TV crew to do a wet T-shirt contest (which we did) and getting our pic taken for biggie magazine!"

Olivia: "At the ‘rainy Big Day Out’ (1996) when the heavens opened and almost everyone ran for cover, my best mate and I danced in the rain at one of the smaller stages with the biggest grins on our faces! Of course, by the end of the day we were sodden and freezing but to begin with we had some great laughs and dances in the pouring rain."

Cindy: "My favourite Big Day Out memory is when I was 15 (a million years ago) and I died my hair green with food colouring. It happened to pour down with rain on that Big Day Out and most of my face, hands, clothing, and the clothing of the people around me, ended up with nice green stains."

Billie: "The sun was shining and the Brunettes were playing and I guess the universe was telling us something, with the great atmosphere and the great music, because that is where we said I Love You for the first time."

Phillip: "My best big day out memory was watching a small emo girl attempt to take a photo of my chemical romance’s lead singer jared way and getting constantly pushed around in the mosh pit. She was fighting a losing battle and was not happy about it."

Seehi: "The Roni Size Reprazent experience was an interesting one for me. It was the first time I'd seen a bunch of men bop up and down behind laptops on stage."

Lee: "Tickets were inexpensive and bands like Smashing Pumpkins, Soundgarden and Straightjacket Fits played. I think the crowd total was 5000?? You could arrange to meet someone on the main field and actually spot them! Anyway, the best memory came during the opening bars of Today by the Smashing Pumpkins. A long term female friend broke down in tears and fell into my arms - it was a perfect moment. We were together a long time after that."

CK: "I am a wheelchair user and last year attended the BDO and the platform they had for us to watch the to main staged was awesome. I have never had such a great view of the stage at any concert before. Sitting up on it we were at shoulder hight of all the people on the ground and could see everything. Neil Young was my fav of the day."

Karen: "My best memory of the BDO was seeing Hole and Marlyn Manson perform on the main stage. Courtney went to town on the stage, got her boobs out and crawled around the stage while belting out the band's hits. Marilyn Manson came out in a sheer cat suit and did not fail to impress the crowd with his over the top antics, and screamed the "beautiful people" while the crowd went into a frenzy."

Chris: "I guess sitting on the vert ramp with Tony Hawk was pretty sweet. It had poured down with rain and no-one could skate and we sat on the transition of the ramp just watching the crown jump up and down to Rage Against the Machine. I wasn't really into them. But after leaving there for the big top, Rancid were playing to an enthusiastic but small crowd of us, before they were really big (just after Out Came the Wolves was released) That was rad."

Jeremy: "Venturing into the crowd to watch Rammestein play – I wasn’t sure who they were and I still have no idea what any of their songs were about but I will never forget their show… a cacophony of industrial metal assaulting the senses while the singer had fireworks shooting out of  his boots, his jacket on fire, the guitarist in an inflatable dingy on the crowd, and right at the height of the noise and theatrics they broke into drum and bass.. insane. Not surprisingly when Limp Biskit followed them they seemed a little…. Limp."

Logan: "Asking a girl out whom I met there, she actually said YES!! A few dates later she blew me off with the "lets me friends" speach. Awesome."

Toni-Ann: "My favourite memory of BDO was wetting my pants while waiting in line at the portaloo."

Emily: "We were in the crowd near the half pipe and on the top of it was Fred Durst the lead singer. He was filming and taking pictures of us. I thought that was really cool seeing him out about making the most of his day and having him take pictures of us instead of the other way around."

Kathryn: "The last time I went to the BDO Lupe Fiasco was singing and I was 2mm away from catching his shoe when he threw it into the crowd. I Guy next to me said "Nuh, you have it" and as I said "Oh thanks!" he pulled it away from me and ran away. I was so gutted and chased after him...I have never acted like this before! Lupe is my hero. But he was too quick :( He even did a backwards flip up on the stage! He's the man! I know he would have wanted me to have his shoe!"

Hamish: "One of the coolest things I had happen was  that on new years at Paiha I lost my drivers license leaving me without ID. So at the Big Day Out I couldn't get into the beer tent with my friends and girlfriend which bummed me out. Somehow this random guy taps me on the shoulder and goes, 'Are you Hamish?' I said, 'Yes' and he handed me my ID! He had recognised me from the photo on it. It made my day to chill with a beer watching the bands."

Angela: "I was watching Trent Reznor get angry at a mistake that his bass player made during their set and he hit him with his guitar. Although certainly not an example of upstanding behaviour – it was friggin' hilarious, and certainly got more than you paid for when you get to watch a huge musician/star pack a tanty on stage!"

Alex: "Went when I was 14 getting to the BDO by sneaking out of school and getting my older weird cousin to buy tickets for me the day before. The crowning moment of the festival was watching The Prodigy thrash it out for the fist time of many in my life as a couple, completely nude, flew by on the flying fox that extended from the grand stand to the other side of stadium."

Savita: "Me and my friend Misty got to the BDO and we waiting in line to get in.  After being told through the grapevine that they were checking bags for alcohol we decided that we were going to drink all our beers that we had with us before we entered the premises, while waiting in line.  Well along with our beers and helping a couple in front of us drink their 2 litre juice bottle of vodka and orange we were ready to party by the time we go into the venue.  The day rocked, with plenty of sun and great music into the night and it was one of the best BDO’s that I have been to...the main headlines were System of a Down, Slip Knot so it was a couple of years ago now... although the day after wasn’t that great."

Gemma: "Being astounded by the flaming lips as they, and their furry animal friends, pranced around the stage, used space-age contraptions to explode beach balls filled with confetti, and made some unforgettable music."

Isaac: "It's 10pm and I'm crammed somewhere towards the mid-front-left of the mosh pit. The rain, briefly showering earlier in the night, is now descending in a steady downpour. The Prodigy take their places on the stage - to be fair, not really the act I'd been most looking forward to - having gone along really to see NOFX. Still, it's the headline act, the people are pumped, surely it has to be good. Words fall short. The rain belted down steadily throughout their set. Steam was rushing up into the atmosphere from the pit. Keith Flint was soaking. Their gear was taking a battering from the elements. It was a show I'll forever remember - the energy was intense, heightened by the rain - people were soaked through, and having a blast. The irony that flashed through my mind when they played the song Firestarter still makes me smile - you would have been hard pressed to start any kind of fire that night! It still rings in my mind as one of the finest moments at a Big Day Out - ever."

Mark: "A wave of euphoria when Rage against the Machine (a band I never thought I'd get to see in my lifetime after they announced their split in 2000) cranked into Bulls on Parade in 2008. The crowd went mental and it brought a tear to the eye. Beautiful memory."

Tania: "Watching the drunkest man on the face of the planet trying to eat a hot dog very unsuccessfully in the misting tent. Not only was he saturated, so was the hot dog and he was missing his face very seriously. Bloody hilarious!"

Rachel: "My most memorable experience at the Big Day Out would have been going to an after party at the main band's hotel. It was the year The Strokes, Metallica and Kings of Leon were playing. I was in the room with all of them. The evening was blurred after witnessing a passionate rendezvous between the bassist of Kings of Leon with Julian Casablancas, but what I did remember more clearly was the intense groupie feeling that overwhelmed the lobby - famous musicians scattered around the room each accompanied by some beautiful young lady. I felt a little (a lot) out of my league, dressed in fish nets and Chucks and sporting a generic Ramones T-Shirt. What prompted me to leave this party, however grand the experience was at that age, was the unveiling of the mystery of some of my favourite musicians. The performance on stage is what's important, not the debaucherous antics at a hotel lobby. But it was pretty cool to be able to say I spent a few hours in the Kings of Leon hotel room. Watching TV. Seriously ... naive."

Eclypse: "I was enjoying watching from the safety of the overcrowded seating area, marvelling at all the different colours and shapes all bobbing up and down together, which in reality were lots and lots of people moshing away! When Alien Ant farm were about to perform my friends dragged me down to the front of the stage to get my first real experience and taste of the Big Day Out.  Imagine my surprise when the crowd compacted and I was squished up against people, and forced to jump up and down or forced being trampled! Although I was enjoying myself I was completely overwhelmed and asked my friends to help me get out! When advised the only way out was up and a crowd surf was in order, I was mortified ... but where there’s a will, there’s a way!"

Fleur: "Being caught up in the Blink 182 Mosh Pit at the age of 16 by accident and being carried over the shoulder of a big old guy and dumped under the bleachers suffering from heat exhaustion and missing my top."

Florence: "I'm the biggest Lupe fiasco fan that exists. I know every single word to every one of his songs and I was blown away by his performance. When Lupe Fiasco threw his top into the crowd, I was flabbergasted. I pushed my way through hundreds and hundreds of sweaty, bouncing bodies, determined to get closer to the front. When he threw his shoes in the crowd, my adrenaline was racing. Finally my sneaky crowd sifting skills payed off. I reached the front with my two other friends who had clung to me in a chain, also climbing and dodging the crazy energy of the crowd. Then, after a few video recordings and a hell of a lot of screaming ... Lupe Fiasco wiped his face with his towel and threw it into the crowd. Right. Into. My. Outstretched. Arms! The people in the crowd around me tried to wrestle for it, but there was nooo way I was letting go of that. Yes, it's a sweaty towel, but it's also a possession from my all time favorite artist. I shoved it down my top and held onto it tight until the end of the performance. A year later it sits on my desk, the best memorabilia of an awesome Big Day Out."

Di: "Being front of the mosh pit when the gorgeous ginga Shirly Manson from Garbage started their set with Push It.  I lost my shoe, got covered in other people's sweat and eventually forced my way back out again at the end of an hour and a half of Garbage awesomeness - good times!"

Samara: "Watching RHCP I got totally mauled and my shoe got stolen and they were cool new bronze Adidas shoes so my sister searched all day for it 'cause she was supposed to be lookin out for me then brought back the same shoe but like six sizes too big. The next day my mum woke me up first thing and took me back to find it then I was interviewed on TV and I was on the news. Not the best memory but ill never forget it!"

Hayley: "The year Placebo played (2001) I was about 17. My younger sister and I spent hours crafting a giant banner of said band and then fought through the crowds to the front of the main stage, and sat through at least three bands we deigned "crappy" (Zed, here's looking at you, kids). Finally, we managed to hoist aloft our banner that, in accordance with Kiwi ingenuity, was made from a disused bedsheet, Indian ink and food dye: Brian Molko finally glanced our way, smiled, the Heavens parted only for him to say, somewhat wryly, "You made me look like the chick from TLC". Not the most illustrious of compliments, but I think by this stage though we were running purely on dehydrated mania and possibly colouring from the yellow food dye seeping into my clutched fist. Even when Stefan Olsdal threw a water bottle toward us and it clocked me in the eye, you couldn't have dented my crazy flush of fangirl madness."

Dane: "In 2002 everything that could happen did. System of a Down had just wowed the crowd on the main stage. So much so that the crowd had broken the barrier and System of a Down had to stop at one point and go off. Then it seemed the heavens opened up. The rain poured down and no one could escape getting wet - including a couple of girls who had been wearing white nurses uniforms, which weren't so practical after the rain had soaked them. After the rain stopped I remember Garbage hitting the stage for an epic performance. However, it was after the main stage where Basement Jaxx had everyone grooving in the Boiler Room and it didn't matter how wet or cold you were from the previous downpour. You couldn't help but warm up and smile while dancing along with the thousands of people."

Ben: "Front row for Queens of the Stone Age's second set on the Green stage in 2003. I was in ecstasy and agony because, whilst QOTSA are my favourite band, it was my first time in Auckland and my South Island blood had had a devastating reaction to the Te Atatu mosquitoes the night before. The bites on my feet and ankles were killing me, and jumping up and down ignoring them in bliss burst most of the blisters and welts. There was pus all over my lower legs and feet, I walked to the buses to get back to the city in extreme pain and it remains the best gig I have ever seen."

Keir: "Before the terraces were knocked down, there was a part underneath where you could walk to the end and it's where all the band walked past to get to the main stages. In one day I got to shake hands with my several of my all time heroes including Dave Grohl, Chino Moreno, Dave Navarro and Stephen Carpenter. Also got to meet Xzibit and PJ Harvey. Was the greatest day of my life. I didn't spend all day there, I did actually go watch the bands play."

Hayleigh: "My fave memory was of these two people dressed as the Statue of Liberty. One was green and one was red white and blue. Would have been a total mission to wear it for a full day - especially with the spikey hat!"

Laura: "I'm a huge fan of The Prodigy, I’m also 153cm short. I was in the massively packed out tent when they played in 2009. I couldn’t see a thing and I was getting bashed in the face by elbows, stood on, shoved back and forth etc. My favourite song came on – Voodoo People – and suddenly someone behind me grabbed me around my waist and lifted me on to their shoulders. I saw the whole song with the best view. It was amazing!"

Lisa: "It was my first BDO and man it was hot and we had got there early and were pretty sun burnt and tipsy by the time The Streets started just before the Beastie Boys. Mike Skinner and Leo his backup singer were also nicely sunkissed and rather more tipsy and they both constantly got the giggles  and set each other off into fits of laughter. The interplay with the audience was great. And Leo was simply devine as he sang topless with a rippling sixpack. Never have I been to a concert where the act had so much fun and drew the crowd into pure happiness at being alive."

Trudy: "My most favourite memory is when I accidentally body surfed to Tadpole at the 2001 Big Day Out. Never had I ever been in a mosh pit before and was on my boyfriend's shoulders. Next minute things got out of control and I was half way down the mosh pit. Amazingly I came out of it with not one scratch. This formed my adrenaline basis for the Basement Jaxx finale. Awesome!"

Hamish: "We were up the front moshing to Marilyn Manson - what a super freak. All the Kiwis just wanted to hear Beautiful People as not many people were really into him back then, or knew many of his other songs. But all he was doing was riding the microphone pole like he was having sex with it."

Chris: "Here’s me, just hanging out in front of the mainstage, thinking about The Darkness, who had played earlier, and thinking that I’ll check them out as I hadn’t heard them before, and the image of singer Justin Hawkins wearing a skin-tight pink/white striped jumpsuit had been burned onto my retinas.  So I’m just waiting around for Muse and Metallica, the headline acts, and I strike up a conversation with a tall, lanky British guy – we talk about the Big Day Out and how many I’d been to (2004 was my 7th BDO, but his first) and discussed  the bands we had enjoyed so far. We talked a little about The Darkness, then he announced he was heading off to check out the Boiler Room. The next day I’m back at home, thinking about the day before and checking out The Darkness. I’m listening to some of their songs and looking at a picture, thinking to myself that the singer looks strangely familiar and ... who could it be ... but the British guy I was talking to the day before! Turns out, that guy I talked to in front of the main stage was Justin Hawkins, the man of the skin tight pink/white jumpsuit himself!"

Paul: "At one of the earlier ones, Prodigy was there, and it was not a dry day. People were soaked, but, we didnt care. Soundgarden came to the stage later on that night and they had sound issues. Chris Cornell got frustrated. At least one of the bands has sound issues every year. This didn't matter though, Soundgarden were still the best band to ever come to the BDO. The earlier BDOs were the best. Not as many people went, there was space to just sit in the fields and listen to your bands. If you wanted to go up the front you could. It was a real festival atmosphere. There was no dance music either. That's what it is all about."

Greg: "Getting to see the mighty metal behemoth Metallica play at BDO. Every time I'd tried to see them before this, something had conspired to take me away. Not this time!! The guys had an extra long set, strange for a BDO, but there was NO WAY I wad complaining! I'd finished listening to St Anger and was looking forward to hearing some of this live. I'd steadied my nerves with a few refreshments so by the time they came on, I was amped to the point of trying to get the whole stand going! What a day, what a show, what a band! The highlight for me was definitely Fade To Black. I have never seen so many flicked lighters in all my concert going life!"

Susan: "Car crammed with eager teenagers. Dad winding through traffic. Mum giving instructions - stick together, don't talk to strangers, don't take anything from anyone you don't know, keep in touch by cellphone, make sure you get back to the meeting place at the right time, etc, etc. Excitement mounting. Singing all the way - I know these bands. We turn off the motorway. Mt Smart in sight. Dad stops the car. Everyone piles out. Goodbyes and warnings. Giggly girls race towards the entrance, joining the thongs of others. I climb back in the car. Too young that year ... but my day will come!
Seven years later and I'm sixteen now ... my turn!"

Andrew: "Slipknot and System Of A Down were both on the Orange stage. I got in to the D-Barrier early enough on the day to secure myself a place front and centre. I was crushed against the front rail so hard that I had a bruise across my chest from it for about a week or two. I've never seen so many bleeding people get pulled out of a moshpit. It was a mildly painful day for me but it was well worth it to see two of my favourite bands from up close."

Giles: "It took place only this year actually, smack bang in the middle of the legendary Neil Young's set. He was absolutely flipping amazing, I think anyone skipping him or rubbishing him had no idea what they were missing out on. Halfway through the set he decided to put down the electric guitar and pick up the acoustic for some songs from his Harvest album. Just as he started his mega-hit Heart of Gold, the harmonica slipped out of his mouth and "tried to strangle" him. He stopped the show and whilst fixing it joked around with the audience, who hung on his every word and cheered ecstatically when he started up successfully again. It showed that even a pioneer like Neil Young could make mistakes. For the first start, I had phoned my Mum all the way back home in Canterbury, who got me into Neil Young but had recently had an operation so couldn't come. I hung up when the harmonica dropped, but phoned again when he started again, holding the phone up for the whole song, her favourite one. She was crying her eyes out, the emotion of the moment was that amazing. Meanwhile 200 metres away kids on party pills were raving around for the Prodigy. It was such an awesome contrast!"

Steven: "My favourite Big Day Out memory was in 2007 when Lily Allen was playing in the Boiler Room and me and my friends were singing along to all her songs. She kept making eye contact, noticing that we knew all the lyrics. So at one point she leant over the stage, put the microphone to our mouths and let us sing part of her song LDN. I was pretty stoked with that and didn't think the day could get much better ... but it did ... about an hour later we were walking out of the Boiler Room (as it was boiling!) while Lily Allen was having a cigarette with some of her band. She shouted out to us to come over to her and when we did she introduced herself and said she was impressed at how well we knew her songs. At that stage she wasn't as famous so she was ecstatic that we knew all the words. We spoke to her for about 15 minutes as she swayed from side to side from the few too many drinks she must have had on stage! Just before she left we gave her a hug and I said to her, 'Next time you come back here, you'll be headlining!'.

* Post your own Big Day Out memories below.

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