Lot Etiquette 101: Leave It Better Than You Found It

The show starts long before the lights go down. For a lot of us, the parking lot is the show — the place you find your people, trade a sticker for a sandwich, and hear somebody's tape from 1977 drifting out of a hatchback. It's a little city that pops up for a few hours and disappears. Whether it gets to come back next time depends on how we treat it.

Pack it in, pack it out

Bring a trash bag. Bring two. Every venue that's ever shut down tailgating did it because of what got left behind, not because of what happened while people were there. Take your cans, your cardboard, your cigarette butts and the stray glow stick wrappers. If you see a pile that isn't yours, grab it anyway. Nobody's checking, which is exactly why it matters.

Respect the vendors

Shakedown Street runs on small-batch hustle. The person selling grilled cheese at midnight drove eight hours and is trying to cover gas to the next city. Pay what they ask, tip when you can, and don't haggle somebody's handmade pin down to a dollar. If you're vending, know the venue's rules and keep your spot clean.

Look out for each other

Drink water. Eat something. Check on the kid who's sitting alone a little too long. Know where the medical tent is and don't be afraid to walk someone there — security and med staff are there to help, not to bust anyone. The lot is at its best when it feels like a family reunion where you only know half the family.

Keep the volume neighborly

Your speaker is great. So is the one three cars over. Keep it at a level where folks can still talk, and turn it down when the neighborhood starts to look residential. Venues listen to their neighbors, and neighbors remember.

The short version: be the reason the lot stays open. Leave your spot cleaner than you found it, and the music will keep coming back.