G’day friends and welcome back to another week and another blog.
I apologise there was no post last week, but I had a good reason! I was collecting content for this post!!
I have been trying to get out and about more outdoors. So when the old man says he wants to take us all to Meatstock you never say no!!
So I thought why not do a post all about it, as well as the accessibility. Because the accessibility really needs to be discussed!
So lets get cracking should we!?
What is Meatstock??
So I thought it would be best to explain what on earth Meatstock actually is for those who don’t know about it.
It is basically 2 days of BBQ Smoking competitions, cooking and BBQ demonstrations, eating competitions, Car and Truck displays, Bull Riding and Country Music. So basically the most epic country day ever. If you are vegan or vegetarian, this event isn’t for you.
It was super fun watching everyone who was competing milling about checking on their smokers. Oh and their setups were epic. And not to mention super accessible! You could see straight into their makeshift kitchens and didn’t have to look over crazy high barriers!
The food was absolutely amazing. Safe to say I was not worried about food intake that day! I don’t think I will have pulled pork nachos with mac and cheese as good as I had that day again! It was probably some of the best meat I have ever had!! I didn’t even know you can have pulled pork in nachos!
From a Disability Access point of view.
Now this is a disability blog after all not a foodie blog, so I have to talk about the accessibility and things!
The event itself was for the most part well thought out. I could get to 99.99% that was there! I took my mobility scooter so I could go anywhere I wanted whenever I wanted.
Don’t get confused here. The event organisers did not too bad at making this as accessible as possible. For the most part. Keep reading though to find why I wouldn’t give the accessibility a 10/10. The chosen venue was also a little to be desired.
Sure I could get around everywhere but it wasn’t without its challenges. The Showgrounds where it was held needs some work done. There were massive pot holes in the concrete which is a trip hazard for everyone, especially for those who are vision impaired, have mobility issues or the like. I was very grateful to have my mobility scooter when I saw those.
I nearly went over a gutter because it was 4 metres from the entrance to one of the buildings. Thank goodness we realised in time other wise I would have been a pancake on the floor. We eventually found a ramp like structure which honestly looked like the concretes had extra concrete and didn’t know where to put it, but it took a bit of a look. Even people pushing prams struggled with getting over gutters and things.
Some of the food fans as you would expect were up super high so if you were in a wheelchair you would need to shout to be heard.
However, out of all of it there was only one clothing van that was not accessible from the looks of it. However, I didn’t venture down that way so not sure if there was an accessible entrance around the back.
Perhaps the biggest let down though of the event was communication. I emailed them regarding the bull riding tickets, as you had to purchase them separately and there were no signs regarding accessible tickets on their website. I did not receive a response… So safe to say I didn’t attend the Bull Riding which was something I was desperate to do.
The only thing I would really wish was different was the disabled parking. Sure it was right at the front gates. However, it was uneven and no mapped out car parks indicating disabled parking. We had to park on an embankment which meant i needed help to get out of the car and into my scooter up the embankment.
I cant comment on the disabled toilets, as I made sure i didn’t drink anything major until towards the end of the night. You can either view that as sad, but I don’t know about you but public toilets are horrible and usually aren’t super accessible and make you want to burn your shoes after for touching the ground.
The best part of the night!
The best part of the Meatstock was the music!!!! We had arguably the best seats in the house. Right on a balcony overlooking the stage. We bared that spot for 4 hours… also hence the no bathroom thing!
I am now a Casey Barnes convert. His set list was like its own mini concert. It was absolutely incredible!!!
The only thing that would have made it faultless would be a screen showing what was going on on the stage for vision impaired. Even for me we couldn’t see the singers on the stage. And also having someone signing the songs would have made it even more accessible.
However, other than that, the music was amazing, the artists incredible and it was such a good show! Worth sitting out in the rain for!
All In All
So would I go back to Meatstock again?? Yes I would. Regardless of the communication issues and a few minor accessibility features needing improvements which isn’t the events fault technically, that is up for our Council to fix.
It was such a fantastic day, all the events that they had on were absolutely awesome and the atmosphere was incredible. I honestly cannot wait for it to come back again next year if it does! Hopefully with a little extra accessibility features added, and a new venue.
Have you ever been to Meatstock?? Let me know how you enjoyed releasing your inner country!
Happy Easter everybody. If you celebrate, I hope you have a truly special day.
Till next time,
Rhi.
P.s. with cruising rumoured to be returning, check out my post all about cruising and making it the best accessible holiday ever! https://livingabled.com.au/how-cruising-is-the-best-abled-holiday-ever/