The Hudson Project’s inaugural installment had its up and its downs, but over all it’s important to remember that events thrown for the first time almost never come out perfect. There were a lot of factors against the Hudson Project team, the most notable would be Mother Nature – something that no one can control. A statement that the festival curators uploaded on Facebook this afternoon marks this years flaws and leads to them vowing to learn from the lessons that this year presented.
Our WhiteRaverRafting team wholeheartedly believes that this festival has a lot of potential. It takes a special group of people to host an event that promotes fan experience over anything else and without a doubt we know that 2015’s festival will go much smoother.
Here at Winston Farm the load-out process continues and so does the rain. Progress has been slow, as the mud has complicated every step we take. In the past several days, morale has been low, and not just for the fans, but also for all of us who worked so hard to create the inaugural Hudson Project. After more than a full year of pouring our hearts and souls into creating an event that was built around the core of a positive fan experience, we know we fell short in some aspects.
We are reading all your comments and complaints and will be addressing them internally, as well as taking all of them into consideration as we plan next year’s event. We know some staff acted inappropriately, especially in the heat of the moment during the storm; for us, this conduct is unacceptable, will not be tolerated and will be addressed on a case-by-case basis. Beyond these incidents, issues concerning entrance and exiting of the festival site, venue and campgrounds will be addressed, and the overall plan will be modified based on our experience from this past weekend. This was the first event at this location in 20 years and there were a lot of factors that were out of our control. This combination did not allow us to provide the fan experience we strive for. Overall the operations of the event were not up to our high standards and for this we are extremely sorry.
The weather was a terrible way to end what was a beautiful weekend. Mother Nature is the one factor that no one can control, but some actions you can control–mainly the choice to cancel and evacuate the event. With recommendation from Ulster County Emergency Services & Health Department we came to the conclusion the show must be cancelled. We stand by our decision because your safety is always our first concern. We feel we accomplished this goal as all patrons were able to exit the site safely, albeit slowly.
We are issuing a refund on all face value ticket prices for Sunday’s performances. Details on the refund process will be made available ASAP. For now, know that we are happy to offer this as a small consolation to those who weren’t able to see some of their favorite acts and also those who struggled to leave the site.
An incredible amount of time, energy, dedication and love goes into planning an event of this caliber. We hope you understand that we have poured everything we have into The Hudson Project and we don’t plan on giving up. In the coming months, we will work to alleviate some of the issues we all faced, so that we may build upon the foundation created this weekend. From the beginning, we wanted to create and evolve an event with input from you–the ones who took a chance and came out to be a part of this special first weekend. Our ultimate goal is an ever-evolving festival designed as a three-day utopian retreat from the ‘real world’ centered on a cutting edge lineup, world-class food and art. This goal has not changed, and will not change.
With this in mind, we are creating a survey that will give everyone a proper forum to voice their comments and have them addressed by the right people. We will take these survey responses to heart and will utilize them in preparation for upcoming events. Please take this opportunity to express your thoughts and suggestions, as we truly want your input so that we may create a better experience for all next time. http://adobe.ly/Wk7d0E
To those who joined us for our inaugural year, thank you and congratulations on surviving the MudsonProject . We have a feeling you will never forget it…we know we won’t. We feel that despite the challenges everyone faced, we all were a part of something special. We hope you feel the same.
Until next time,
The Hudson Project
After reading this statement you can continue to reflect on The Hudson Project 2014 by watching an outstanding video that one fan put together: The Mudson Project Video.
Connect with The Hudson Project:
http://hudsonmusicproject.com/
https://www.facebook.com/TheHudsonProject
https://twitter.com/hudson_project
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