Phish Music and Camping Festivals
Phish music and camping festivals became a model for large music festivals in the United States in the mid ‘90s. Concert planners built mock cities with roads, movie theaters, potable water, multiple stages, retail centers, and varied entertainment. The A&O mounted patrol was a popular and effective means of crowd management for these festivals. Uniformed riders patrolled atop highly trained horses with a wide field of vision to spot potential problems.
Over the years, fans became accustomed to the friendly and helpful Troopers. A&O joined Phish at the Clifford Ball, the Great Went, LemonWheel, New Year’s Eve at the Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation, Oswego, IT, Coventry and Festival 8. Plus, A&O riders provided security for the band at many amphitheaters and smaller outdoor venues.
The appearance at Coventry in Vermont represented a “full circle” of sorts for the mounted enforcement unit and Phish. A&O began its concert division with Woodstock 94 where Phish band members first encountered them. They were invited by Phish to the Clifford Ball concert in 1996. This classic Phish music festival launched what has become an annual summer concert tour for A&O elite riders. In 2011 they are reunited with Phish for Super Ball IX, the groups's ninth music festival in 15 years, at Watkins Glen International racing facility in New York.
Langerado Music Festival
The 2008 season began for the Alpha & Omega concert division with the
Langerado Music Festival at the Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation in the South Florida Everglades, March 6 to 9. Celebrating its sixth year, Langerado is considered the unofficial kickoff to the festival season in the United States. A&O Troopers patrolled the concert grounds, helped fans with parking and directions, monitored entryways to enhance public safety. An estimated 25,000 music fans attended the four-day festival. The line-up included R.E.M., Beastie Boys, 311, Phil Lesh & Friends and 80 other acts.
Alpha & Omega participated in Green Langerado, a concentrated approach to staging a green concert experience. All materials used in camp were evaluated for their recycling potential. All hay and horse feed were purchased from local vendors and manure was doanted to local farmers for fertilizer.
Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival
A&O Mounted Security Patrol brought its special brand of festival security to Golden Gate Park in San Francisco for the inaugural
Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival, August 22 to 24, 2008.
The festival was produced by Another Planet Entertainment, Superfly Productions, and Starr Hill Presents in a partnership with the San Francisco Recreation & Park Department. The multi-faceted festival featured Radiohead, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers,
Jack Johnson, Beck, Wilco, Widespread Panic and many newcomers and local acts in an effort to represent San Francisco's vibrant cultural community. A&O Troopers handled a number of security functions including parking, crowd control, escorting artists
through crowds, assisting in medical emergencies, and offering directions and assistance to fans. A&O previously provided security at Golden Gate Park during The Dave Matthews Band concert.
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