Are YOU a performance beach goer?

[keiratwiceknightly]

At the beach yesterday. So many families arrived with bags and bags of stuff - some even with festival trolleys. Shelter up, double rugs on sand, windbreak, chairs, elaborate picnic. Kids into sun suits, then sun cream rubbed into all exposed bits approx every 10 mins.

40 min set up. Sit for an hour. Then dismantle and clear off.

Great spectator sport.

If only I were that organised! I wouldn't see it as 'performance' anything - just people who are less haphazard than I am

Shelter, picnic blanket, picnic, sun lotion, knickers, plastic bag. Talcum powder.

Kids wear their swim suits, crocs and towelling dresses to go. And I make them carry their buckets and spades .

Best bit is the talc. Gets the sand off a treat and lives in the beach bag permanently.

Not seen one who has left after such a short time. Though as long as they don't leave litter and are not noisy, doing no harm on the beach at all.

Though if they have driven miles in a Chelsea Tractor and/or taken a parking space that means a key worker has to walk further to their job, that bit is not so good.

As for spectator sports on the beach, the towel dance is the best.

Don’t you mean, are YOU a prepared beachgoer?

I’m not going to apologise for setting up my beach shelter tent for me to sit in. There is a family history of skin cancer within my family, so I can’t sit in the sun for too long (my skin type wouldn’t allow it) yet I love & enjoy bringing my child to the beach.
I carry my beach shelter tent (in its bag) over one shoulder and a big beach bag with towels, blanket and food over the other shoulder and takes me 10 mins to get all set up (practice makes perfect!)
If putting my health first makes me a “beach performer” then so be it 🙌

On a beach trip for me and DP and we always take

• beach bag
• cool bag
• chairs
• umbrella

Pitch set up takes minutes and we stay as long as we want, some days 1 hour others 6 plus

When our DC were smaller we didn’t have chairs we had beach mats and a bag of toys.

On holiday last month in England with a wider family we added a windbreak, a kite, buckets and spades, more umbrellas and a shelter and we used a trolley, it belongs to another family member with young kids.

I have never understood those towels...having grown up literally ON the beach (out the door, down two steps onto the sand), I can tell you that you get just as sandy with a towel as without!

@PastramiNoRye

I have a festival trolley. Plus three kids under 8. How else am I supposed to cart the kids, towels, changes of clothes, toys, food and drinks by myself?

The two-year-old ends up needing to be carried back to the car so the trolley is invaluable.

Really glad that me struggling to take my children out is a spectator sport for you. Cheers.

Oh, don't be so serious!

My DF was the ultimate performance beach goer when we were young. We had the windbreak, the pop up tent, about 5 picnic mats, chairs, a table, all the standard fare.

But on top of that we had a soctopus to hang our swimwear and armbands on to dry, a long piece of bamboo planted in the sand with a windsock like thing on the end in case any kids wondered too far down the beach we could see it to get back. People used to use our set up as a place to meet if they got lost during the day because we’d reliably be there from sunrise to sunset for a fortnight.

He would have been delighted that OP recognised his efforts!

I loved our old 3 wheeled all terrain pushchair, we took it for a couple of years longer than DS needed it for , just to load it up with beach stuff. I could fit beach chairs, tent, rug, backpack and coolbag on it , plus a small grumpy child if necessary !

I know what you mean Op, it takes the whole joy out of going to the beach in my opinion. If you need a festival trolley then you've got too much stuff.

I read someone on mumsnet say they take talcum powder to the beach to help dry off their feet, I mean wtaf?!

Festival trollies look ace! Although you'd need a proper path, they look tricky to pull over sand.

We bring towels, snacks, drinks, swimwear, suncream and beach toys - and if it's Pembrokeshire or Cornwall, a windbreak, wetsuits, surfboard and a body board.

@SnowyPetals

Last time I checked there wasn't a medal for minimalism at the beach. Why does less equipment make you a better person OP? Also "performance" would imply that they care what you think - I can assure you nobody does.

This is MN, home of the performance showering threads. ("Spend more than 30 seconds in the shower? You lazy mare. You're wasting water and ruining the environment!")

Oh and the grey hair threads ("You're still dying your hair? Who for?! It's sad really, I have hair the colour of a kettle and I've never had so many compliments. But then patriarchal beauty ideals don't interest some of us....")

And the fancy handbag threads ("I'd rather put that money towards something useful, but that's just me")

And now it's performance beach thread ("My children walk down to the beach in the nip, spend 30 seconds hardening up in the North Sea, and march back home on their own. I pay no attention whatsoever, as I detest the beach - I can't abide tourists")

Back in the days when we used to go to Wells next the Sea for a week every year (before it was completely over run with Mumsnetters) we were always astounded by the amount of stuff people took down to the beach, but in particular the amount of beach they claimed as their own by erecting a series of windbreaks. It was like the adult equivalent of a dog cocking it's leg on a hedge!
We, on the other hand, had to take minimal kit as we had to carry DDs wheelchair across the soft sand so needed 2 adults with free hands. Thankfully my DS was more than happy to entertain himself with a bucket and spade and a small ball. Picnic, suncream and any other necessities had to fit in a rucksack or stay at home!

Thanks for the link! @PastramiNoRye

Over a number of years there was always one child in a buggy so that was used to carry all the stuff . I live near a beach and have seen lots of festival trollies lately. Great idea .

As someone who isn't English I found it pretty interesting when I saw all the kit on our first few beach breaks. In Europe you take towels & maybe an umbrella. I do now have a small beach tent crucial for avoiding the seagulls when eating!

I don’t mind this at the beach at all but it makes me irrationally angry when I see people do it at country houses though. I feel like their staking out their little patch, I always feel like sitting uncomfortably close to them with my coffee (that I bought from the shop like a heathen) just to show them that they don’t own the place.

Yeah windbreaks are exclusively British (English?)

My one and only time going to a big English beach with beach huts, it was like looking at a medieval army encampment.

I live in Ireland and they've never caught on.

I think we just like people watching too much! We're always openly gawking at each other on the beach, we don't even mind.

I've just checked out what a festival trolley is and I want one!

However, I really don't think the OP was being "sneery"! It's a funny post.

We spend all day on the beach and take alot of stuff so we're warm and comfortable while we do. I never used to take chairs but we do now as I get backache sitting on the sand now. My dad taught me the skill of setting up the beach camp and I've now passed that skill down to my children!

However, I really don't think the OP was being "sneery"! It's a funny post.

Yes definitely lighthearted, there’s no need to take your windbreakers so seriously.

We bought a festival trolley a few years ago after being very jealous of the people we met when on holiday in the Netherlands who had them!
Best buy ever! We've used it camping, beaching and festivalling. I'm very disorganised but with three DCs and a dog you do need some stuff!

We live near the beach so we rarely stay all day. We usually cycle there in our swimwear, one bag with towels, a packet of biscuits and a bottle of water and some books. Suncream on before we go. I hate cycling home damp so I change there but my kids just cycle home in their wet swim shorts and rash vest.

Yesterday we saw one of the families you describe arrive on our beach. Fair play if they're making a day of it. Otherwise it's a lot of unnecessary effort.

If having a festival trolly, sun shelter and windbreakers makes me one - then yes

We live 10 mins drive from the beach. We go early doors and set up the tent. We make bacon rolls for breakfast and will have a walk along the front.

We are there for at least 6 hours though. We take card games, books, paddle board.

We put sun cream on before we go (it still drives me nuts people don't know it must be applied 20 minutes before sun exposure!).

We do top up after swimming and drying.

We also have blankets laid on the floor and even have a few camping chairs if we want to use them.