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.

I also take talc (small, travel sized one, lives in the beach bag, no bother) as it makes getting wetsuits on much easier.

@Sillysuzie

Off to Google what a festival trolley is........

I did the same.

I think I might be a minimalist. Everything I need for a day trip, no matter where, needs to fit in my daypack. But I’m the same with camping. And at mother and baby groups I get stares because a lightweight pushchair and changing wallet is all I take.

Everyone is different.

@keiratwiceknightly Performance beach goer? That's a new level of judgement I've not seen before!

I would love a garden trolley - we have a beach tent, towels, picnic, buckets and spades, change of clothes etc, and last time we took the dog so she needed her stuff and extra water. We sometimes take kites. We tend to spend the whole day though - set up base camp, go for a walk.

It's nice to have shade/shelter and useful stuff for a good day out. Most folk we see at the beach have similar level of stuff -unless just taking a local walk

You'd love our packing for a camping trip - mahoosive trailer!

@bendmeoverbackwards

Why are UK beaches so crap? I wish they would provide sun beds and umbrellas like any other country! I hate lugging all the stuff to make it vaguely comfortable.

I like it. I prefer a clearer beach to loads of beds and umbrellas lined up in rows.

For those who would find useful:
www.amazon.co.uk/Gardening-Trolleys/s?k=Gardening+Trolleys&tag=mumsnetforu03-21

We live by the beach so we usually just take ourselves. Annoys me when I can't park in the summer tho (but we just get the bus instead).

I'm the OP. Genuinely surprised at the number of people offended here and chasing after me brandishing a cricket set/boogie board/rolled up parasol/other beach paraphernalia. This was a bit of fun only. You crack on doing the beach how you want to, it's FINE.

But don't take my people watching away. It's one of the great glories of life. And it's far more often about being interested in people than about judging them.

@LolaSmiles

Hadenoughofthisbullshit People set up camp at country houses? I've never seen that, but love your plan to sit too close. How odd of them. Near me the most that happens are a few picnic blankets.

Yes there was even a thread about it happening at National trust places on here once the op was pretty envious. It’s usually 2 families together or one with grandparents. Sometimes they bring all their equipment out of a camper van or something, so I guess they might touring the country taking over patches of gardens?

I think the main reason it annoys me as one time we saw a group doing this next to a den building area (that was the NT’s not the group’s) and my son went over to play with the kids at den building, he was around 3/4 and the kids refused to speak to him and the adults also didn’t speak to us when we said “sorry he just wants to play” or whatever. I felt like shouting “your not the bloody lord of the manor” at them. But instead just looked a bit embarrassed and eventually sloped off.

Why are UK beaches so crap? I wish they would provide sun beds and umbrellas like any other country! I hate lugging all the stuff to make it vaguely comfortable.

A few of the beaches next to us have surf kiosks and when they’re open you can hire a wooden deckchair, a windbreak if you want one (they'll even hammer it in for you), they have a big barrel of water outside for dipping wetsuits in, they sell various bits and pieces like buckets/spades, cartons of water, talc, various surf accessories. There is a public toilet at most of the beaches, for some of the more rural ones it's usually a toilet block back in the car park. Barbecues are only allowed at three specific beaches so at most beaches there aren't people grilling food.

How times change. We used to (80s) spend a week in the summer with ex-MIL, who lived a 20 min bus ride from the beach. Bus to beach, with buggy when both were small (later they took their own rucksacks). Sandwiches and fruit (apples, oranges) in carrier bag wrapped in tea towel with chilled or frozen drinks to keep them fresh (this works very well). Buckets and spades and sun cream (only ever used on beach) in another carrier bag. Swimming costumes and towels for each of us. We’d be there most of the day, have an ice cream, chips or pizza when we got home. Happy happy days.

Hadenough no, not in the slightest. There’s still sand in everyone’s crevices because I forgot the talc, wasps are in all the fizzy drinks, I’ve got sunburn because I slathered everyone else but missed my own shoulders, someone has cut their foot on a stone, someone else is in a strop because the game was unfair, nothing goes back in the bag it folded out of so it doesn’t fit into the massive trolley which doesn’t wheel easily back across the dunes as promised. Everyone is tired and I’m bloody glad it’s fish and chips for tea

No, I live a 20 minute drive away from the coast. I have a beach bag in the boot all year round for beach trips. Sunsuits in summer, towels, sun cream, beach shoes. Wellies, waterproofs etc in winter. Bag of buckets/spades. All goes in a rucksack. I always have a dry set if clothes for each child wherever we go as they're drawn to water and mud

@Hadenoughofthisbullshit Oh, that's just awful behaviour! My girls actively collect younger children to play with/help with sandcastles/water collection, at the beach, and generally adopt other children at play areas - NT included. In France too, where they generally try a bit of their French and lots of smiling and demonstrating to the little ones :)
(Don't panic - their parents are always aware!)

A trip to our local park seems to involve tables and chairs, a gazebo, bunting, ice boxes, toys, books, pop up tennis nets, blankets, cushions, iPads, parasols... and of course the classic labradoodle/spaniel of some description roaming free to invade everyone else's picnic - but it's ok, because he's 'friendly'

And we are two hours away from the coast in UK :(

@DoubleTweenQueen aww your kid’s sound lovely.

Yes me!! Windbreak, chairs, rugs, changes of clothes, wetsuits, games and toys, towels, creams, drinks, snacks, books..... I’m never knowingly underprepared at the beach. I am missing a parasol which I might get this year.

I also love people watching and am in awe at the slim tanned mums who rock up with two gorgeous tousle haired kids and yet seem to have everything they need in a straw monogrammed tote.

Beach blanket, towels, suncream, a good book, some munchies (and my handbag with my usual crap I take everywhere), and I'm set.

I live five min walk from two beaches, I'm on the beach pretty much every day, for a swim or a walk with Dog, but I'm planning to go for a whole day out shortly and will take: book, fold up chair, swim gear, microfibre towel, extra microfibre towel to create shade for Dog, water, water bowl, dog treats, flask of coffee, and food for me.

@Hadenoughofthisbullshit Aw, thankyou :) Just wanted you to know that being rude and unfriendly is not the norm - I hope, anyway!

@Goatgate well thanks you’ve saved me some money at least, although I still might get a uv tent, and a sand proof mat. It’s the dream of the perfect day out that keeps us going isn’t it?

I live next to the beach but don’t go in Summer because it’s too crowded. I look forward to having it to myself when the cooler weather starts.

Nope - I love the beach but we've never done the whole set up camp thing. I am vaguely in awe of those that can be bothered to. See also the families that have to do everything on the beach VERY LOUDLY. We had a family like this when we were away earlier in the summer. By the time they left I knew what book Amelie was reading, what their high score on bat and ball was etc etc....main entertainment for the day.

Actually, the last time we went to the beach, a small group of otherwise well-spoken uni students came and sat next to our tent and two boys proceeded to have that awful 'banter' with each other, one demonstrating zero self-awareness regarding the sexual and profane content of what he was jokingly sharing with his mate, also volume. We left early that day :(

That is worse than a garden trolley full of lovely things.

Something fun to watch if your ever on a bodyboarding beach is bodyboarding dads

Never before has bodyboarding been taken so seriously. Bonus points if theres speedos involved. Bonus points if their DC are slowly moving closer and closer to the rip current while their dad ignores them

More recently paddleboarding dads. That is definitely performance paddleboarding, you wouldn't think that paddle boarding could be so complex, but don't worry a paddleboarding dad will make sure the whole beach knows it is