Stripped down music festival a first for Canada

[Danee]

 The sign at the exit reads, ‘No nudity beyond this point.’ But up to that point there was nothing but nakedness.

FREELTON — The sign at the exit reads, ‘No nudity beyond this point.’ But up to that point there was nothing but nakedness.

Hundreds of nudists wearing what they were born with flocked to the Ponderosa Nature Resort (The Pond) over the weekend for the first NUDEstock North, a music festival for those who enjoy being unconstrained by garments. It may have been the first festival of its kind at the resort, but the location has been catering to the in-the-buff crowd for nearly 50 years.

The naked masses gathered for drinks and live bands at a stage area on the expansive grounds, and lounged in the resort’s pool between acts. Some bare bottoms were adorned with cute slogans, others decorated with washable handprints.

The age range appeared to run from the early-20s to the mid-80s. At 3 p.m. Saturday several hundred people congregated in the pool for a collective skinny dip. In unison the crowd turned their backs before being photographed by a newspaper reporter.

For longer than The Pond has been around, Norm and Jean Forster have been practicing nudists, raising their four children in the culture and tripping throughout North America to vacation at nudist resorts from northern Ontario to Florida. They’ve been married for 59 years, and practicing nudists for 55 years.

When asked if their shared appreciation of public nudity was good for their marriage, Norm simply replied, “Well, we’ve been married for 59 years, so what do you think.”

“It’s just all about the freedom for us,” said Joan, stripping the practice down to its bare guiding principle. “It’s the freedom of being able to walk around on a hot day like today with no clothes on. It just feels good.”

Norm is now 83. Not long ago he underwent open-heart surgery after a severe heart attack. He’s comfortable with his naked body, long surgical scar and all.

“You know,” he said, “if people don’t like me the way I am, to hell with them.”

Nudist resorts or nudist communities (once called nudist colonies) are non-pretentious places with a strong sense of camaraderie, he added. Even when bare-naked, their physical features exposed, a person remains mysterious, their secrets covered, the couple said.

Dory Ainsworth organized NUDEstock North. Leading up to the 2014 50th anniversary of the Ponderosa Nature Resort, she wanted to begin staging a large-scale event in order to work out all the kinks well ahead of time. Ainsworth is a permanent resident of the resort.

“The idea had been talked about for years, and finally we are doing it,” said Ainsworth, sitting at a pool side bar. Nude music festivals happen around the world, she added, but the weekend’s NUDEstock North was the first in Canada, to the best of her knowledge.

“The big difference with this music festival is we’re nude,” she said. “The bands are also welcome to perform nude, and we’ve already had one drummer perform nude. The sound technician said it was the first time he’d ever seen two whole sets with a naked drummer.”

The crowd was also quite vocal in its collective encouragement to band members to “take it off,” she added. “You don’t hear that at every concert.”
Nakedness, freedom, a sense of community, and a happy-go-lucky attitude are what distinguish the nudist world, Ainsworth said. When everyone is naked, she added, nudity stops being associated with sexuality and simply becomes normal, even ordinary.

“I think that once people give it a shot, any kind of person can be a nudist,” she added. “Anyone can do it. And it keeps your clothing budget down.”

Lee Klauz had been a member of the resort since 1994, and bought it in 2002. She worked in a hospital operating room before going into the nudist business.

“And it has been a great adventure, every day,” she said.

“Once you go swimming without clothes you never want to put them back on again,” she added. “I think everyone loves to swim in the nude, but they are just afraid to come out and do it in front of people. They sneak around and do, but not in front of people.”

The vast majority of people in society are “uptight” about nudity, and think of it as disgraceful, she added. People who engage in clandestine skinny dipping at the lake, can engage in the same enjoyable activity out in the open at a nudist resort.

“A lot of people associate nudity with sexuality,” Klauz said. “And they think that is what a nudist resort is about. It isn’t. If anybody was to do that here they would get kicked out. There is no body contact, no sexual contact at all. This is all about enjoying the freedom and having a good time.”
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From: http://news.ca.msn.com/ontario/guelph/stripped-down-music-festival-a-first-for-canada

[AElf]

   If I had known about this I would have rearranged my July schedule.  Bummer!   

[Bill]

  There was supposed to be something similar to this in Pennsylvania a few years back hosted by a local nudist club but the event never got off the ground.

[Petrucio28]

I think that the closest event where something like that would happen out here would be Burning Man, and it costs over three hundred dollars to get in now...

[Hamish]

Excellent post Danee!

“Once you go swimming without clothes you never want to put them back on again,” she added. “I think everyone loves to swim in the nude, but they are just afraid to come out and do it in front of people. They sneak around and do it, but not in front of people.”

The vast majority of people in society are “uptight” about nudity, and think of it as disgraceful, she added. People who engage in clandestine skinny dipping at the lake, can engage in the same enjoyable activity out in the open at a nudist resort.

Many people enjoy skinny dipping or being naked indoors. It would appear that the only difference between these people and naturists is that the social/freerange naturists have been brave/open minded enough to take that step in pushing their psychological boundaries regarding what is "normal" & "acceptable" etc.

Society and the masses make us believe that it is only normal to be naked when you are with your partner and that being naked with friends or strangers is not normal and is strange. This post really emphasizes the simplicity of social naturism and the pleasure that it gives.
Someone let me know if ever there is a nude music festival in Australia 

[Petrucio28]

Many people enjoy skinny dipping or being naked indoors. It would appear that the only difference between these people and naturists is that the social/freerange naturists have been brave/open minded enough to take that step in pushing their psychological boundaries regarding what is "normal" & "acceptable" etc.

Society and the masses make us believe that it is only normal to be naked when you are with your partner and that being naked with friends or strangers is not normal and is strange. This post really emphasizes the simplicity of social naturism and the pleasure that it gives.
Someone let me know if ever there is a nude music festival in Australia 

Very well spoken Hamish. I agree completely.

[nudetrail]

Excellent post Danee!

“Once you go swimming without clothes you never want to put them back on again,” she added. “I think everyone loves to swim in the nude, but they are just afraid to come out and do it in front of people. They sneak around and do it, but not in front of people.”

The vast majority of people in society are “uptight” about nudity, and think of it as disgraceful, she added. People who engage in clandestine skinny dipping at the lake, can engage in the same enjoyable activity out in the open at a nudist resort.
  could  more a great way to relax is nude swimming one of the best.
Many people enjoy skinny dipping or being naked indoors. It would appear that the only difference between these people and naturists is that the social/freerange naturists have been brave/open minded enough to take that step in pushing their psychological boundaries regarding what is "normal" & "acceptable" etc.

Society and the masses make us believe that it is only normal to be naked when you are with your partner and that being naked with friends or strangers is not normal and is strange. This post really emphasizes the simplicity of social naturism and the pleasure that it gives.
Someone let me know if ever there is a nude music festival in Australia 

[Petrucio28]

Excellent post Danee!

“Once you go swimming without clothes you never want to put them back on again,” she added. “I think everyone loves to swim in the nude, but they are just afraid to come out and do it in front of people. They sneak around and do it, but not in front of people.”

The vast majority of people in society are “uptight” about nudity, and think of it as disgraceful, she added. People who engage in clandestine skinny dipping at the lake, can engage in the same enjoyable activity out in the open at a nudist resort.
  could  more a great way to relax is nude swimming one of the best.
Many people enjoy skinny dipping or being naked indoors. It would appear that the only difference between these people and naturists is that the social/freerange naturists have been brave/open minded enough to take that step in pushing their psychological boundaries regarding what is "normal" & "acceptable" etc.

Society and the masses make us believe that it is only normal to be naked when you are with your partner and that being naked with friends or strangers is not normal and is strange. This post really emphasizes the simplicity of social naturism and the pleasure that it gives.
Someone let me know if ever there is a nude music festival in Australia 

How well it is accepted to be nude around others depends on exactly where one is. When I was in college and high school, we had to use showers that were communal. At the college, it was one restroom with showers for every twenty rooms, and there was two people per room. In high school it was just required for the gym class, so there wasn't as many people.
Anyway, the showers at the college didn't have dividers or stalls. It was just a step down from the floor of the restroom, and all of the shower-heads were out of the walls. There were several drains, but I don't think there as a drain for each shower-head. I stopped showering when there was anyone else around because there was a a guy or two who would stare at me while I showered, which really freaked me out.
But being nude around other people on a beach, club or swimming doesn't bother me. Go figure.

But this post might have been off topic, a bit.   

[cc71]

NZ should have a festival like that.

[Advent]

Is this the same Ponderosa that hosts Nudes-A-Poppin?

[1Boy]

I think the Avalon Music Festival ('AvalonFest') is along the same line.  Avalon Resort is clothing optional.  It's located at Paw Paw, West Virginia.  http://www.avalon-resort.com/