Well howdy there, friends! We’ve missed you!!
It’s hard to believe that two long, Pickathon-less summers have passed since we last gathered in Pendarvia (aka Pendarvis Farm for our new friends out there)! We hope you have been finding ways to bring a little Pickathon into your life, perhaps by watching your past faves from our A Concert A Day series? Maybe you watched it outside and even brought home a hay bale for backyard seating? Did you consistently scan the ground around you for micro-trash? However you coped, we’re proud of you and we look forward to working with you to bring back the real thing.
Pickathon has been collaborating with volunteers for over 20 years and so many elements of the festival are products of those collaborations. This “barn-raising” style cooperation between so many festival-goers plays a major role in creating the magical atmosphere that Pickathon is known for. We wouldn’t be the festival we are without the efforts of each and every one of you, and we feel honored to collaborate with y'all on an experience that truly feels created for the people who build it.
Since our volunteers and their unique skills are so important to nearly every aspect of the festival, we spend a lot of time deciding where to place each applicant. This means that we do not accept applications on a first-come, first-served basis, so please be sure to take your time when filling out the application and think through your answers before submitting, especially regarding your availability. It also means that it can often take us longer than many other festivals when responding to each person, so please be patient with us.
All scheduled volunteers are awarded one 3-day Adult Weekend Ticket. Adult Weekend Tickets allow entry for one person (17 and over), and includes walkup tent camping in the designated general camping areas at Pendarvis Farm for the entire weekend of the festival (Friday, August 5th through the morning of Monday, August 8th). Please note that weekend tickets do not include a parking or shuttle pass, however bicycles passes are free! Only volunteers who are scheduled work before gates open on Friday will be issued Thursday entry. Parking/shuttle passes and Thursday tickets can be purchased separately at pickathon.com/tickets.
Volunteer commitments are generally 12-18 hours total depending on crew. In most cases, folks who are scheduled before or after the festival are assigned more hours in exchange for an uninterrupted Pickathon weekend.
To apply to volunteer at Pickathon 2022, read through the following FAQs and then click on the “Apply Now” link at the bottom of this page.
F A Q
What is the age requirement to volunteer?
All volunteers must be 18 years old on or before July 11th, 2022.
Are there any other requirements? Each crew has its own set of requirements. Be sure to read through the crew descriptions and requirements on the following page when choosing which crews to apply to.
How do I apply?
Follow the link at the bottom of this page to access the volunteer application. Fill out the application in full, agree to the terms and conditions, and pay the $35 non-refundable application fee. The application fee must be paid online with a credit card.
I only want to come for one day. Can I volunteer just enough for a single-day pass?
We only accept volunteers who want to work in exchange for a full weekend pass, but you can purchase single day passes at: [pickathon.com/tickets][tickets].
Do I have to pay a ticket deposit?
We do not require a deposit up front, however you do need an active credit card to complete this application in order to pay the application fee. Your payment info is encrypted and securely stored until after the festival at which time it is deleted. Volunteers who cancel their commitment before the first cancellation will not be charged to cancel. Volunteers who cancel after one of the cancelation deadlines will be charged a cancellation fee (see cancelation schedule at the bottom of this page). Volunteers who no-show for any of their assigned shifts or otherwise fail to complete their commitment will be charged the full cost of a general admission ticket and will be barred from future volunteering at Pickathon.
Am I guaranteed a volunteer position if I apply?
We expect to be able to provide volunteer opportunities to approximately 1,700 applicants. We are usually able to accept everyone who applies to volunteer as long as the applicant's
availability and skills fit somewhere within the needs of the festival. The more flexible you are about your crew and shift assignments, the more likely we will be able to find a place for you!
When will I know if I have been selected to volunteer? You will automatically receive an update from our application system when you are accepted into a crew. Due to the large number of volunteers we work with and the complexity of the work schedule (including setup and teardown), it is not possible to say exactly when you will be notified. We accept applications on a rolling basis all the up to the days just before the festival begins, so it's possible to receive a notification right away, but it also might take weeks or over a month to hear back. If it seems like it’s taking extra-long to be notified, it’s possible that your crew ranking or the availability you provided is holding up your application. Applications that rank at least one of the larger crews highly (ex: safety crew, parking crew, setup crew) and provide the most availability are likely to be accepted the earliest.
Am I guaranteed a volunteer position on one of the crews I ranked on my application? We always try to assign and schedule volunteers in accordance with their preferences and most of the time this works out. Occasionally we have issues such as too many applicants to one crew and not enough to another, and in those cases we may need to offer volunteers assignments on crews they didn't originally rank. If there are any specific crews you absolutely cannot work on for whatever reason, or if you have any differing abilities you want us to consider when assigning you, please include this info in the "anything else you want us to know" box.
I made a mistake on my application. Can I change it? There is no way for a volunteer to re-access a submitted application, so any changes have to be processed manually by the Volunteer Coordinator. Since we receive around 2,000 applications, manual changes get very hard to track very quickly. Please double and triple check your answers and personal information before you submit! If you're coordinating schedules or crew choices with friends in hopes of working together, try filling it out side by side to make sure you are both submitting the same crew rankings, availability, and other preferences.
Is my $35 application fee refundable if I don't get a volunteer position? Historically, we have been able to offer a position to anyone willing to be flexible with their crew assignments, shift times, etc. Although we do not expect a huge change in the numbers of volunteers we can work with this year, it’s important to note that some crews are restructuring this year and that may affect the amount of volunteers they can accept. Should we be unable to offer you any position at all (including a position on a crew you did not rank) we will refund your application fee. However, if we are able to offer you a position and you decide to turn it down, the $35 fee will not be refunded. Additionally, refunds will not be issued for applicants who change their mind about wanting to volunteer after applying.
When will I know my volunteer schedule? Since each crew is selected and scheduled by its own crew chief, this is different from crew to crew. Volunteers who are working before the festival will be the first to know their schedules, and we do our best to let those folks know their schedule with two weeks' notice (please consider this amount of notice when marking availability). Volunteers working during the festival may receive their schedules as late as the Tuesday or Wednesday before the festival.
Can I be scheduled to volunteer with my friends? On your application, you can name two additional people you'd like to volunteer with. Make sure to coordinate with your friends, name each other on each application, apply to the same crews, and provide the same availability. We want people to have fun and make our best effort to accommodate these preferences, but this isn't always possible and we can't make any guarantees.
What's included with my volunteer wristband? Volunteers receive Weekend Adult Ticket wristbands, which includes walkup camping. Camping spaces are available on a first-come, first-claimed basis, though some areas of the farm do get corded off by the festival for specific uses. Please be sure you have not accidentally wandered into a restricted section before setting up your campsite.
If I volunteer before the festival begins, can I set up my tent/campsite early?
No. For safety, security, and privacy reasons (the farm is the Pendarvis’s home) we cannot allow volunteers to camp or set up any camping equipment of any sort prior to Thursday, August 4th.
The tents you see set up on the farm prior to Thursday belong to festival staff who are living and working on the farm full time. Any unaccounted for personal property left on the farm prior to Thursday is subject to removal.
Does my volunteer wristband include parking or a shuttle pass?
Parking and Shuttle passes are NOT included with the Weekend Adult Ticket wristbands that volunteers receive. If you would like to purchase a parking or shuttle pass you can do so here: pickathon.com/tickets.
Please be aware that we may have constraints on our parking this year. Although we anticipate parking to be similar to previous years, we also may need to park cars a couple miles away and shuttle people to and from the site. Weekend Parking Pass prices remain the same in either scenario, and we will work hard to make the experience as smooth as possible.
Does my wristband include Thursday entry?
Thursday entry is NOT included with the Weekend Adult Ticket wristbands that volunteers receive. Some volunteers will be issued a separate Thursday ticket if they are assigned to a shift that qualifies for Thursday entry. If your shift does not qualify for early Thursday entry but you still want to come on Thursday, you can purchase Thursday tickets here: pickathon.com/tickets.
We are aware that you cannot know if you will be issued a Thursday ticket until you receive your schedule, but don’t worry because there are the same number of Thursday tickets available as there are Weekend Passes, and we do not sell single Thursday tickets. This means there will be Thursday tickets available for every volunteer who decides they want to purchase one after receiving their schedule.
What if I need to cancel?
If you are accepted to a crew and then become unable to volunteer, please email BOTH the Volunteer Coordinator (volunteer@pickathon.com) and your specific crew chief right away so that we can work on refilling your position. Depending on how close to the festival weekend you cancel you may be charged a cancellation fee.
What are the cancellation fees?
If you cancel on or before July 19th, 2022 you will not be charged a cancellation fee.
Any cancellations on or after the start of the festival on Thursday, August 4th will be considered no-shows and the volunteer will be charged the full cost of the ticket.
What if I need to cancel because I have COVID? Do I still have to pay the cancellation fee?
We take the health and safety of the Pickathon community, friends and family, and the greater social spheres we all exist in VERY seriously. If you develop any COVID-like symptoms we recommend you reach out to your crew chief and the Volunteer Coordinator to let them know and get tested asap. If you test positive for COVID and need to cancel your volunteer shift, we will not charge any cancellation fees as long as you can send us a copy of your professional health-care provider test results dated within 24 hours of your cancellation.
A note about these fees: Please know that cancellation fees are not meant to be a punishment and we hate to charge them. They are in place as a deterrent because we REALLY don't want you to cancel. It takes a huge amount of effort to build something as special as Pickathon and every single volunteer has an important role to play. We realize some cancellations cannot be avoided, but when possible please stick with you crew!
Finally, a HUGE THANK YOU for your help! It takes a village, and we wouldn’t be the festival that we are without the collective efforts of our amazing volunteers!
VERY IMPORTANT!! READ ME BEFORE CONTINUING TO THE APPLICATION!! Some applicants have been reporting that the application is running very sluggishly, especially on the final submit page. PLEASE DO NOT HIT THE SUBMIT BUTTON MORE THAN ONCE! If you hit the submit button more than once your application may be submitted twice resulting in a double (or more!) application fee charge! Even if it seems like the page is not loading after you hit the submit button, please just sit tight for a minute, and check your email to see if you received a confirmation. (Check your promotions and spam too, just in case!) If the page never seems to load AND you don't receive an email confirming your application has been submitted, contact Casey at volunteer@pickathon.com so she can check to see if your application was received BEFORE resubmitting. We are working on fixing this issue. Thank you so much!!