Jody Neil Ruth's Blog, page 3

Thirty two

Being back on tour with Imagine Dragons and most of the same crew from last year has been fantastic, but it has led to the inevitable questions…

“So,” asked the stage manager, “are you still with the Ukrainian?”

“Lithuanian,” I corrected him, “and no, it didn’t work out.”

“Ah, just a tour thing, huh?”

“Yeah,” I said, “just a tour thing.”

And then security caught up with me. “How’s the girl?”

“Finished a while back,” I said.

“Ah, just a tour thing,” he said. “Don’t worry, we’...

Thirty one

Bulgaria was beautiful, but the roads were either shit or closed, and I ended up dragging my big ol’ truck around the back area hills and villages as we tried, and failed for a while, to find the city of Sofia.

It’s a very interesting city and I had a good walk around, finding a bookstore in a park that seems to be common in some countries in Europe. I’ve seen similar in Italy. A shame I can’t think of any back home.

Loading out after the show took a lot longer than it should, because of a...

Thirty

Well, what d’ya know? Two blogs this week, the train is back on track. Well,  the truck is back on the track. I mean the road. The truck is back on the road.

And while it rolls on the road, I write this.

But how do you write and roll at the same time? I hear you cry.

Easy. Today I have a double driver. A double driver is someone who jumps into my truck and….well, double drives my truck as we take turns behind the wheel on journeys that are too long for me to legally complete in one (or ...

Twenty nine

I’m behind on blogs again. If I get two out this week then I’m back on track.

I’m currently in Zeeland, Netherlands, and will be for another couple of days. There is very little to do here, nothing but a shop and a gym nearby, or it’s a quick minibus ride to the next town, Uden.

It’s in stark contrast to my previous weekend in Amsterdam. I got very drunk, made a lot of new drunk friends, and then got caught by the police as I was pissing in the canal. They could have fined me 150€ but I wa...

Twenty eight.

I don’t believe in fate, destiny, god, karma, or any other invisible force…not completely, but what I do look for in life are connections; connections between people that aren’t evident at first. When I meet someone that has an impact on me, I explore my life and see what decision I, or someone else had made, that bought me to that person.

For example, my French girl. If things had worked as they were supposed to this year, I would’ve been on Coldplay with my ex girlfriend, and probably would...

Twenty seven.

We are now in Gothenburg/Gotteburg, Sweden, having spent the last few days in Copenhagen, Denmark.

I loved Copenhagen, like really loved it. The people were pleasant and helpful, and I especially liked the layout of the city, heavily leaning towards bikes, scooters, and pedestrians. Again, I traversed a city using a mix of different electric vehicles.

And there is also Christiania; a small land taken over by stoner culture, and its all the better for it. Stalls sell smoking equipment, and...

Twenty six.

One of my best friends is an Italian and Italy is my favourite country in the world, but until last year I’d never been to Milan. Now, including these past 5 days with Coldplay, I’ve spent almost 3 weeks there in total.

This time it was the cathedral of football, the San Siro. My lord, what a place. I just wish I’d seen a match here, but a Coldplay concert is pretty good, too.

Way before Milan I’d been planning a new tattoo, and I told myself if i can find the right artist, i’ll do it. And...

Twenty five.

Napoli is incredible. A “shit hole” but a place full of vibrancy and life. As our trucks took the winding, roofed roads into the city after a slow 5 day drive, I knew instantly that this place was special.

Yes, the streets are covered in litter (possibly remnants of Napoli having won Seria A two weeks before), and yes, the place stinks of piss and shit, but that’s because we were down in the ghetto, surrounded by fast-talking people and those pesky scooters I wrote about last week.

But eve...

Twenty four

The break in the Coldplay tour is over and we are back at it. I’m currently just north of Rome with 5 of the other 40 trucks. We’ve made good time, cruising through France and then the Frejus tunnel, emerging west of Turin in Italy. The views as you exit the tunnel are astonishing; valleys and snow-capped mountains, villages and towns tucked under the overpasses below us. The change in architecture between French and Italian buildings is noticeable. Not that any of us could notice it, as we were...

Twenty Three.

Halfway mark in the Coldplay tour and we have a 10 day break after 2 shows in Cardiff. It can be a real eye-opener for foreigners working it. As one tech guy said, “Britain is the only place where the customers turn up already drunk for the show, and cause us problems”.

Rule Brittania.

Cardiff was OK. Friendly people, a nice castle right by the stadium, and a lot of shops. I sneaked in to use the rugby club’s gym, and was surprised to find the lowest weights they used were 20kg ones. Needl...