{"id":16131,"date":"2026-08-03T14:42:14","date_gmt":"2026-08-03T14:42:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/?p=16131"},"modified":"2026-08-03T14:42:14","modified_gmt":"2026-08-03T14:42:14","slug":"im-too-old-for-lollapalooza-im-not-too-old-to-judge-gen-zs-gear-choices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/?p=16131","title":{"rendered":"I&#8217;m Too Old for Lollapalooza. I&#8217;m Not Too Old to Judge Gen Z&#8217;s Gear Choices."},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"justify-start\">\n<nav class=\"align-left col-span-full mb-base\" data-pom-e2e-test-id=\"breadcrumbs\"\/>\n<p>Was I at a music festival, or an endurance event? Maybe both. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/p>\n<p class=\"fp-leadCaption py-tight text-left font-utility text-utility3-size leading-utility3-line-height text-secondary\">An intrepid gear editor braved the crowds at Lollapalooza. Here&#8217;s the outdoor gear she saw at the festival.<!-- --> (Photo: Erika Goldring\/WireImage c\/o Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"article-body\">\n<p>Published August 3, 2026 08:39AM<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>At 5 P.M. on a summery Thursday evening, I closed my laptop and prepared for battle. I French-braided my hair into a veritable helmet, impervious to the elements and impossible to accidentally tangle in the strap of my crossbody. I donned shin-length hiking socks and dusty old trail runners. My clear bag held miniature sunscreen, deodorant wipes, a Red Bull, and earplugs.<\/p>\n<p>There is nothing more humiliating than being nearly 37 years old and getting ready for a music festival\u2014especially one notorious for attracting mostly high-schoolers. Still, I was willing to risk it all to see Lorde.<\/p>\n<p>Once on the grounds of Lollapalooza, I stopped feeling self-conscious and slipped into the role of cultural anthropologist with a PhD in gear. What shoes were the youth wearing to traverse the sloppy fields and concrete jungle? What hydration packs and water bottles were favored? Were they actually wearing diapers to avoid leaving their barrier spots? (I never got close enough to find out.) And what on earth were those little fake flowers attached to tiny barrettes? (Rave sprouts, and I will not be explaining further.)<\/p>\n<p>The kids may not have been thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail, but they were rushing the gates, racking up the miles as they crisscrossed Grant Park, and carrying more supplies than I\u2019ve ever taken on a day hike. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to observe how music festival culture and outdoor gear culture intersect, so I locked in.<\/p>\n<p>Readers, consider this a dispatch from the front lines of Youth Culture\u2122.\u00a0 Here\u2019s what I saw as the oldest person at Lollapalooza.<\/p>\n<h2>The Hottest Hydration Pack Was from a Brand I\u2019d Never Heard Of<\/h2>\n<p>Hydration wasn\u2019t cool when I was growing up. But on Thursday, I could count on one hand the number of festival-goers <i>without<\/i>\u00a0a hydration pack cinched tightly around their shoulders. I saw the usual suspects\u2014CamelBak, Salomon\u2014but also a new-to-me brand called <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"article-content-link text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"nofollow\" data-afl-p=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/stores\/page\/2561B89F-8C82-41D9-AB39-36CFE0A96D5C?tag=outsideonlinedotcom-20\">Sojourner,<\/a> which markets packs specifically for festivals and raves.<\/p>\n<p><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"article-content-link text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"nofollow\" data-afl-p=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/stores\/page\/2561B89F-8C82-41D9-AB39-36CFE0A96D5C?tag=outsideonlinedotcom-20\">These packs<\/a> first caught my eye by virtue of being holographic (I like shiny things, what can I say), but I quickly noticed they had the same doodads and whatsits as even the most legit trail running packs: multiple zippered pockets, mesh paneling, quick-access credit card pockets on the strap, carabiners, and a very slim profile.<\/p>\n<h2>But a Hydration Pack Wasn\u2019t Enough<\/h2>\n<p>The youth also carried so. many. collapsible water bottles. Nearly every hydration pack or crossbody I encountered had a collapsible water bottle hooked on, in various stages of fill. As best I can tell, these water bottles came from Temu\u2014but if I were shopping, I\u2019d buy <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"article-content-link text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"nofollow\" data-afl-p=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/rei.pxf.io\/c\/2850304\/1448521\/17195?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rei.com%2Fproduct%2F234347%2Fhydaway-collapsible-water-bottle-25-fl-oz\">this one<\/a> instead, since it looks way sturdier and has a higher capacity.<\/p>\n<h2>Portable Fans. So Hot Right Now.<\/h2>\n<p>When I was a kid, my most prized possession at summer swim meets was a misting fan spray bottle with foam blades and a strap to loop around my neck. The 2026 equivalent is a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"article-content-link text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"nofollow\" data-afl-p=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/handheld-fan\/s?k=handheld+fan&amp;tag=outsideonlinedotcom-20\">USB-powered handheld fan<\/a>. Again, this seems to be a Temu purchase, but I\u2019ve also been getting TikTok Shop-stalked by the <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"article-content-link text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"nofollow\" data-afl-p=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Shark-ChillPill-3-InstaChill-Dry-Touch\/dp\/B0GGTPW6Q9?th=1&amp;tag=outsideonlinedotcom-20\">Shark ChillPill fan\/chiller\/mister gadget<\/a>. I\u2019m sure it\u2019s very nice. Unfortunately, it costs 149 American dollars, which means I\u2019ll be sticking with my thrift-store paper fan, thanks.<\/p>\n<h2>My Trail Runners Were Actually Kind of Chic<\/h2>\n<p>I rocked up in an old pair of <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"article-content-link text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"nofollow\" data-afl-p=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/brooksrunning.sjv.io\/c\/2850304\/1980738\/24286?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.brooksrunning.com%2Fen_us%2Fwomens%2Fshoes%2Ftrail-shoes%2Fcascadia-20%2F120478.html%3Fdwvar_120478_color%3D206\">Brooks Cascadia trail running shoes<\/a>, and it was the one part of my outfit I felt extremely confident in. (I felt less confident about the bandana I wore as a headscarf; I kept waiting for everyone to point and laugh. \u201cHa! It\u2019s clearly her first time wearing a headscarf! Who does she think she is?\u201d But I digress.)<\/p>\n<p>The first rule of any music festival is to keep your dogs covered, lest you risk getting stepped on or slurped up in quicksand. The youth and I were on the same page here. Trail runners made the most sense for the dust I encountered on Thursday, and had I gone back to the rainy, muddy fields on Friday and Saturday, they would\u2019ve been perfect there too. The cushioning also makes sense for the long hours on your feet and the occasional barricade-sprint. Besides Brooks, I also saw Salomon, Hoka, and Adidas shoes\u2014plus the classic music festival staple, Doc Martens. I saw no toes, and I\u2019m happy about that.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe the kids aren\u2019t so different from us crotchety old gear nerds after all. Just replace \u201csunrise on summit day\u201d for \u201cbarricade at Sombr\u2019s set.\u201d Even if I felt absolutely ancient wandering around Grant Park, I was also weirdly comforted. If Gens Z and Alpha are already obsessed with hydration packs, gorpy shoes, and braving the elements for hours on end, the jump from merch line to actual hiking trails can\u2019t be that far behind.<\/p>\n<p>Youths, I\u2019ll be waiting for you at the trailhead once the last headliner runs offstage. I\u2019ll be the one without a rave sprout.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.outsideonline.com\/outdoor-gear\/gear-news\/outdoor-gear-music-festivals\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Was I at a music festival, or an endurance event? Maybe both. An intrepid gear editor braved the crowds at Lollapalooza. Here&#8217;s the outdoor gear she saw at the festival. (Photo: Erika Goldring\/WireImage c\/o Getty Images) Published August 3, 2026 08:39AM At 5 P.M. on a summery Thursday evening, I closed my laptop and prepared<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16132,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16131","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wild-living"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16131","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16131"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16131\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/16132"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16131"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16131"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16131"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}