It’s all the Rage!
Matriculants from across the country are descending on Durban and Ballito to party
PENS down and parties up! Durban’s going to be chock-a-block with “Ragers” next week – many of them 18-year-olds fresh out of matric and ready for a week-long bash at the coast.
For a little over five weeks, more than 790 000 Grade 12 pupils across the country have been writing their final exams, 180 000 of them from Kwazulu-natal.
The annual Rage festival is set to bring 15 000 party-goers to the city when it gets under way from Friday to December 8.
Ballito and umhlanga will see most of the action.
And for the first time, Ragers are able to camp out.
“There are multiple venues across umhlanga and Ballito, but the main Rage hub is our Sound Factory venue in Ballito,” said Marina Oreb, the festival’s marketing manager.
Camping amenities include hot showers, clean toilets, food and beverage vendors, a bar, free water refill stations and mobile charging stations.
“The camping accommodation option opens up a new way to experience festival life, and it’s only 200m from The Sound Factory,” Oreb added.
If last year was anything to go by, the Sound Factory will be a large outdoor space with several domes set up as clubs, each enticing Ragers with is own type of music – from pop to house.
The main club will be hosting major headliners.
This year, local and international artists have been called in to get the party started.
Shekhinah, Black Coffee, Goodluck, Nasty C, Nervo and Chunda Munki are among those listed.
But getting to see them comes at a hefty price.
Ragers will fork out between R1 300 and R4 000 for “passports” to get access to the festival.
Already, the most expensive Black Rage Passport, offering the “ultimate, exclusive, super desirable VVIP Rage Festival experience” has sold out.
Despite the new option to camp out at Rage, budget timeshare and self-catering apartments have filled up.
Charles Preece, operations manager for the East Coast at the Federated Hospitality Association of Southern Africa, said most budget accommodations was fully booked.
“Young party-goers do not stay at hotels which are more expensive per person. Timeshare, self-catering cottages and bed-and-breakfasts are chock-a-block with people staying for Rage,” he said.
Rage organisers have promised a multi-tiered approach to safety and security.
A wristband handed to each Rager contains chip technology that operates through the Howler system.
Said Oreb: “Every single Ragegoer is registered on the system, with emergency contacts and medical details stored for rapid response to any situation.”
Transport logistics are taken care of through Rage Rides, which offers marshalled transport between festival hubs, and all expenses are paid through the cashless system using the chipped wristband.
The team has private security, an onsite police station, undercover police, sniffer dogs, the Red Frogs, a support network for young people, and medical services with ambulances in operation for the week.
“Our advice to parents would be to talk to their kids, ensure they understand what responsible behaviour is, how to have respect for themselves and other people, what consent is, and how to seek help if something goes wrong, and to be honest and accountable for their actions.
“Ragers should have fun in a manner that doesn’t harm themselves or anyone else,” said Oreb.
SAPS spokesperson Colonel Thembeka Mbhele said: “There are measures in place for the whole school holidays and the festive season.
“Police operations are always planned during the end of term, especially after the final exams, to prevent criminal activities.”