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No way in or out of Burning Man after storm

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Re: No way in or out of Burning Man after storm

#161

Post by jakderrida »

jeremyt wrote: post #40

Folks, the article is breathless and ridiculous. As someone who is not there, but who has been there four times and run build lead for my camp... Rain is not unheard of. It's probably pretty muddy and less fun than it normally would be. Nobody is starving or dying of dehydration, and there is no danger of that. Most camps (and many people) have a huge surplus of supplies. Last time I was there, I drove out with a few…

While I don't disagree with you at all, the majority of burners are probably not well supplied build leads for their own camps. I went last year and while I was very well supplied and had a large RV with my own solar-powered refrigerator, I met up with friends that were not as wealthy and probably fit the typical profile for burners. They stayed in a tent, were at a camp with a centralized power source with a somewhat strict rationing system. They typically planned out their day such that most meals involved free food prepared using ingredients procured from a service that required driving into the campgrounds to make deliveries every day to many different camps. Many burners depend on water that is also delivered by water trucks that to perform water deliveries that were ordered and scheduled weeks before the event. You may be neglecting that not everybody is well-supplied and could barely afford the ticket and transportation.

Re: No way in or out of Burning Man after storm

#163

Post by standardUser »

klyrs wrote: post #137
floodedburner wrote: post #16

At BRC now. It sucks. Everything is flooded. The man is not going to burn. There are 2 more days of rain forecasted. My guess is Wednesday when driving will be possible.

> The man is not going to burn I promise you, the man will burn if the burners are at all dedicated to the cause. Dried wood only soaks a few millimeters of rain unless it's completely submerged for a very long time. Use an accelerant to get it started, and nature will do the rest.

Will they be allowed to? I imagine there is some sort of agreement with local/state government in place and this rain will already cause them to keep the camp up longer than was probably approved.

Re: No way in or out of Burning Man after storm

#164

Post by oceanplexian »

somsak2 wrote: post #113
geocrasher wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I live about 2 hrs south of BM quite near the route that all the burners take to get to BM. It's rainy, has been for the last two days. But this is Nevada. It'll dry up and be like it never happened in no time.

> It'll dry up and be like it never happened in no time. With more rain slated for today and Sunday, and the fact that it ends on Monday, I wouldn't be so optimistic.

I live in Utah and have spent a lot of time on and around dry like beds. They do not “dry up quickly”. A quarter inch under the crust is likely going to be mud for weeks or months. Some vehicles might be fine but heavy ones are in deep $&@! until they are recovered. Just my uninformed opinion.

Re: No way in or out of Burning Man after storm

#165

Post by zerbinxx »

jakderrida wrote: post #161
jeremyt wrote: post #40

Folks, the article is breathless and ridiculous. As someone who is not there, but who has been there four times and run build lead for my camp... Rain is not unheard of. It's probably pretty muddy and less fun than it normally would be. Nobody is starving or dying of dehydration, and there is no danger of that. Most camps (and many people) have a huge surplus of supplies. Last time I was there, I drove out with a few…

While I don't disagree with you at all, the majority of burners are probably not well supplied build leads for their own camps. I went last year and while I was very well supplied and had a large RV with my own solar-powered refrigerator, I met up with friends that were not as wealthy and probably fit the typical profile for burners. They stayed in a tent, were at a camp with a centralized power source with a somewha…

Which is why the “radical self-reliance” thing is so ironic/sad in this situation. Most people aren’t there for that, despite the warnings that RSR is part of the deal, the fact is that anyone who’s particularly interested in that kind of experience is already solo backpacking or something this weekend.

Re: No way in or out of Burning Man after storm

#166

Post by zerbinxx »

wingworks wrote: post #159
p1mrx wrote: post #90

Those climate protesters who tried to blockade the entrance are probably laughing now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8fDM60MS84 (Though it seems unlikely that a particular rainstorm could be attributed to climate change.)

I watched the vid, idk how I feel now. The protestors appear to have been illegally protesting. I really know nothing about it apart from what was in the vid. Having said that, the/some people going to Burning Man, didn't seem like very nice people either. I get that blocking the road isn't cool at the best of times, but feel this could've been handled better. I'm not from the US, so had no clue who Rangers are (are…

Rangers are basically “the cops” of BLM land, so if there’s an issue they’re the ones who will show up. In general these guys do the best with what they’ve got and they probably hate BM and all the hassle it brings. A normal weekend in rural Nevada requires maybe a call about a rancher’s lost livestock or a normal patrol route. These guys are certainly ill equipped to handle 70k outsiders showing up for a week, and particularly not well equipped for settling interpersonal/ideological disputes elegantly. I think their “ram down the barricade” strategy is pretty parsimonious given the time and tools they have to deal with protests and angry travelers.

Re: No way in or out of Burning Man after storm

#167

Post by zerbinxx »

standardUser wrote: post #160

The people I've talked to there are mostly worried about missed flights and missed days of work and are otherwise totally fine. Next time we chat I'll ask about the bathroom situation! Though I suppose if push comes to shove you can always dig holes for a couple days.

You can but part of the awkward geological/hydrological fact of the matter is that whatever you leave there will be waiting for you next year. 70k people all taking a poo in a basin with no inflows/outflows will probably have some interesting consequences for the otherwise geologically stagnant area.

Re: No way in or out of Burning Man after storm

#168

Post by wingworks »

zerbinxx wrote: post #166
wingworks wrote: post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I watched the vid, idk how I feel now. The protestors appear to have been illegally protesting. I really know nothing about it apart from what was in the vid. Having said that, the/some people going to Burning Man, didn't seem like very nice people either. I get that blocking the road isn't cool at the best of times, but feel this could've been handled better. I'm not from the US, so had no clue who Rangers are (are…

Rangers are basically “the cops” of BLM land, so if there’s an issue they’re the ones who will show up. In general these guys do the best with what they’ve got and they probably hate BM and all the hassle it brings. A normal weekend in rural Nevada requires maybe a call about a rancher’s lost livestock or a normal patrol route. These guys are certainly ill equipped to handle 70k outsiders showing up for a week, and p…

Aaah, thanks for explaining. Yeah can imagine they're not fans of the yearly event and the hassle it brings.

Re: No way in or out of Burning Man after storm

#169

Post by ShakataGaNai »

jeremyt wrote: post #40

Folks, the article is breathless and ridiculous. As someone who is not there, but who has been there four times and run build lead for my camp... Rain is not unheard of. It's probably pretty muddy and less fun than it normally would be. Nobody is starving or dying of dehydration, and there is no danger of that. Most camps (and many people) have a huge surplus of supplies. Last time I was there, I drove out with a few…

The article seems to be reporting the facts in a fairly reasonable manner. We have friends who are there and they told us this exact same information: They've been told to conserve, no porta-potty cleaning is coming anytime soon, they may not make it out until Wednesday.

The article doesn't even say they are running out of supplies, other than the organizers have told people to conserve.

Re: No way in or out of Burning Man after storm

#170

Post by standardUser »

zerbinxx wrote: post #166
wingworks wrote: post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I watched the vid, idk how I feel now. The protestors appear to have been illegally protesting. I really know nothing about it apart from what was in the vid. Having said that, the/some people going to Burning Man, didn't seem like very nice people either. I get that blocking the road isn't cool at the best of times, but feel this could've been handled better. I'm not from the US, so had no clue who Rangers are (are…

Rangers are basically “the cops” of BLM land, so if there’s an issue they’re the ones who will show up. In general these guys do the best with what they’ve got and they probably hate BM and all the hassle it brings. A normal weekend in rural Nevada requires maybe a call about a rancher’s lost livestock or a normal patrol route. These guys are certainly ill equipped to handle 70k outsiders showing up for a week, and p…

Burning Man has been happening there for 30 years. I find it impossible to believe they are "ill equipped to handle 70k outsiders showing up for a week".
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