Return to Burning Man Sunday morning AFTER the man burns

[rod]

Would anyone be able to tell me what time the gate reopens after the man burns on Saturday night?

My high school reunion is that Saturday and I'm planning to fly over to it, then fly back to Reno the same night, and drive back to Black Rock City. I know, it's crazy, but I said I would go, and it's not every year that this thing happens.

I know the gates will be closed Saturday night from 6pm to midnight at the very least, but what time will they reopen? I plan to get my reentry token Saturday morning.

[theCryptofishist]

Bwahahahaha!


Now that we got that out of the way... The gate does not "reopen" well, not for 51 weeks it doesn't. At some point they might not care; I'm sure that various venders and lock smiths do enter. You might, depending on how exodus flows, have to do some salmoning.

[Eric]

From last years FAQ, third question down.

Q. Are the gates to the event open 24 hours?
A. Yes. However, the gates will be closed to incoming traffic after 6 p.m. on Saturday of the event, prior to the burning of the Man.

(emphasis mine)

I would expect this to be the same this year - Exodus starts as the Man burns, if not even earlier (we left right before the Burn last year & still had a small line). I don't think there's any way to get in after 6pm Saturday night, unless you're a vendor or emergency services.

[ygmir]

IIRC, the gate should re-open sometime Sunday morning (as in after midnight Saturday), not sure what time. There will be limited inbound traffic lanes, be very, very careful not to get in the "outbound" stream. It will be well signed, just be sure to pay attention.

[gyre]

I've seen it done, but it's one of those things that you can't really say how it's possible.
Salmoning is an excellent description.

I can't even bother to drive across town for those reunions.

[Captain Goddammit]

The craziest thing about this idea is leaving BRC to go to a fucking HS reunion!
If you've never been to BRC, you'll understand when you get there. My bet is that you end up saying fuck the high school thingie.

[VultureChow]

Sunday is like the worst day anyway. Why would you want to come back for that? Everyone's packing up and getting ready to leave. It's really fucking depressing. Hit me like a ton of bricks last year. Thank god we had that impromptu ice shift or I probably would have left before the temple burn.

[AbundantChoice]

Yeah, unless you've promised to help your camp tear down and pack up Sunday and are somehow instrumental or vital to that process, or for some reason you *absolutely* *must* see the Temple burn, don't bother coming back for Sunday.

[some seeing eye]

You might look at the various air shuttles that fly BRC to Reno.

[Savannah]

Hey Rod!

The combination of Eric's site quote (Gate closing after 6pm Burn Night) and Ygmir's estimate of the reopening time are probably correct (Ygmir works for Gate/Perimeter/Exodus, but you might not know that). You could also visit the GPE site.

http://gate.burningman.com

I don't see the answer about when Gate reopens on either the main site or the GPE site, so you might have to use the "Contact Us" link at the bottom.

The Temple Burn is lovely, but folks are right when they say that Sundays can be feel gloomy sometimes because of all the departures. But there's still a Burn worth attending and places to go out dancing later.

You'll know what's right for you when you're at the event, and can leave or stay as your spirit moves you.

[Captain Goddammit]

You'll know what's right for you when you're at the event, and can leave or stay as your spirit moves you.

No he can't! He's burning wrong!!

[Savannah]

[gyre]

Bit sad, but I love sunday nights.
Had my best pyro experience last time with the dpw on sunday night.

Seeing it all go up and go away is a harsh analog for impermanence.

[rod]

Yeah, I actually want to experience as much as I can since this will be my first time going. Really sucks that I will be missing the man burn, but I mean, this high school thing may never happen again, so I feel that I should try to go. I didn't have the greatest time in high school, but I also didn't hate everyone there. I'm not someone who goes back on my word, so regardless of how I feel about leaving for the reunion, I've already committed to it.

I have the last flight into Reno from SF so I should be able to get back to BRC around 3am. I'm down to salmon as much as I need to to get back in there and will be extra attentive to the signs. I have checked the GPE site and various other places for when the gates reopen, and haven't seen when they reopen, so I may have to take your suggestion Savannah, and use the contact link. If the gate doesn't reopen until 6am, I might as well gamble in Reno for a bit.

[VultureChow]

good luck. Be careful on that midnight drive back to the playa. It's dangerous when you are tired.

Unless you're with a camp or friends that you can trust t help you out, I'd pack up camp in the car before you leave. Don't leave it set up for your return. Not only might our return not happen the way you think it will, but the neighborhood will look very different on Sunday as you search for your camp.

[FIGJAM]

Anybody want to take odds on what rods only topic of conversation will be at his reunion?

[VultureChow]

Anybody want to take odds on what rods only topic of conversation will be at his reunion?

Here's hoping he shows up in a tutu and bunny ears.

After I came back last year, I was so insufferable that my boss started calling me Burning Girl behind my back. One of our GM's told me. I don't know if my boss thought I'd be offended, but I love it!

[FIGJAM]

Yea, my dentist calls me "the burning man".

I told her no ,I'm FIGJAM!

When I told her want that ment she about died laughing.

Her last name is Yamamoto!

[trilobyte]

Speaking personally, I say make up your mind. Pick one, give it your full attention and do the experience right. Doing a half-assed version of both doesn't give you the full benefit of both events, it gives you a watered down, abridged version of each. If it were me I'd rather pick one and make the absolute most of every minute you're there, rather than juggling and cherry picking limited versions of both experiences and spending a significant amount of the weekend going from one place to the next.

[some seeing eye]

BM is a great opportunity to connect with awesome individuals and a reunion is a great opportunity to connect with longtime solid friends. One thing to consider is that you could experience BM in a future year. You may meet potential BM connections early in the week. But splitting BM and longtime connections experiences in a week is a challenge.

[Captain Goddammit]

I'll add that I have been to several high school reunions, both my own and as someone else's guest.
They are lame... some are a decent party at best. Most are just a money making biz for reunion organizers.
High school was then. It's over. Burning Man is now, and a HELL of a lot better in every possible way than a fucking HS reunion!!

[lucky420]

Yep, what Captain Goddammit said.

[Wrath]

Anybody want to take odds on what rods only topic of conversation will be at his reunion?

Here's hoping he shows up in a tutu and bunny ears.

Trilo is quite wise, but the glory of going to the reunion fresh off the playa for the first time is too great.

Start looking for pilots who have experience flying into Black Rock City, and really, START LOOKING NOW. If you want to "leave real quick and be right back", an automobile will take too much time.

[Eric]

Start looking for pilots who have experience flying into Black Rock City, and really, START LOOKING NOW. If you want to "leave real quick and be right back", an automobile will take too much time.

And start saving your pennies - those flights are not cheap. Last year it was $575 round trip, and you'd have to make sure that they're flying when you need it. You can google "flights to Burning Man" to find people who provide this service.

[BBadger]

Yeah, I actually want to experience as much as I can since this will be my first time going. Really sucks that I will be missing the man burn, but I mean, this high school thing may never happen again, so I feel that I should try to go. I didn't have the greatest time in high school, but I also didn't hate everyone there. I'm not someone who goes back on my word, so regardless of how I feel about leaving for the reunion, I've already committed to it.

No, while your first high school reunion will never happen again, you'll be receiving notices for other reunions taking place in subsequent round-numbered lengths of time. Generally, the time between graduating and your first high school reunion is of such a short duration that nothing significant has happened to the people involved. Sure, some may have gotten married and had kids (ho-hum), but everybody there is still in their 20s, and haven't really found out who they really are.

Attend your 20-year high school reunion if you want to actually catch up with all the people-whom-you-never-even-cared-enough-about-to-keep-in-touch-with-in-the-mean-time.

I'll save you time and money by summarizing your reunion:

"Oh, is that X? Look how bald he's become!"

"Wow, it's been a while since I saw this old school... Oh, you saw it last week with your kids?"

(Someone recognized you and calls you by name) "Oh, uh, hello?" (who the hell are you?) "Yeah, uh, nice seeing you again." ... "Yeah, I remember you (I think?)... good to see you haven't uh, changed... talk to you later!"

"Yeah, I used to be pretty thin before I got this desk job."

"Boy, I thought there'd be more of us here. I was looking forward to seeing X, Y and Z. I guess the feeling wasn't mutual."

"You had a crush on me back then? This is awkward, well, I mean, not in a bad way. .. Too bad I didn't know, but I was really dense back then."

"So, what do you do now? ... Wow, uh congrats on working your way up to assistant franchise manager. ... I'm doing YY at ZZ... it's okay work."

"No, I'm not married. Haven't found the right person... Well, not everyone had a high school sweetheart to marry at nineteen."

"Huh, I didn't think he'd take up smoking..."

"I'm divorced. You too huh?"

"Yeah, here's my email address.... Oh, a business card (one of those ones you print at home), that's a nice duck logo... sure, we'll keep in touch via Facebook (mutual yeah right)."

"They sure picked some nice weather for us to be cooped up inside this old auditorium."

"Where's (old acquaintance you somehow remember)? ... Oh, he's in Philly...? He had a kid with her?!"

"You know, N many years really isn't that long..."

"I keep touch with so-and-so on Facebook. ... You probably don't want the contact. All she does is post updates about her new baby."

"Oh I'm still in school. I took some time off and went back ... Yeah, I figured I'd get an MBA too to complement my (insert other worthless degree)."

"Man, I hated this pop song back then. I hate it now. Might as well be playing dubstep."

"Wow, that's a fancy smartphone! ... Free with the plan? You know, it's not really 'free'. ... Oh, you knew that..."

"Yup, my folks are still out in Denver... About the same thing... Yeah, me too, about the same thing."

"I remember that (insert story you repeat every time you think of this person) was so funny. ... Oh you (other person) haven't heard it? Well, back when... (Poor other sap has to sit through this not-so-funny-you-had-to-be-there-to-get-it-story.)

"This punch is pretty watered down. I can't believe they charged me $10 to attend for this 'food'."

"Well, I left Burning Man to come here and I'm flying back tonight to Reno... Ree-No -- it's some crappy casino town in Nevada. I paid about $600 for the ticket too. ... Yeah, I'm starting to wonder if it was worth it. ... Anyway, I'm renting a tux as well since I didn't want to pack something to wear -- it's kind of small but whatever. Hopefully they don't mind it being dusty! (nobody else got the joke) Humm.... (speaking under breath to self: leaving burning man and coming here, that's how lame my life is, and how messed up my priorities are....) Oh, wait, you don't know about this Burning Man I'm talking about... (puzzled looks)... it's like this festival and... no, it's not a hippie bash... ah fuck why am I here? Another fucking 4 hours to go, and another at the airport. Gawd dammit!"

[Captain Goddammit]

That may be the best post ever.

[Canoe]

Yeah, I actually want to experience as much as I can since this will be my first time going. Really sucks that I will be missing the man burn,...

First time, and you're going to pass on joining 50,000 people standing together in the night watching the Man burn...

...this high school thing may never happen again,...

Your first Burn will never happen again.

... so I feel that I should try to go. I didn't have the greatest time in high school, but I also didn't hate everyone there. I'm not someone who goes back on my word, so regardless of how I feel about leaving for the reunion, I've already committed to it.

So exactly why are you going to the reunion? What's in it for others? What's in it for you? Who managed to make you feel so obliged? It's your life, what do you want to do with it?

... "Well, I left Burning Man to come here and I'm flying back tonight to Reno... Ree-No -- it's some crappy casino town in Nevada. I paid about $600 for the ticket too. ... Yeah, I'm starting to wonder if it was worth it. ... Anyway, I'm renting a tux as well since I didn't want to pack something to wear -- it's kind of small but whatever. Hopefully they don't mind it being dusty! (nobody else got the joke) Humm.... (speaking under breath to self: leaving burning man and coming here, that's how lame my life is, and how messed up my priorities are....) Oh, wait, you don't know about this Burning Man I'm talking about... (puzzled looks)... it's like this festival and... no, it's not a hippie bash... ah fuck why am I here? Another fucking 4 hours to go, and another at the airport. Gawd dammit!"

Just a thought. if you're the type of person who's interested in Burning Man, what's the chance that anyone you'd find worth talking with at the reunion, won't be at the reunion but back at Burning Man...

Doesn't add. A troll?

[BBadger]

Just a thought. if you're the type of person who's interested in Burning Man, what's the chance that anyone you'd find worth talking with at the reunion, won't be at the reunion but back at Burning Man...

Doesn't add. A troll?

Well, not everyone who is "interested" in Burning Man is necessarily in the mode of "burner thinking." On the surface, it looks like a fun week long art festival that you have to camp for. What is lacking is the social aspect, the vibe of people creating and building things, the isolation from the priorities of the real world. For an outsider, it might seem more like attending a concert than anything else. So if it's Rod's first time going to BM maybe he hasn't been exposed to that kind of environment where suddenly the priorities of the default world aren't so important.

Those priorities are revealing, especially with prioritizing a high school reunion. High school reunions are all about putting on a face for the benefit of everyone else. Everybody you actually cared about you've kept in contact with, especially in this day and age. The remaining people are the ones you attend the reunions for: often for posturing and check the status of yourself and others -- with all the memories of high school. It's one of the more diametrically opposed environments to Burning Man.

So... we'll see. It may be that after being at BM for a week Rod will think "fuck it, I don't care about the reunion with people I haven't given much though to for 10 years. I've got more attachment to the people here. If I don't use the plane ticket, so be it." Or not. Hopefully there are no regrets.

[gyre]

Everything you do at burning man keeps you from doing something else fun, just like real life.
Maybe two other things.

I always tell people to skip the end of the week, if they have to make a choice.
The people I hear back from later, agree with that.

My prime high school had an unusual social dynamic.
Hard act to follow.
I didn't keep up with friends there, but it wasn't deliberate.
I am happy to find that some of them became people I like even more than I did then.

Haven't been to a reunion though.
They might have been more fun closer to high school though.