Planning for early arrival

[mooserider]

Greetings, all.

As a burgin who somehow managed to get early access (one of the setup crew for my art project team), I'm curious what the conditions are like during early entry.

Is Gate Road as zoo-like as normal access has been described to be? Do they reduce the number of lanes/greeters/etc. so it's just as slow as normal access?

Are Will-Call hours restricted? Some of the team carpooling with me have Will-Call.

How crowded are the BRC streets during early access?

Can I drive from camp to the Midway and back to deliver parts, or do I have to use a hand-pulled wagon to get the stuff there?

Do I still need to put barbed wire on my RV's roof access ladder to keep the asshat stowaways off?

Thanks in advance for answers to any of these questions.

[Captain Goddammit]

You need a pre-event permit to drive on the playa at all, these are granted by the Artery.

[mrchiff]

What date are you planning to arrive?

Is Gate Road as zoo-like as normal access has been described to be? Do they reduce the number of lanes/greeters/etc. so it's just as slow as normal access?
It depends on when you are arriving.

Are Will-Call hours restricted? Some of the team carpooling with me have Will-Call.
The Burning Man Box Office - aka will call - opens at noon on Monday August 24th for participants with valid early arrivals, and the box office will remain open 24/7 until [noon] the day of the man burn.

How crowded are the BRC streets during early access?
It depends on when you are arriving.

Can I drive from camp to the Midway and back to deliver parts, or do I have to use a hand-pulled wagon to get the stuff there?
The Captain answered.

Do I still need to put barbed wire on my RV's roof access ladder to keep the asshat stowaways off?
A roof isn't a very good place to hide.

[maladroit]

When my art group does early entry, we found the Gate line Thursday-Friday to be pretty bad. Not as many people coming in, but even fewer Gate personnel. Have had a 4-5 hour wait.

We drive our cars between camp and art build site all day long, until Gate opens.

[Ano]

Greetings, all.

As a burgin who somehow managed to get early access (one of the setup crew for my art project team), I'm curious what the conditions are like during early entry.
Cool! Welcome. EA for your first year is a great privilege, make sure you make it worth your projects time! It's going to be difficult to focus, to be straight up. BRC is a bit crazy during EA, for totally different reasons than usual.

Is Gate Road as zoo-like as normal access has been described to be? Do they reduce the number of lanes/greeters/etc. so it's just as slow as normal access?
There's no way to tell right now. There are usually less folks working in general, but it's all dependent on what day you arrive. If you want to zoom through, show up in the middle of the night. Last two years, Friday/Saturday pre-burn EA has had lines of up to a few hours during peak afternoon times. Gate and greeters start 24 hr operations on Monday, Aug 24th, if I am recalling correctly.

Are Will-Call hours restricted? Some of the team carpooling with me have Will-Call.
Starting Aug 24th, it's open 24/7, unless someone is seeking a staff credential, in which case they can find the hours for that with their information.

How crowded are the BRC streets during early access?
Nowhere near as busy, however there are many crews driving around working, so you'll see a lot of work trucks and construction equipment zipping around. There will also be people camping with their projects on the open playa, so be ready to be slightly confused by RV's and campers sitting on the open playa.

Can I drive from camp to the Midway and back to deliver parts, or do I have to use a hand-pulled wagon to get the stuff there?
I have done this many times, I am not sure what Captain Goddammit is talking about but you might want to do further research. In 2013 I was delivering parts for CORE in my station wagon, in 2014 I acted as a taxi for some parts for a project and for a few shifts as well. YMMV, I might be giving bad information, but as far as I've seen, you can drive within reason, doing business, in your car.

Do I still need to put barbed wire on my RV's roof access ladder to keep the asshat stowaways off?
Honestly, there are very few people who try to be jackasses during EA. I have had exactly one stupid bus with stupid people trying to buy tickets in line and they blocked a whole lane to find tickets, Thursday EA, before getting kicked off playa (I think escorted by BLM.)

Thanks in advance for answers to any of these questions.

[Captain Goddammit]

Direct from most recent Sparkplug DMV newsletter:
"NO DRIVING BEFORE THE EVENT BEGINS
==================================
Driving before the official opening of the event is restricted
to Staff, Theme Camp & Art Support vehicles with PRE-EVENT
licenses (these are not granted by DMV but by ARTery,
Placement and Staff Managers)."

[maladroit]

You should just do exactly as the Captain says *wink wink*

[Captain Goddammit]

It isn't me saying that.
I just don't want him to go to federal pound-me-in-the-ass prison.

[MikeGyver]

If your art piece has placement on the Midway then you can drive your car between your camp and the Midway. If you are caught driving just to see the sights you will get in trouble.

Look up the video of a Prius that parked near the temple (2011 I think) that was moved.

[Just_Joe]

If your art piece has placement on the Midway then you can drive your car between your camp and the Midway. If you are caught driving just to see the sights you will get in trouble.

When the lead for your art project checks in at the ARTery, he/she may request a Playa Driving Pass for vehicles that need to transport gear. The driving passes are day specific. They will also need to obtain one for tear down.

[Eric]

Direct from most recent Sparkplug DMV newsletter:
"NO DRIVING BEFORE THE EVENT BEGINS
==================================
Driving before the official opening of the event is restricted
to Staff, Theme Camp & Art Support vehicles with PRE-EVENT
licenses (these are not granted by DMV but by ARTery,
Placement and Staff Managers)."

Let me emphasize this: Do not go by what has been done or allowed in the past. Go by the latest information - as the event has gotten larger, the BLM et al have wanted to put more controls in place to make sure that anyone out there pre-event actually needs to be out there. They want to make sure that vehicles moving around on the playa actually need to be moving around on the playa. If you have questions, direct them to your camp lead & make sure they get the correct answers from ARTery.

You should just do exactly as the Captain says *wink wink*

That "wink wink" could get someone 86'd from the event. Go by the latest information.

[maladroit]

You should just do exactly as the Captain says *wink wink*

That "wink wink" could get someone 86'd from the event. Go by the latest information.

I understand that you don't want anyone's burn to get fucked, so you have to recommend going by the book. And maybe what was true last year is no longer true this year. Our art site was usually surrounded by 3-4 un-permitted cars and was regularly visited by Artery and other BMORG staff, and perhaps one un-permitted car doing a trip back to camp every couple hours. Realistically...if you were caught, I really doubt that they'd tell you to pack up your shit and go to Reno...they're far more likely to say "OK, this car needs to go back to camp and stay there." But depending on who's having a bad day, plus the variable nature of what is considered important during each event, getting booted out of the event is a non-zero probability.

[Ano]

Just want to apologize for having incorrect information in my post - I was never personally aware of that, unless it is new this year.

Please feel free to edit my post.