extreme weather conditions...all should read

iamtonynyc · Post by **iamtonynyc** » Thu Jun 24, 2004 8:43 am

i came across this website thats descibes in some detail of just how bad it can get out there. my guess is everyone should read this, even the veterans.

peace

http://www.damer.com/pictures/events/bu ... guide.html

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Thu Jun 24, 2004 10:30 am

Even the relatively minor dustup on Sunday of last year left me with full lungs and eye sockets.....maybe call that "Condition Epsilon", if "Alpha" is a fullfledged raging duster.....It's very wise to keep anti-dust gear handy. Even at night, on a calm night, the dust is just hanging in the air waiting to be aspirated. (Go to the image gallery and look at some night shots- the dust looks almost like snow in the flash of a camera!) Beware of Playa Cough.

Sensei · Post by **Sensei** » Thu Jun 24, 2004 1:35 pm

Fantastic! Good call, IAMTONYNYC! Bruce has obviously done lots of work on this site. This is the sort of info that can save lives (like mine, for instance). You both get major karma points for this one...

Keee-rist! I just made it out of BRC before the big blow in '02, although I had some friends who just got nailed. I thought they were exaggerating at first.

Like Jackie (the Great One) Gleason used to say: "One of the days, Alice... One of these days... BANG! ZOOM! To the moon, Alice!"

Oh, we're gonna get it alright...

If you really want to creep yourself out, imagine combining the dust of '01 with the winds of '02. The population growth would start to slow, methinks.

Sensei · Post by **Sensei** » Thu Jun 24, 2004 1:36 pm

Fantastic! Good call, IAMTONYNYC! Bruce has obviously done lots of work on this site. This is the sort of info that can save lives (like mine, for instance). You both get major karma points for this one...

Keee-rist! I just made it out of BRC before the big blow in '02, although I had some friends who just got nailed. I thought they were exaggerating at first.

Like Jackie (the Great One) Gleason used to say: "One of the days, Alice... One of these days... BANG! ZOOM! To the moon, Alice!"

Oh, we're gonna get it alright...

If you really want to creep yourself out, imagine combining the dust of '01 with the winds of '02. The population growth would start to slow, methinks.

Badger · Post by **Badger** » Thu Jun 24, 2004 2:22 pm

I thought they were exaggerating at first.

Exaggerating: "The dust was so thick during the storm I couldn't see."

The truth: "The dust was so thich during the storm that I couln't see the playa floor from the hood of my car or the person standing 6' in front of the bumper - during mid-day."

Bob · Post by **Bob** » Thu Jun 24, 2004 2:25 pm

http://www.spc.noaa.gov/img/mayfield.jpg

Sensei · Post by **Sensei** » Fri Jun 25, 2004 12:14 am

The two feet (or less) of visibility thing is something I've seen a few times. But I didn't realize how looooong one of those dust storms could last...

I'm curious as to what the Badger (and others) think would happen if one of these babies arrived, oh say, Thursday 'bout noon?

A number of fatalities? An even larger number of serious injuries? Mass hysteria? Or just pretty much the usual, with a whole hell of a lot more dust? Try to be specific, inquiring minds and all that...

Badger · Post by **Badger** » Fri Jun 25, 2004 1:48 am

I'm curious as to what the Badger (and others) think would happen if one of these babies arrived, oh say, Thursday 'bout noon?

Just put on your goggles and break out your GPS.

technopatra · Post by **technopatra** » Fri Jun 25, 2004 3:45 am

We had some pretty big whiteouts during the event in '01. They lacked the longevity of the 7 hour-long zero-to-5 ft visibility of the post-event '02 storms, but were still hard enough to give one a healthy dose of respect for wind power.

So in '01, if a duststorm hit, you either:

1 - wished you'd brought your goggles nad dust mask and hunkered down wherever you were standing and buried your head in your arms until it passed
2 - dove for the nearest themecamp structure
3 - wrapped an extra scarf around your face and walked in the general direction of where you thought there might be a structure, arms ahead of you
4 - if in a vehicle, stopped where you were and drank whatever beverages you had on hand until you could see clearly enough to proceed
5 - crashed your bike into the nearest piece of art before you had the sense to stop.
6 - went running back to your camp to secure all the stuff you had stupidly left out, thinking the skies would stay clear and sunny.

yeah, maybe I exercised all of these options at different times over the year. Maybe.

The biggest danger was folks' camp stuff flying down the playa. When people set up and it's sunny, it can be hard to remember that the winds can go from 0-70 in a matter of minutes. Hell even last year my dome came near to collapsing when we had a wee bit of weather during setup, but thankfully the King of Cafe Structure, Simon, came and pulled my ass out of the fire.

Thanks again, Simon. I should've known better and brought more stakes & rope. Won't happen again, I tell you what.

stuart · Post by **stuart** » Fri Jun 25, 2004 11:14 am

you forgot option #7

#7 revel in the glory and power of nature, the surrealness of it all, and dance even harder to the ultra funky music and laugh your head off.

anyway, that's what I did in '01 but I also never went anywhere without good goggles, a good mask and a pile of water.

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Fri Jun 25, 2004 12:12 pm

Ya know Stuart, you've got to reveal your secret. I can pile wood, but whenever I try with water it refuses to stay tidily in a heap.

dragonfly Jafe · Post by **dragonfly Jafe** » Fri Jun 25, 2004 12:26 pm

theCryptofishist wrote:Ya know Stuart, you've got to reveal your secret. I can pile wood, but whenever I try with water it refuses to stay tidily in a heap.

wrong season, or wrong latitude. Works fine in Idaho (at least until it melts!) I think what Stuart was saying is he always travels the Playa surrounded by blocks of ice, which is why he can afford to laugh in the face of sandstorms (it is a fact that no piles of ice blocks blew away in the condition alpha of '02)

stuart · Post by **stuart** » Fri Jun 25, 2004 3:15 pm

the biggest problem I have with my piled water is that most containers/hydration packs that are commercially available don't cater to this rare skill. Any of you other water pilers out there have an elegant solution?

shitmouse · Post by **shitmouse** » Fri Jun 25, 2004 3:33 pm

alpha.
fuuuck. i've been in few intense dust storms out there, -- the 8 hour one a few years back that was 100+ mph winds gusting the entire time. seams on the tent were separating and threatening to part. i was envisioning seeing my personal gear go kart wheeling down the playa...very stressful.

last year that alpha was absolutlely insane.
we were coming back from a burn barrel and we had to have people walk in front of our truck with one hand on the truck hood and one stretching forward just to feel something, or somone. and we almost rolled right over a batch of cops on quads sitting it out. you could not see ANYTHING except "haze grey" at an arm's length. I couldn't stress enough to be prepared when out and about.

badger brings up a good point. a GPS.

as well, use your vehicles in a way to block wind for your tents, it has saved our asses many times. -(when it comes down to critical things: keys, clothes, medication, etc.)

-b

shitmouse · Post by **shitmouse** » Fri Jun 25, 2004 3:34 pm

opening was supposed to say: i've been in A few dust storms out there....

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Fri Jun 25, 2004 5:36 pm

Wind/dust experiences:

'99. Out riding my bike, Monday morning. North part of the city, near the Esplanade. A big red geodesic dome came loose from its mooring and started rolling towards me. Try to avoid. For some reason it's rolling my way, inexorably and continues to do so no matter how many evasive manœuvres I execute. It's catching up with me! AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!! Ditch bike, tuck and roll, curl up in a semi-fœtal and start praying, really praying. The damn thing rolls right over me and the bike, struts <i>missing</i>, and I get up a minute later with a sincere and profound respect for the power of prayer and good luck. And a brand new grey streak.

2000. The winds destroy my camp — flat out Shredded, smashed, pretty much everything wiped

I cook in Opera Camp's kitchen and sleep in the Pyramid for the rest of the week.

'01. Dust storm, Monday. A young man is leaving via our street (Infant) and honking his horn. There's maybe 3 feet of visibility and he's warning people out of his way >:( My campmate Megan and I accost his forward motion by placing ourselves in front of and to the driver-side window and proceed to give him a lecture which goes along the theme of, "If you cannot see people well enough in the dust, your car CANNOT be in motion!!" And we held him there until a sucker hole opened up enough for him to get out to the spoke street.
Next day, we're still getting socked by hour-long whiteouts. I'm filthy, getting alkali burns, skin is screaming, eyes are going to hell, but I keep packing and cleaning up. Suddenly a gust of wind and dust hits us again after a ten-minute opening, and I just lose it. Start screaming and crying, "NOT AGAIN! NOT AGAIN!" Campmates take me to what shelter remains and tell me to relax. Half hour later, I'm done packing. And SO out of there. I don't go to the exit, take the back exit that DPW uses and literally outrun the last cloud.

Icepack · Post by **Icepack** » Fri Jun 25, 2004 9:39 pm

diane o'thirst wrote:Wind/dust experiences:

Next day, we're still getting socked by hour-long whiteouts. I'm filthy, getting alkali burns, skin is screaming, eyes are going to hell, but I keep packing and cleaning up. Suddenly a gust of wind and dust hits us again after a ten-minute opening, and I just lose it. Start screaming and crying, "NOT AGAIN! NOT AGAIN!" Campmates take me to what shelter remains and tell me to relax. Half hour later, I'm done packing. And SO out of there. I don't go to the exit, take the back exit that DPW uses and literally outrun the last cloud.

So how many hours of wind/dust storm does it take to make a person start screaming and crying? I mean the kind of storm that is non-stop. I heard 2000 was like that. It didn't stop for a week. Do you adjust after a while or do you just start screaming and lose your mind?

My recent camping trip it rained every day for about 4 days, a little bit every day. At one point it had been raining for about 12 hours. I'd gone to bed when it was raining and when I woke up it was still raining and I didn't sleep well because of the sound of the rain. I lost it for about an hour. Sat in the car for a few minutes and just cried. The rain finally stopped, and we made it. Not being able to cook because of weather conditions really sucks. I think I will have to remember to bring some canned ice coffees with me just in case the weather makes it impossible to get the real stuff.

fancy1 · Post by **fancy1** » Fri Jun 25, 2004 10:40 pm

With a couple of RV's in camp, hopefully we can place them to shelter the tents and tipis. And if the weather gets that bad again, we can all pile in the RV to wait it out. And they could be "rescue kitchens" if necesseary.

Isotopia · Post by **Isotopia** » Sat Jun 26, 2004 4:24 am

and when I woke up it was still raining and I didn't sleep well because of the sound of the rain.

How is this possible?

Damn I'd pay a fools wages for the opportunity to sleep in a tent with the sound of rain dancing off the tarp whilest sleeping.

BTW, in a pinch when the rains come you might try crashing under one of the RVs at First Camp.

Ugly Dougly · Post by **Ugly Dougly** » Sat Jun 26, 2004 9:13 am

Condition Alpha only happen in years when there is pollution.

Fear Nature!

Bob · Post by **Bob** » Sat Jun 26, 2004 12:27 pm

I recommend hunkering down with a couple doses and a box of Lucky Charms.

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Sat Jun 26, 2004 12:33 pm

Icepack —
Your mileage will certainly vary. I'm a pretty resilient, stable and easygoing person, it takes <b>A Lot</b> to get me to go off like that. Usually it's a "nibbled to death by ducklings" scenario. And the Playa is notorious for fraying nerves in even the most saintly temperaments.

I pinned it down to a combination of factors: borderline dehydration, frustration (because the campsite I was striving to deMOOPify was getting buried under tons of dust dunes), end-of-the-festival blues, sketchily inadequate sleep habits for the past ten days, high natural empathy and exposure to people who were less stable and had been subjected to similar conditions — all that was pushing my well-buried werewolf buttons, and 48 solid hours of consistent whiteout conditions was the final push.

I also have a very subjective and mostly unprovable theory that I was picking up on some of the nasty impending doom-like/loss-of-innocence vibes that were circulating. The day I left the Playa in 2001 was only a few days before Al Qaeda reminded us what a little slice of hell Babylon can be...

I think it's a kind of sensory deprivation-related insanity that takes hold. You can't see, it clogs everything that's open to the elements, it's painful when it dries and burns your skin, and there ain't a damn thing you can do about it. Whiteouts can humble even the most arrogant and they're pretty low on the scale of natural antagonism.

Badger · Post by **Badger** » Sat Jun 26, 2004 4:34 pm

Condition Alpha only happen in years when there is pollution.

Cites?

manowar · Post by **manowar** » Sat Jun 26, 2004 10:42 pm

The GPS idea is great if you happen to have one, expensive if you don't. I remember hearing my old grandpa ramble on about something they used to have before GPS, I think they called it a compass or something. Not sure, though he may have been pulling my leg or just plain crazy. Said they didnt require batteries or satalities, just some magic spinning needles. Sounds like voodoo to me. Of course if they really did exist and you could still find one it might be a cheap alternative.

BAS · Post by **BAS** » Sat Jun 26, 2004 10:55 pm

I've seen one of those "compass" things you mention, but it doesn't look a thing like what you describe!

The one I saw had two metal legs attached at one end, with the other end of one leg ending in a tiny spike, and the end of the other leg ended with a piece of pencil lead. I am not certain how anyone could have used one for navigation! Maybe for drawing something....

Zulegoona · Post by **Zulegoona** » Sun Jun 27, 2004 7:17 am

If Bas is right about them compass things sounds like the thing would have you going around in circles.

Tancorix · Post by **Tancorix** » Sun Jun 27, 2004 7:46 am

Looking past the compass jokes, Garmin makes a GPS called the eTREX which can be found in many locations for approximately $100. It works very well on the playa.

While thinking of Alpha conditions I was reminded by others (Badger) that dust is not the only problem to consider when on the playa. What do you do if it rains? Bob Stahl has posted pics awhile back of the DPW area surrounded by water, and apparently this has happened during the event. Has anyone considered mud boots? The type that come up to your knee would be ideal for those conditions.

I have to admit this thread is making me rethink my packing list for the event. The past 2 years have been relatively nice....we're due for a change.

DVD Burner · Post by **DVD Burner** » Sun Jun 27, 2004 8:03 am

would'nt boots be heavy after a rain? I remember a small rainstorm on the playa that did'nt last too long, once over, the main thing we ran into was the mud being so thick and deep and sticky that it made my sneakers really heavy.

Zulegoona · Post by **Zulegoona** » Sun Jun 27, 2004 8:08 am

I've been curious about wet conditions too. In some thread or on the main site picked up the idea that because of the clay dust if it's wet nothing moves. It's easy to image a slippery sticky mess just seeing the pictures of the cracked surface.

So if we did get more than just a little rain does anyone know how long it takes to evaporate or soak in?

DVD Burner · Post by **DVD Burner** » Sun Jun 27, 2004 8:13 am

Last I remember it was a few hours and that was considering that the sun was out the entire time.