Burn Night Recommendations

[rodent]

Saturday nigh, the night that the Man burns. Before all the excitement revs up, here are some things to think about.

1. Leave your bike at camp. I know it seems that the man is a long way but really consider walking. It's very difficult to both find a safe place to put your bike once you reach the man and FIND your bike once the man falls. Keep in mind that a cluster of bikes lying on the open playa is a HUGE tripping hazard and makes things very dificult for art cars to navigate.

2. Food and Water. Don't forget to bring some water. You may be out at the man for a while so bring water and something to snack on. just some cheese crackers or mabe a nutrition bar.

4. Sit Down!!! If you find that you're within the first 5 or 6 rows of people, please sit down. Let the people behind you have a chance to see everything. Also, it helps the fabulous Rangers who are trying to maintain a safety perimiter by keeping "runners" from getting a running start. If you can, encourage people around you to sit down too.

5. Lock it up. This isn't a huge problem but something to consider. Look around your camp before heading out to the man. Put any vauables in a safe place (locked in your car, hidden in a sock in your suitcase, ect). Theft is very rare on burn night but it can happen. Do know though, there are a number of Rangers who will be sacrificing their ability to watch the Man burn to walk around Black Rock City and keep an eye on things for ya.

6. Don't get toooo f*cked up. It might seem "soo frigg'n cool to be on (insert inebriant of choice) when the man burns!!!" but take it easy. Burn night is gonna be full of emotional energy and chaos plus, you've just spent a week out in harsh conditions. Try not to over do it.

7. Have a group plan. If you're going out to watch the Man burn in a group, have a loose plan for the aftermath. Once the man falls, it's gonna be hectic and chaotic. It's possible that your group may get separated. Have a loose plan. Something like "If we get separated, lets meet at (insert cool ass camp on the esplinade) afterwards". Try to not make your plan too ridged. For instance "If we don't see you at (meeting spot) by 12 midnight, we'll assume you found something cooler to do. See ya back at camp eventually." or some such.

If you end up missing someone, try not to obsess over it too much. They may have just hooked up with a hottie and are having a grand time. If a wayward friend doesn't surface by sunday, then you might want to check with the REMSA medical tent behind the Center Cafe or with the Rangers right next door to REMSA.

Have a great burn everyone.

---
rodent (putting the eek in geek)

[TheJudge]

Those are some very good points.

As an alternative to the massive amounts of people huddled around the big stick as it goes up, you might want to try viewing it from the esplanade. The past couple of years I decided to see it from the comfort of my camp. We'd set out couches, have dinner, heckle the people walking along the esplanade and watch the man burn in comfort and style. A much better way to go if you dont like crowds.

[AntiM]

I had a great view of the Man one year from the medical tent.

[Ugly Dougly]

Saturday nigh, the night that the Man burns. Before all the excitement revs up, here are some things to think about.

1. Leave your bike at camp. I know it seems that the man is a long way but really consider walking. It's very difficult to both find a safe place to put your bike once you reach the man and FIND your bike once the man falls. Keep in mind that a cluster of bikes lying on the open playa is a HUGE tripping hazard and makes things very dificult for art cars to navigate.
...---
rodent (putting the eek in geek)

Right on. To put a pun on things, people will be tripping enough that night without any help.

Also, dress warm. You may be waiting for a while for the site to heat up.
And lock up your site, unless you have someone standing watch.

[ZaphodBurner]

1. Leave your bike at camp. I know it seems that the man is a long way but really consider walking. It's very difficult to both find a safe place to put your bike

Mine got knocked over by a boat last year.

-c

[diane o'thirst]

Or do like I did a couple years ago: go on your bike, stay back out of the crowd, stick by it and use it to passively enforce your personal territory as the crowd fills in around you. Don't worry, you won't miss anything!

Since I have a recumbent bike (nice happy cushy seat ), I also use it as a moveable camp chair.

[neccessity]

I did the same thing this year, Diane! At the man we had our bar-bike and another campmate's bike with trailer. I don't know if I was overwhelmed or what but just after the man fell I HAD to lie down. Used those two to make a little fence and just took a little playa nap right there in the middle of all of it. Bikes to my left and friends to the right, I was out of the way and felt safe as can be. Such a great little moment (or 20...)

Then at Temple Burn I just stood in the open space between a few other bikes. I'm just a little claustrophobic and having bikes on all sides made such a huge difference in my mental state.

But as I learned, you can use other people's bikes as a personal-boundary-fence just as easily as your own!

[phil]

We had a similar situation at the Temple burn. Louise and I stood by a big art bus with blacklights and put our bikes maybe 10 feet in front of us. (We talked to the driver of the art car and made sure our presence was both known and not a problem.)

People then started stacking their bikes around ours and moving on to another location to watch the temple burn. So we were in a space which remained free of people and stuff while we watched the burn and listened to the piper. Nobody closed off our space, so we could walk out any time between the bikes and the art car.

Phil
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Teh mother of all spell-checkers