Heads up from the playa: might be dusty

Boijoy · Post by **Boijoy** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 4:03 pm

they explode in the heat. sometimes right off your face. When you buy them.. look for the "non-exploding" label... ba hahahahahaha.

Firmwood · Post by **Firmwood** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 4:03 pm

OK, so my question for you good people is thus...

Are threads like this thrown around every year? or is this year genuinely that much worse than before? Also, will this herald the apocalypse and does my bum look big in this?

phil · Post by **phil** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 4:11 pm

Firmwood · Post by **Firmwood** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 4:32 pm

I feel so violated :(

chiefdanfox · Post by **chiefdanfox** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 4:39 pm

goneguy wrote:JezebelinHell, as a burner-virgin I gotta ask about your quote:
"Bring several pairs of back-up goggles"
What happens to goggles on the playa?

Article 16 in the BLM permit. You can't use the same pair of googles you use going forward when backing up. Check it out.

Timezone LaFontaine · Post by **Timezone LaFontaine** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 5:26 pm

Ugly Dougly wrote: Be warned! The alkali dust of the Black Rock Desert grabs your tires and instead of skidding, you flip.

Yeah, the dust is like the Anti-Lubricant. At home I can just slip my shoes on and off without untying them. On the playa I have to painstakingly untie them, struggle to get my foot inside them, and then tie 'em back up... but it's cool, it gives me some time to mutter and curse under my breath.

Bob · Post by **Bob** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 7:58 pm

No, the playa is not made of salt, and yes, the dust is the worst ever, but DPW has had water trucks pounding the main roads since the first week of August.

phil · Post by **phil** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 8:36 pm

> DPW has had water trucks pounding the main roads since the first
> week of August.

Fat lotta good

steveboy · Post by **steveboy** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 8:41 pm

You're right. They shouldn't do anything.

phil · Post by **phil** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 9:20 pm

steveboy wrote:You're right. They shouldn't do anything.

[youtube][/youtube]
Fat lotta good

Bob · Post by **Bob** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 9:45 pm

Okay, Phil, I'll phone them tomorrow and tell them to stop watering the roads.

phil · Post by **phil** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 10:40 pm

Bob wrote:Okay, Phil, I'll phone them tomorrow and tell them to stop watering the roads.

Yeah, fat lotta good _that'll_ do, too. :-> Shirley, you jest.

Tiahaar · Post by **Tiahaar** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 11:02 pm

better yet have a plane ready at the airport to drop some of that silver iodide stuff on any big clouds that happen by...you know those really impressive ones that look like serious rain but then just move on without a drop... yeah I know a lot of good THAT will do too also...

Captain Goddammit · Post by **Captain Goddammit** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 11:26 pm

Relax everyone, I'm bringin' summa this:

fenwick · Post by **fenwick** » Sat Aug 16, 2008 2:13 am

I'm jusrt gonna make a camp-mate I don't like hold his breath until all the dust is blown away.....

Or perhaps steal (I mean ask politely and borrow) some of Captain Goddammit's EndDust. Might swap him some fresh margaritas for a can or two..... salted rim optional

Hoolie · Post by **Hoolie** » Sat Aug 16, 2008 9:54 am

Firmwood wrote:OK, so my question for you good people is thus...

Are threads like this thrown around every year? or is this year genuinely that much worse than before? Also, will this herald the apocalypse and does my bum look big in this?

There's probably a thread about playa conditions every year, and the dust is usually the main topic of conversation since it is so all-consuming out there. It is safe to assume it will be dusty anytime you go there, but there are certainly degrees of dustiness. It all has to do with rainfall. The one time dust isn't an issue is when it rains, because then the playa turns into sticky mud. When there is a lot of rain, and then the surface dries, it forms a sort of hard shell, which also keeps the dust down. The more rain you get in a season, the thicker the shell. Unfortunately, we've been through two very dry years in a row, so the playa isn't getting that surface shell. As a result, the dry dust is building and actually forming small dunes. This began happening last year and is reportedly growing this year. So, unless the playa gets some rain in the next week or so, you can believe the reports that it will be dustier than usual this year. It does not "herald the apocalypse," but it might seem like it when the wind kicks up.

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Sat Aug 16, 2008 10:22 am

2006 was great!
No heat, no dust.

ebenflow · Post by **ebenflow** » Sat Aug 16, 2008 1:27 pm

Taken from the building black rock Blog:

"And one final note for now; a couple of you have asked about the state of the playa this year. Iâ€™ve seen some reports that itâ€™s the worse itâ€™s ever been, but that hasnâ€™t been my impression. True, some of the dunes are doozies, and theyâ€™re going to test your skill on a bicycle. But mainly, Iâ€™ve been astonished at the LACK of dust this year. (And yes, I am jinxing things by commenting on it.)

But still, the air was so still the other night as I came off the playa that dust trails left by a barreling big rig just hung in the air like low-lying fog."

It's always better to be safe than sorry with the Dust.

Without the Dust it wouldn't be the same.

Become one with the Dust!!

See ya when we get home!

willyloafofphora · Post by **willyloafofphora** » Sun Aug 17, 2008 4:07 am

[quote="Bob"][quote="misfit"

.[/quote]

Neither, really. Mostly silt & clay, very little sand or salts.

[/quote]

Mostly calcium sulfate salt.

thirt33n · Post by **thirt33n** » Sun Aug 17, 2008 10:08 am

ebenflow wrote:
But still, the air was so still the other night as I came off the playa that dust trails left by a barreling big rig just hung in the air like low-lying fog."

he he. multiply that by 5,000 and that should make for quite a cloud.

i don't give no shit 'bout da dust.

see you soon homies and homiegirls

nocturnal_steve · Post by **nocturnal_steve** » Sun Aug 17, 2008 3:19 pm

.
.
.
.

I'm almost done.....

BEFORE

AFTER

dragonpilot · Post by **dragonpilot** » Sun Aug 17, 2008 3:30 pm

What happens to goggles on the playa?

The dicktard next to you who forget his/hers borrows yours (and never seems to return them)...or you're just so addle-brained with sleep/food/water deprivation that you keep losing them.

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Sun Aug 17, 2008 7:15 pm

I haven't had that problem since i got mine surgically attached.

Boijoy · Post by **Boijoy** » Mon Aug 18, 2008 8:36 am

Feck the dust.. let's just pave the Playa.

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Mon Aug 18, 2008 8:46 am

No need to pave it.
Just smooth it out and lacquer it.

somekind · Post by **somekind** » Mon Aug 18, 2008 9:34 am

Last year I noticed a lot of dust hanging in the air at night time near the end of the week. There were art cars zooming around all night kicking up dust.

phil · Post by **phil** » Mon Aug 18, 2008 10:49 am

Two people I follow on Twitter who are on the playa posted there was a white out Sunday night. Expect the usual weather.

zorro sings · Post by **zorro sings** » Mon Aug 18, 2008 11:15 am

phil wrote:Expect the usual weather.

We live in Reno and have been attending the last 10 years.Always look at the weather patterns here on how they will affect last week in August.

The storm we had last night was quite windy even by Reno standards.We even got some rain.Except for those on The Playa now,this was a very good thing.It was the 4th time this summer a storm front has moved in.Last year at this time the count was ZERO.Naturally one moved in the week of The Project.

So another front out of the way and we may get another bit of rain today.All sets up nicely for a decent week next week.Unless of course it doesn't.

mojo · Post by **mojo** » Mon Aug 18, 2008 11:32 am

goneguy wrote:JezebelinHell, as a burner-virgin I gotta ask about your quote:
"Bring several pairs of back-up goggles"
What happens to goggles on the playa?

1) "What bar were we at an hour ago where there was a hamster with a flamethrower - that's where I left my goggles"

2) They get dusty

Pink Daddy · Post by **Pink Daddy** » Mon Aug 18, 2008 11:48 am

Plus people get a temporary case of ADD at BRC. I tried, unsuccessfully, to play a life-size game of chess but people kept wandering off. Eventually, I wandered myself.

I'm apart of a mutant vehicle crew and every morning at BRC we clean it, finding goggles, head lamps, cigarettes, and lord knows what else. We have a 24-hour policy for the stuff. If you don't claim it within 24-hours, then it's considered a gift.

So backup plans for backup plans help keep your eyes from being dusty.

Heads up from the playa: might be dusty

Don't worry....