Mud and other Dirty Questions

cincarus · Post by **cincarus** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 9:33 am

Ok so I hear all this stuff about "playa foot" they I see people rolling around naked in the mud. So if the alkaline soil is bad for my feet why can you roll around in the mud naked? Very confused here!

http://images.burningman.com/index.cgi?image=5798

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ygmir · Post by **ygmir** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 9:37 am

cincarus wrote:Ok so I hear all this stuff about "playa foot" they I see people rolling around naked in the mud. So if the alkaline soil is bad for my feet why can you roll around in the mud naked? Very confused here!

http://images.burningman.com/index.cgi?image=5798

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I'd assume the mud is harder on some than others, different skin conditions etc......also, seeing them roll around in it does not mean they didn't suffer, later.........

There's not much mud to be had on the playa.........

cincarus · Post by **cincarus** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 9:40 am

I figured that, being little mud. I just saw a picture and I thought hmm that looks it could cause a problem.

phil · Post by **phil** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 10:11 am

I'm one of the people that playa powder is harder on than others. If I wear sandals all week, I end up with deep cracks in the skin on my feet - especially the heels and toes. The skin turns black from the combination of dead skin and dirt. It's painful and takes a days to stop being painful and a week or two to get back to normal. As a result, I wear full shoes and boots when I'm out on the playa for the day. I also wear gloves because the playa eats my fingers, too. You'll read posts from people who slather lotion on their feet at night and sleep in socks to prevent painful cracking.

Other people aren't bothered by it at all. C'est la vie. But as Ygmir says, seeing people covered in mud or dust doesn't mean they don't pay for it later. It takes several days for my feet to be destroyed. You'll find out whether it causes problems for you, and then you'll act accordingly.

cincarus · Post by **cincarus** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 10:23 am

Well you've answered my question. Bummer the dust affects you like that.

geospyder · Post by **geospyder** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 10:49 am

Getting muddy is one thing - getting the mud off is another. I'm another virgin and I plan to buy a supply of 'throw away' socks to take with me. BTW - it is currently snowing in Sparks so I presume it also snowing up on the Playa.

wedeliver · Post by **wedeliver** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 10:55 am

I don't know if we really did this or not, but what I think I remember is wetting a sock and hanging it from the bottom of a lawn chair, so it was about 4 inches of the playa surface. After a few minutes the bottom of the sock was dry while the top was still damp. I assume that the dryness of the soil is so high that it demands moisture. Thereby drying out your feet more then normal.

And to reply to the original question, how can people roll around in playa mud. Iif the soil is wet then it will not suck moisture from your body would be the logic

Boijoy · Post by **Boijoy** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 11:01 am

I think that also keeps away vampires with foot fetishes.. you might have to throw a bulb of garlic into the sock? its been a while since I've had to do this..

thisisthatwhichis · Post by **thisisthatwhichis** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 11:01 am

Well, geez, mud's kewl, but when is this thread gonna get dirty??..........

Well anyway, Playa Tip#37...... It's good to keep the Playa out of the naughty parts..... jus trust me on this one...............

Boijoy · Post by **Boijoy** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 11:02 am

Plagina.

Bob · Post by **Bob** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 11:53 am

cincarus wrote:Ok so I hear all this stuff about "playa foot" they I see people rolling around naked in the mud. So if the alkaline soil is bad for my feet why can you roll around in the mud naked?

You *can* but just like attempting a 2000 gallon "fountain" it might be pretty stupid.

Those pics you tried to post were of my camp in 1996 and 1998. The diff between then and now --

- the health dept nosing in on anything resembling a bathing facility
- and the org
- you're welcome to attempt a water feature, but you might want to apply for a health dept permit ahead of time
- good luck with that
- plus it diverts potable water trucks and/or nonpotable water trucks and/or septic service trucks from more appropriate tasks
- more friggin art cars/bikes/etc. more likely to get stuck in your water feature
- water tanks/pools/etc. tend to leak or spill
- sometimes they get spilled on purpose when some fuckwit just wants to dump & run home

Just my opinions and general observations. One year some camp had a huge above-ground pool, and while I believe they disposed of all the water w/o problems, they'd dug a sizable hole in the ground for their pump and generator that was so badly backfilled DPW had to come back and regrade their pit a couple times the following year.

I recommend you mime a mud pit or swimming pool, and spend the money on tadpole costumes instead of water transport/disposal.

gaminwench · Post by **gaminwench** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 12:10 pm

I go barefoot on the playa during the daytime. If you wash your feet/hands in vinegar water regularly (always before socks/shoes/bedtime), it counters the alkali. Most cases of playa foot I've witnessed are the result of days of exposure with no wipes or vinegar.

mojo · Post by **mojo** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 2:07 pm

If it rains any moderate amount during the festival, you will see a kind of mud that is like no other I have ever seen. It makes bicycle transport impossible because it sticks so firmly to everything and makes layers on layers. It is where the term "playa platforms" comes from - because walking around after a rain makes you taller with every step. The dust becomes the consistency of oatmeal with a fast hardening glue added.

Edit - when wet, the mud is as slippery as snot on a mirror......

SonOfUgly · Post by **SonOfUgly** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 5:05 pm

went the whole time with out shoes, didnt wash with nothing but water, no lotions or nothin like that and didnt have any problems

LostinReno · Post by **LostinReno** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 5:31 pm

mojo wrote:If it rains any moderate amount during the festival, you will see a kind of mud that is like no other I have ever seen. It makes bicycle transport impossible because it sticks so firmly to everything and makes layers on layers. It is where the term "playa platforms" comes from - because walking around after a rain makes you taller with every step. The dust becomes the consistency of oatmeal with a fast hardening glue added.

Edit - when wet, the mud is as slippery as snot on a mirror......

Oatmeal is a great analogy! The stuff is nasty when wet!

Â¡Niers! · Post by **Â¡Niers!** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 8:49 pm

I must be naturally immune to alkali, cause during the day I have dust covered feet and just go straight into the socks. No playa foot. I will say that it created mud in my shoes, but I'm not one to complain.
My Tom, however had the whole cracky feet, though he sometimes even gets that here in Eugene, the land before sun.

There's plenty of mud at BM, follow the yelling, nekkid, running people.

wedeliver · Post by **wedeliver** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 9:17 pm

LostinReno wrote:Oatmeal is a great analogy! The stuff is nasty when wet!

I won't eat dry oatmeal. makes me gag

cincarus · Post by **cincarus** » Wed Apr 15, 2009 7:29 am

Well I guess we better make sure vingear is on our list! I think it is or will be, I can't they would forget it.

oneeyeddick · Post by **oneeyeddick** » Wed Apr 15, 2009 8:33 am

lemon juice works just as well, without all the stink of vinegar.

cincarus · Post by **cincarus** » Wed Apr 15, 2009 9:59 am

Never even thought of lemon juice!

Good suggestion!

Mud and other Dirty Questions

Mud and other Dirty Questions

Re: Mud and other Dirty Questions

Re: Mud and other Dirty Questions