Newbie from New York

Tankie · Post by **Tankie** » Thu May 07, 2009 2:19 pm

Greetings to all!

We are (my husband and I) new to BM and eplaya and very excited to be going to the BM this year. The tickets design looks amazing, it's a good sign :)

I had a couple of questions to you seasoned folks:

1. How do people communicate once on the playa? Do you guys use walkie-talkies, cause i doubt that the cell phones work, or just the old fashioned way - meet me in the central playa at noon?
2. Also, is there a big hardwear store like Home Depot or any other where we can get supplies on the way to the desert? Since we're flying from New York and renting our vehicles either in Reno or SF airport, any local info would be of help. Which road is more scenic, btw - the Reno one or the SF?

Thank you all!

See you at the Playa! :)

Post by **Elderberry** » Thu May 07, 2009 4:38 pm

Hey there, welcome to eplaya!

JK

Post by **AntiM** » Thu May 07, 2009 4:42 pm

No cell service on the playa and walkie-talkies suck. Everyone is either on the dame channel or doesn't know how to use them. Even the old-fashioned way is suspect. Noon is a relative term once you're on playa time.

Try this link for much good advice and stuff like where to shop in Reno.

http://www.cieux.com/bm/bmtoc.html

Tankie · Post by **Tankie** » Thu May 07, 2009 7:33 pm

thank you! :)

Simon of the Playa · Post by **Simon of the Playa** » Sat May 09, 2009 7:15 am

i dont want to contradict Anti-M but i have found that high quality, long range motorolas (walkie talks) do work pretty well on the open playa, as long as you and your campmates select a channel and stick with it....try to find something easy to remember, yet somewhere on the dial thats not already being used heavily.

each channel has 40 sub-channels, so pick something like 7-24, not 7-11, which will inevitably be used because of the numerology.

stay away from the leo channels, they get pissed.

you may find because of the tremendous amount of interference, you may lose transmission inside the city occasionally but like i said, stand on the edge of the open playa on the esplanade, and if they out there, and you buy good walkie-talks, you should be able to communicate with your friends.

with that said, it's kinda nice to not be tethered to an electronic device for one week out of the year, unless you really need it for logistical purposes.

Tankie · Post by **Tankie** » Sat May 09, 2009 9:45 am

not that i REALLY need the electronics, just figured it's a huge place - don't people get lost all the time? i mean - maybe it's a good thing to get lost :)

i guess it all depends on the size and the organization of the camp we find.

Post by **AntiM** » Sat May 09, 2009 10:34 am

The city is pretty well mapped out and you can't really get lost for long. Disoriented and misplaced, certainly. Communication my or may not be helpful in such situations. Keep your map handy!

I rescind my walkie statement. Cheap ones suck. And having it on all the time and listening to it key up? Or getting, "Hey, we're at so and so, and such and such is going on, come here!" while I was elsewhere having a perfectly good time. But I'm anti-social that way with campmates; we don't go anywhere together unless it is very pre-arranged. Plus I'm joined at the hip to MyLarry, so we don't need to call each other. I personally did not care for the experience. We're going to try something like a check-in whiteboard in camp to make sure everyone is alive every 24 hours or so.

Simon of the Playa · Post by **Simon of the Playa** » Sat May 09, 2009 6:48 pm

in 1996 there was an ever increasing bulletin board / wall where people would post all kinds of announcements and placement etc etc. It seemed to work reasonably well, and it was great fun to just go and read all the notes as each one competed visually with each other for your attention.

low tech, agreed, but effective, or As the saying goes "why waste good money on lube when you got plenty of free spit."

or something like that.

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Sat May 09, 2009 10:20 pm

Playa info.
Register.
Check messages.

Dr. Pyro · Post by **Dr. Pyro** » Sun May 10, 2009 7:17 am

Tankie, if you should fly into Sacramento, the owner of the Downtown AVIS dealership is very Burner-friendly and his rates are actually better than most of his competition. If you want to send me an email (not a PM) at: [email protected] I can pass along the info. Once in Sacto, there are plenty of grocery stores and/or WalMarts to get your supplies.

Having been a New Yorker at one time (my girlfriend want to Far Rockaway HS) I have a certain soft spot for my fellow denizens of Gotham. Hope I can be of help.

Doc

Simon of the Playa · Post by **Simon of the Playa** » Sun May 10, 2009 7:24 am

i knew it....i could smell the lingering odor of street cart stale pretzels all over you.

so doc, how did you escape? They closed the tunnel a couple of years back, and the legend about a secret route thru canada is just that, a myth created by canadians to sucker in new yorkers to their own little great white hell.

i made it to cali once, managed to evade the authorities for a few months while i holed up in la honda. (shouts out to applejack's one of the best bars in the world)

some locals ratted me in when i refused to wear birkenstocks.

this is why i'm so bitter.

Toolmaker · Post by **Toolmaker** » Sun May 10, 2009 8:08 pm

Tankie wrote:Greetings to all!

We are (my husband and I) new to BM and eplaya and very excited to be going to the BM this year. The tickets design looks amazing, it's a good sign

I had a couple of questions to you seasoned folks:

1. How do people communicate once on the playa? Do you guys use walkie-talkies, cause i doubt that the cell phones work, or just the old fashioned way - meet me in the central playa at noon?

2. Also, is there a big hardwear store like Home Depot or any other where we can get supplies on the way to the desert? Since we're flying from New York and renting our vehicles either in Reno or SF airport, any local info would be of help. Which road is more scenic, btw - the Reno one or the SF?

Thank you all!

See you at the Playa!

1) I think smokesignals are wayy underrated on the playa. If we all had own own flame effects that were large and smoky enough...

Dont bother trying to schedule or communicate your first year. Put a note in the tent and try to check in on each other twice a day. Just drink a fuckload of water all day and night.

2) Phils site is the shit and Home Despots or their equivalent are EVERYWHERE.. DIY is takin over (not necessarily by choice rather a shitty economy for some)

Try not to bring the whole house your first year, unless you have a bus like Elliot.. than you can bring half your house or every bike or bike part for 10 miles.

Fawk I wish I had a bus to drive. I am so doing a bus for myself this year.
(not necessarily by choice rather for a cheaper rent in a shitty economy)

Its a camping trip in the desert for a week.. keep that in mind when shopping and you'll do fine.

HeironymousJosch · Post by **HeironymousJosch** » Sun May 10, 2009 9:16 pm

Simon of the Playa wrote:i dont want to contradict Anti-M but i have found that high quality, long range motorolas (walkie talks) do work pretty well on the open playa, as long as you and your campmates select a channel and stick with it....try to find something easy to remember, yet somewhere on the dial thats not already being used heavily.

each channel has 40 sub-channels, so pick something like 7-24, not 7-11, which will inevitably be used because of the numerology.

stay away from the leo channels, they get pissed.

you may find because of the tremendous amount of interference, you may lose transmission inside the city occasionally but like i said, stand on the edge of the open playa on the esplanade, and if they out there, and you buy good walkie-talks, you should be able to communicate with your friends.

with that said, it's kinda nice to not be tethered to an electronic device for one week out of the year, unless you really need it for logistical purposes.

There are two types of these 2-way radios, both are easy to find. Simon is right to point you to the higher quality units. The cheap ones typically operate on the FRS or Family Radio Service Band which is limited to channels 1-14. The cheap ones also don't broadcast and receive on sub-channels. The 1st 14 channels are going to get pummeled on the playa! Also, FRS radios are limited to a 1/2 watt of power which means short range.

There are lots of manufacturers, including Motorola that sell FRS/GMRS dual use radios. The GMRS stands for General Mobile Radio Service and occupies channels 15-22. Using GMRS requires an Operator's License through the FCC (http://wireless.fcc.gov/uls/index.htm?job=home). The license is good for 5 years and is relatively cheap, not sure of the exact amount. Lots of people buy these radios and never register to use these channels - to each there own. Beyond the extra channels, GMRS radios can operate at up to 3 watts and can be attached to external antennas totaling no more than 50 watts - which means a whole lot better range.

I'll be bringing my radios with me and I'm willing to bet they'll come in damn handy and be a whole lot of fun to talk to randoms over. over.

Josch

Tankie · Post by **Tankie** » Mon May 11, 2009 9:30 am

Toolmaker, we're not bringing a bus :)

We were considering an RV though, but i read a lot of posts advising not to b/c of the cleaning fees and it WILL be dusty. We go camping to psytrance festivals on the East coast, so camping part is not the issue. And i live by the ocean so i'm used to really strong gusty winds pretty much all year round.

I guess it's the unusual things like the disposal of the grey water/showering, extreme temp. change during the night, and things like bikes and other gear that we can't check in on the plane.

Tankie · Post by **Tankie** » Mon May 11, 2009 9:48 am

Dr Pyro

Thank you for the contact info!

I'm not sure where are we flying into right now. Reno looks like the closest airport, so it'd be my first choice, but we'll see what will make more sense in terms of flight schedules, driving distances and routes. So far we have the tickets to BM, anxiety about under preparing and excitement about going :)

Post by **AntiM** » Mon May 11, 2009 9:54 am

The trouble with RV water tanks is that they're not really big enough for the entire week, so you end up rationing the shower and not using the toilet anyway. You'd be surprised how clean you can get with a mister and baby wipes.

I like sleeping in colder/cooler temps, so having a nice warm blanket or bag covers that. It isn't that bad. Noise is more of an issue for me, I've learned to love the earplugs and the body-thumps.

Bikes? If you pick them up at a box store, you can drop them off on the way out, and they will be fixed up to rent to burners next year. Sometimes you can rent from the roadside on the way in, but it isn't a sure thing. Check the back issues of Jackrabbit speaks for bike info. Or you can dazzle us with your wit and charm and convince on of us eplayan suckers to bring bikes for you. (not me, I'm already obligated, LOL)

Anything you pick up in Reno, try to have a plan to give it away so it isn't just tossed.

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Mon May 11, 2009 2:26 pm

Dr. Pyro wrote:
Having been a New Yorker at one time (my girlfriend want to Far Rockaway HS) I have a certain soft spot for my fellow denizens of Gotham. Hope I can be of help.

Doc

Explains so much...

Newbie from New York

Newbie from New York

Re: Newbie from New York