RV rentals in Reno

[edbrez]

Hi,

I'm looking for a contact hopefully involved in the community here that is local to Reno and is happy to rent RV for Burning Man.
I just got my ticket for BM 2013 and wanna get my RV sorted asap to keep costs low.
Originally I was hoping to travel from San Fran but I have been informed it's a long drive in comparison to Reno. I can fly direct to Reno for a bit more than into San Fran, but it would work out better going to Reno direct when adding the cost of travel from San Fran to flight difference. I checked the Burning Man site and it states El Monte/Budget RV and Truck Rentals owner Steve, best palce to contact as friendly to Burners, but does not appear to be based in Reno....

Any advice most welcome, search on google brings up quite a lot of options, any personal recommendations or suggestions would be greatly appreciated

[lucky420]

try REno craigslist, there are alot of locals who rent out to Burning Man. The rental places charge way more during burning man week than any other week of the year. You can rent a Budget Truck off of Gentry Wy in REno. Lots of people do this and camp out of the truck.

Sorry I dont have any personal contacts for this...

[Savannah]

Someone else will no doubt have RV recommendations, but consider as Lucky suggests the concept of Box Truck Camping, which is way cheaper than an RV. Box trucks make great bedrooms and throw off a little shade automatically. There's a Budget Rental on Gentry Way in Reno that happily rents to Burners and either lets you clean the truck, or pay a reasonable fee for them to do it for you.

Box Truck Camping Tips
http://eplaya.burningman.org/viewtopic. ... 77&t=35289

Admittedly, you would need to do the garden mister/solar shower/evap pond thing if you wanted showers, but having an indoor toilet is overrated. Pee bottles are an accepted part of the culture (detergent bottles work well if you're shy) . . . and you can't poop in an RV toilet for a week and maintain sanity anyway (everyone says so). If you share an RV with another person it's even more important to walk a block and do serious business in the porta-potties.

[junglesmacks]

Steve is most definitely based in Reno.. as he is also the manager/owner/operator of our beloved Gentry Way Budget Truck rentals.

He is pretty much not only booked up for rentals already, but this year El Monte jacked the prices up even more being as that they know they haven't yet met the line of resistance for pricing vs. demand. The lowest price rental starts at a minimum of $7k.

Moral of the story: Don't rent in Reno unless you want to pay an arm and a leg. Look into surrounding areas such as Sacramento.


EDIT: ..and yes.. as the lovely Ms Savannah said above, if you're on a budget.. look into box truck camping. $500-$600 for a barebones RV isn't too bad to me..

[edbrez]

try REno craigslist, there are alot of locals who rent out to Burning Man. The rental places charge way more during burning man week than any other week of the year. You can rent a Budget Truck off of Gentry Wy in REno. Lots of people do this and camp out of the truck.

Sorry I dont have any personal contacts for this...

Thanks Lucky 420,

Any advice welcome .... I kinda wanna have a fridge as I'm hoping to bring a certain amount of fresh food stuffs, box truck would be "grand" (irish slang for fine) but I need a fridge, obviously a cooler may work, but I don't want to buy lots of stuff I only use for the week and will need to discard before I travel back to Ireland. Really wanna keep the moop issue under wraps. If I could gift stuff to a worthy cause maybe my conscience might let me buy all the unnecessary stuff. I just hate waste if I can avoid it.... I'd rather pay the premium that have all the stuff left after the week...

[edbrez]

Steve is most definitely based in Reno.. as he is also the manager/owner/operator of our beloved Gentry Way Budget Truck rentals.

He is pretty much not only booked up for rentals already, but this year El Monte jacked the prices up even more being as that they know they haven't yet met the line of resistance for pricing vs. demand. The lowest price rental starts at a minimum of $7k.

Moral of the story: Don't rent in Reno unless you want to pay an arm and a leg. Look into surrounding areas such as Sacramento.


EDIT: ..and yes.. as the lovely Ms Savannah said above, if you're on a budget.. look into box truck camping. $500-$600 for a barebones RV isn't too bad to me..

I think I just got sick in my mouth $7 that is just plain old robbery!!!
Ok again my plans may be changing, I have a decent amount put aside for the journey but that is just plain stupid money that could be spend more wisely....

...... ummmm ........... what to do.....
I was hoping for something around $2k max, I would be better just buying a fridge and donating it to a charity after

No me thinks will most likely have to be cooler options.... necessity beats conscience

[edbrez]

Admittedly, you would need to do the garden mister/solar shower/evap pond thing if you wanted showers, but having an indoor toilet is overrated. Pee bottles are an accepted part of the culture (detergent bottles work well if you're shy) . . . and you can't poop in an RV toilet for a week and maintain sanity anyway (everyone says so). If you share an RV with another person it's even more important to walk a block and do serious business in the porta-potties.

Yeah I kinda expected the tiolet to be a waste water dump only but judging by the responses here and the projected cost of an RV, I'll be looking into Box Truck option for sure. I'll have three days before the event to get everything I might need to make it work for me. Thanks for link, I had read through it before Graidwig had mentioned it before, looking at difference in costs, its the only option for me really.

It's a continuous ever changing brainstorm and i'm loving it

[graidawg]

mel - from australia had a brilliant idea as regards buying a cooler, buy one and use it as your suitcase. also if you plan to come back in 2014 it can be reused.

Fresh food is vastly overrated, personally i think a cooler for precooked bacon and beer is the best way to go. live off noodles for a week, fressh food for the first couple of days i think 4 or 5 days of canned packeaged food just makes the buffet at the sans when you come out taste even better.

i mean Ed i dont know what fresh food you want to bring but is the cost difference between a box truck (thats a luton to you and me) versus an rv worth it Just for a fridge?

Besides I can pretty much quarantee you will eat about 15% of what you normally eat and most of that will be bacon and pickles (though i do love me some slim jims)

oh Ed one other thing the booze over there is STUPID cheap plus cigarettes too if you smoke. If you want to take something to treat them then single malt whisky goes down well (that is pricey) cordials (i havent taken robinsons but they do like elderflower or ginger cordial). I had (and still do) great fun trying to find things we have they dont, I am sure over in Ireland you have a different selection from me in london.

oh and final point if nobody has mentioned it yet. book a night in an hotel for when you get out, seriously a shower you can stay in for as long as you want is just heavenly after 7+ days on the playa. (the sands in reno is pretty usual for the burners i know)

[junglesmacks]

Have you checked into the thread that Savannah posted regarding box truck camping? It's what I and many others do that fly in from long distance locations.

For $600-ish, you have a ready made windproof, weather proof structure to call home that will also transport yourself and all of your water, food and supplies out there. A 16 foot x 8 foot truck is almost as much square footage as your own bedroom.. so imagine. You don't even need to pay for it until you pick it up.. and you don't even need to clean it when you drop it off as for a small fee, Budget Reno will wash the truck for you. Yes.. they are 1000% burner friendly.

I can't recommend this solution enough for people flying in from out of town..

As for fridge cooler, it's not that bad. For about $35, you can get a really good MaxCold cooler that will hold ice for 5-6 days. We bought two last time there in Reno and gave them away at the end of the burn. Fly in with your clothing and basic supplies.. whatever you can fit in your checked bag and carry on.. and pick up the rest in Reno. When it comes down to it, you really don't need all that much. Think basics. There are threads after threads devoted to this.. and there are threads after threads of burgins trying to pack everything but the kitchen sink. When it comes down to it, all you need is food, water and shelter. The rest is an assortment of Bic lighters, rolling papers, flashlights, blinky toys and maybe a fur merkin or two..

[theCryptofishist]

People can keep veggies fresh with a "dry cooler". Use the search function.

[edbrez]

People can keep veggies fresh with a "dry cooler". Use the search function.

Searching sarcasm

Thanks Fishy I found the search button hahaha, where would I be without you to keepin' me in check

Damn you caught me out, getting advice when I should be trudging through the wealth of information on this forum that tends to overwhelm

[Savannah]

Veggies or fruits in jars/plastic can be chilled in a cooler. Juice (not to mention real non-dehydrated milk) come in boxes and can also be tossed in. That's how I get my vitamins during the week. There is also this thread about which fresh fruits/veggies keep on the playa, and how well. (There are numerous other Cooler threads, too).

HARDY Produce for the Playa?
http://eplaya.burningman.org/viewtopic. ... 76&t=55748

Mel used a cooler as a suitcase, Grai? That is insanely clever. I'm jealous I didn't think of it. I shall have to ask her if she put it in a duffle, or used some other method to keep it closed . . .

[edbrez]

Have you checked into the thread that Savannah posted regarding box truck camping? It's what I and many others do that fly in from long distance locations.

For $600-ish, you have a ready made windproof, weather proof structure to call home that will also transport yourself and all of your water, food and supplies out there. A 16 foot x 8 foot truck is almost as much square footage as your own bedroom.. so imagine. You don't even need to pay for it until you pick it up.. and you don't even need to clean it when you drop it off as for a small fee, Budget Reno will wash the truck for you. Yes.. they are 1000% burner friendly.

I can't recommend this solution enough for people flying in from out of town..

As for fridge cooler, it's not that bad. For about $35, you can get a really good MaxCold cooler that will hold ice for 5-6 days. We bought two last time there in Reno and gave them away at the end of the burn. Fly in with your clothing and basic supplies.. whatever you can fit in your checked bag and carry on.. and pick up the rest in Reno. When it comes down to it, you really don't need all that much. Think basics. There are threads after threads devoted to this.. and there are threads after threads of burgins trying to pack everything but the kitchen sink. When it comes down to it, all you need is food, water and shelter. The rest is an assortment of Bic lighters, rolling papers, flashlights, blinky toys and maybe a fur merkin or two..

Yes Junglesmacks it is unbelievably detailed, Graidawg had mentioned it to me initially when I joined first, thanks for your personal advice and also for all the responses that convince me its the only option that suits
I'm nieve about everything that I read, I have my ideals and its the personal advice that helps me make an informed decision, thanks

[junglesmacks]

Mel used a cooler as a suitcase, Grai? That is insanely clever. I'm jealous I didn't think of it. I shall have to ask her if she put it in a duffle, or used some other method to keep it closed . . .

Sav.. come on now.

[edbrez]

Mel used a cooler as a suitcase, Grai? That is insanely clever. I'm jealous I didn't think of it. I shall have to ask her if she put it in a duffle, or used some other method to keep it closed . . .

Sav.. come on now.

scotch tape added to the ever longer list

[Savannah]

Mel used a cooler as a suitcase, Grai? That is insanely clever. I'm jealous I didn't think of it. I shall have to ask her if she put it in a duffle, or used some other method to keep it closed . . .

Sav.. come on now.

You stop it, Junglesmacks!

I know that would probably work, but I don't know what an airline would think of it, and that's just as important. If they don't trust the integrity of your package, it doesn't matter how good it really is.

[edbrez]

oh Ed one other thing the booze over there is STUPID cheap plus cigarettes too if you smoke. If you want to take something to treat them then single malt whisky goes down well (that is pricey) cordials (i havent taken robinsons but they do like elderflower or ginger cordial). I had (and still do) great fun trying to find things we have they dont, I am sure over in Ireland you have a different selection from me in london.

oh and final point if nobody has mentioned it yet. book a night in an hotel for when you get out, seriously a shower you can stay in for as long as you want is just heavenly after 7+ days on the playa. (the sands in reno is pretty usual for the burners i know)

All great advice Graidawg,

Liking the bit about differences between home and the US, will definitely think about what items I can bring over that would be an eye opener for people.
Black pudding prob wouldn't travel well, and more than likely disgust more than a few
Definitely going to see about setting up a little bar in the back of the truck though, source some 2x4 and ply wood and build a little bar. I'll be picking some up for evap pond anyway so might as well make the best of the time sourcing the materials
The Sands looks lovely, cheap enough as well...

[Savannah]

A little bar in the back of the truck would be so awesome!

Aiming the back door of the truck anywhere but South or Southwest helps in terms of dust. The greatest amount of wind comes from that direction (from Center Camp towards the 9 o' clock side). You'll see that parking tendency when you get there.

[junglesmacks]

I've actually checked coolers as luggage before as well all taped up. No problems. Check linear dimensions though.

[theCryptofishist]

I've checked my Klein bottle too, but you have to be real careful about the dimensions.

[junglesmacks]

4/10

[edbrez]

I've checked my Klein bottle too, but you have to be real careful about the dimensions.

I thought I'd save you the hassle fishy, but all I could find was a bowl
Of course its all relative though.....



I can scratch off the sponsorship if you'd like

[edbrez]

A little bar in the back of the truck would be so awesome!

Aiming the back door of the truck anywhere but South or Southwest helps in terms of dust. The greatest amount of wind comes from that direction (from Center Camp towards the 9 o' clock side). You'll see that parking tendency when you get there.

Cool