Where do you park or camp with an Art Car?

[drpanda]

Hello everyone and thanks in advance for your helping me with my questions.

So 2014 will be my 2nd year to Burning Man. 2012 was my first. The first time I came, I joined a camp at the 3:30 and e area. It was nice, I came in Monday morning, and pulled in where other camp mates had already established a camp area. I had so much fun on my first burn thatI decided to build a small art car. This year, I got permission to build a mutant vehicle. I am driving a passenger van in with a 25 foot trailer/toy hauler to haul the mutant vehicle in. All in all, the total is going to be around 45 feet long. It isn't going to be too easy to navigate and will require a much larger area to park than I had last time I was on the playa.

This year, I wanted to sort of free camp and not be associated with any camp in particular and just be a free spirit with my wife (first time on the playa). With that said, I have searched all over the forum on how to camp, but I cannot find out where we are supposed to park to set up camp. Is everything first come first served where you just come in, find an empty place and park? Or, are all of the theme camps all labeled? I don't want to drive in, set up camp, only to find out I am parked in the middle of someone's assigned area.

Finally, because I have a mutant vehicle that I am going to have to park as well, is it OK to rope off an area, so that I know that I have a place to park the art car? Sorry for the noob questions, but I figure I better get a better understanding before I get there.

[Captain Goddammit]

You will be given a map at the gate that shows the assigned and open areas.

[tamarakay]

Make some sign that you can put up when you leave that say art car parking area. Maybe stretch out a tarp and stake it down. Some sort of visual so some hippie doesn't park a tent there. We had just enough of an area next to our monkeyhut on the side of the road where the car could fit. We'd lock up a few bikes on the space when the car was out.

[Lonesomebri]

Yes, any area that is not marked on the map or on the ground for placed camps is theoretically open for first come. I would imagine you would need allies in your Mutant Vehicle pursuit. Spotters for driving at night thru the city, bouncers to keep the rabble off. And some neighbors to keep your spot reserved for the vehicle empty. I've seen camps form sort of a horse-shoe shape and have the vehicle in the center. Any spot that looks empty will probably be filled by someone. The spot needs to look used,, even when the vehicle is out and about. But I really don't know, as my mutant vehicle is a bike.

[trilobyte]

Roping off an area for 'reserved parking' isn't going to work. There are some great ideas above, and you may also want to think about how you lay out or set up your camp to minimize the risks of someone thinking it's empty and available space. I'd park it right in front of your camp (but not in the street) - parallel with the street you're on. Then I'd recommend making some kind of camp sign. The camp name should make it clear it's a mutant vehicle camp (XYZ car camp, etc). Stuff like that will make it fairly obvious to anyone paying attention that the space is being used for something.

From there, I suggest being prepared to get slightly social. Say hello to your neighbors, both as you arrive and as they arrive after you throughout the week. If they know you, and they know a little bit about what you're doing (and that you guys are solo, not expecting more vehicles to arrive), they may be more likely wave off anyone that mistakenly pulls in or parks there.

The last tip I'd offer is to always take a few deep breaths as you approach someone that parks in the spot. Because no matter how obvious you make it, no matter how well marked the space is, there will be a time when you come in and someone's in the space. Trust me, that will happen - I've been a part of a registered camp for years, and even then we end up with a vehicle or two pulling in and parking on us. Have patience - 99.9% of them didn't know any better. They just arrived at Burning Man or they're lost and looking for friends and they just weren't thinking.

Hope that helps!

[FossaFerox]

Trilo gave done great advice. It's comedic how any empty space fills if you let it. "No, you can't pitch a tent behind our camp next to our shower. How did you even get back here? Shoo!"

[Captain Goddammit]

I don't recall having trouble getting parked at camp.
However, I think the staked-down parking tarp is the best idea. It's pretty universally recognized that something goes there, and you don't have to do or undo anything everytime you pull in or out.
You'd even get bonus green points for parking on a tarp and not leaking anything on the playa.

[trilobyte]

I like the tarp idea too.

[theCryptofishist]

Just don't park on the 800 pound gorilla.

[dragonpilot]

Maybe try setting up your tentage/RV/kitchen just off the street about the width of your MV plus a foot or two...park the MV in front in that space. No guarantee that some unknowing person won't pitch their camp right there, but if it looks busy enough with camp chairs/tables etc...might work.

[Oldguy]

Everyone knows that if you put your towel on the deck chair, the space is reserved. Remember to put towels on your deck chairs. Or make a sign, Art Car Parking ONLY! I've seen those.

[LowePro]

Would just add that you're probably more likely to find a larger open spot for your camp and MV in the further-out streets (H and beyond) and on the 3-6:00 side of the city, according to the current buzz about this year's city layout.

[maladroit]

I happened to be looking for a friend at his camp in 2012, on Thursday, but they were out in their MV. Right as I got there, someone swerved into the street frontage space where they usually parked the MV, and started setting up. It really was just a space between the street and the camp's shade structure, maybe 8 feet deep and 15 feet of street frontage, with a "Mutant Vehicle Parking" sign in front of it.

The part that makes me the most uncomfortable about these situations is that, when you talk to the people doing this, they're operating on a long history of willful ignorance. They protest that they didn't know, that they didn't see the sign, that this space doesn't look like it's being used, and who are you anyway, acting like you're in charge here. They'll start out antagonistic and then once they've gotten you upset, they'll flip to a friendly placating mode to try to make you feel like you're being the unreasonable one. Most of what they have in life was achieved by closing their eyes and grabbing it, and opening them to see if anyone noticed.

[Ratty]

We don't set up 'on the curb'. There is a space between our tents, vehicles, shade structure and the street. We simply put some stakes, lights, art, bike rack and a long banner of little flags across the entire front of our camp. This keeps people from thinking it's open space and we retain our view of the parade on 'G' street.

You can easily design a banner that unhooks to let you drive out but saves your spot.

[Captain Goddammit]

(all the stuff maladroit just said)

You're looking at this all wrong. That tent could serve as a drop cloth underneath your M/V in case you leak a drop of oil or something after you back in and park!