So, curious…anyone here go to Burning Man this year?
Burning Man seemed like a cool idea when it first started. Now that it’s got so much corporate and legal crap revolving around it, it’s lost whatever magic I MAY have been interested in.
Corporate crap? Actually it still has absolutely zero corporate involvement – no sponsors, no ads, nothing of the sort.
As for the legal crap, to what are you referring?
I always watch the coverage on TV if it’s on.
Ticket prices are ridiculous. And I’m sure that insurance and whatever legal permits for the event are covered in that price, as well as clean-up afterwards.
For what was to be the free spirit of the event initially has become so publicized and romanticized, it appears too many idiots attend as well, trying to capture that spirit.
I could be wrong though. I’ve never attended.
How can you comment on something you’ve never attended? That makes no sense to me.
I missed the burn this year. My last burn was a couple of years ago and we took our two year old son with us and camped. Brutal is the right word for the experience.
I want to go back in a couple of years as it’s a fun experience but now I’ve got to balance more things to it’s harder to go to. But it’s always well worth it.
If you want to get the “pure” experience then go on Monday and leave before the tourists get there on Friday. Frankly the actual burn is my least favorite part of the whole thing. I typically greet when I’m there and that’s a blast and a half.
james
[quote]atypical1 wrote:
How can you comment on something you’ve never attended? That makes no sense to me.
I missed the burn this year. My last burn was a couple of years ago and we took our two year old son with us and camped. Brutal is the right word for the experience.
I want to go back in a couple of years as it’s a fun experience but now I’ve got to balance more things to it’s harder to go to. But it’s always well worth it.
If you want to get the “pure” experience then go on Monday and leave before the tourists get there on Friday. Frankly the actual burn is my least favorite part of the whole thing. I typically greet when I’m there and that’s a blast and a half.
james
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Okay James I have heard of it, but I have no clue WTF it is.
Always seemed like a Cali hippy thing.
Enlighten me sir.
Yeah dude, you left me with more questions than answers lol.
[quote]countingbeans wrote:
Yeah dude, you left me with more questions than answers lol.[/quote]
What up Beans, I could have fucking used more effort out of Brady, I have him as my QB in three of my FF leagues.
[quote]atypical1 wrote:
How can you comment on something you’ve never attended? That makes no sense to me.
[/quote]
You’re right, James. I based my opinion on the coverage I’ve seen of the event over the past decade or so, as well as the criticisms of others (from other forums) who’ve attended.
Apologies!
I guess my “idealist” view of an event would be something like the first Woodstock was, and not what it became decades later. From what I’ve heard, Burning Man was very similar.
It’s what you make of it really. It could be anything. If you want it to be a big drug filled party then it’s that. If you want it to be someplace you can get away from everything then it’s that. It’s a place where you can see the cool things that people have created and then will destroy. If you want it to be where you look at the circus freaks then it can be that.
For me it’s just somewhere we can go to get a different perspective on things. I get to see some amazing art, dress up like a fool, meet some cool people, and just be different. We don’t drink or do drugs so our party scene is more about just riding our bikes around camp and enjoying all of the cool things.
People typically dislike change but everything changes. Is it bigger than when it was at Baker Beach? Of course. But if you accept that it’s going to change as it gets bigger you’ll still see the exact same things that you saw when it was small. Do I cringe at the tour buses of daytrippers that I see enter camp? Sure. Do I let it ruin my experience? Of course not.
james
Do I like the way atypical explains things?
Yes.
Do I think I’ll subconsciously comment about it in similar fashion?
More than likely yes.
As for Burning Man, I had a three year window where I could have (and should have) gone. That window is where I was single, had a pretty open mind about the direction I was headed and plenty of years ahead of me to decide. Then (cliche, of course) 9-11 happened and since I was active duty Military I really didn’t have a choice about the direction I was headed. I decided that if I was to be a serviceman, I better be a good one, and Burning Man didn’t fit into that ideal. Matter of fact I remember being in conversations where we’d scoff at Burners, saying things like “hmmph those hippies are out in the desert, probably could care less that WE are fighting for THEM…”
Now that I’m out of the Military and getting older and have a family I feel like I missed that window, regrettably.
What I will say about that scene is this: Even though I’m not a part of it and probably never will be, I’m glad it exists, if only to see photos of the creativity online and be re-assured that there are people out in Black Rock City who are opening up cool little portals of expression and freedom.
Ultimately, it’s probably a more exclusively “American” event than the 4th of July and Thanksgiving combined.
Good to see another burner
I’ve only been going for 6 years, and not all contiguously, but I have to say that this was by far my favorite burn. To me, there had been a tiny bit of elitism building up, with an anti-authoritarian experiment developing its own social strata based on who has been going longer, or who was involved with what projects…but what happened this year with the tickets brought in a combination of a LOT of very high-energy new blood mixed with some of the most dedicated but less bungholish old Burner crowd.
Fantastic energy the whole way through.
As for what it is…it’s pretty damned hard to explain it, but atypical hit the feel of it pretty damned well. There’s music, art, sex, classes and seminars on the weirdest (and sometimes utterly fascinating) topics you could imagine, and thousands of really fascinating people from all around the world (it’s in no way merely a California thing, even though its origins were in California). Or you could just go to look at the amazing improvised engineering – much of which is intentionally designed to be destroyed at the end of the event.
Just imagine incredibly creative people, getting together with other folks with experience, knowledge, new ideas, and money, producing some of the most fascinating interactive art pieces around, with no motive for resale*, and little if any attempt at permanence. Some of it is lame, some of it is fascinating, and most of it is extremely fun.
But again…this barely covers a hint of it. There are limitless distractions for you if you’re a hippie, or an artist, or a pure dubstepping raver kid. It’s just fun to see all the various worlds interact.
My first year, more than half of my motivation to go was because of the thousands of incredibly beautiful, barely-clad, uninhibited women who inevitably attend But there’s so much more, and no description I’ve read captures it all.
As for the price…it ranges from $290 to $420, for basically 7 or so days where it’s close to impossible to get bored…there’s so much to do that it’s a challenge just to get a couple of hours of sleep per night.
Edited add-on: You can get tickets for as low as $160, they offer a few thousand tickets at this range, but you have to write a little essay where you describe what you’ll bring to the event. Two of my friends went in this capacity.
As for talk of higher-priced tickets, you see ludicrous prices for scalped tickets on ebay or craigslist once in a while, simply because last year’s event sold out (there was an attendance cap put on the event by the Bureau of Land Management). There is absolutely zero reason to ever buy these tickets, as this year (for example) there were something like 10,000 tickets for sale at face value through craigslist or the Burning Man eplaya ticket-exchange website. Anyone who paid above face value was taken advantage of, or jumped the gun without doing adequate research. I’m among those people, as last year I bought a ticket for $550 via StubHub, only to find out that there were plenty of $400 tickets available all over the place…oh well, I panicked when I found out that the rumors of a sell-out were real.
Not all that much money, considering that it’s a one-week event with more possible activities than any human could do in a week even if they never slept and could clone themselves a few times over… though you do supply your own food and camping gear.
Oh, and Brad: Loved your post, man! And your window isn’t closed…you’d be welcome and you’d have a blast. Despite the association with hippie/raver culture (and its associated drugs), there are plenty of families at the event. My sister and I are trying to figure out how to bring our 77 year old mom with us, next year (at least for a day or two, she might be a fly-in one day tourist unless we can swing a decent RV!)
- – Please don’t anyone assume that this comment implies that I’m anti-capitalist…I’m far from it…I grew up reading Von Mises and S.E. Konkin III. But I do recognize that sometimes things voluntarily produced without a profit motive can resonate in a particular way that can be powerful…or cheesy…the potential for both exists.
Great post LHT! You would be surprised at all the different places burners turn up…lol.
I’ve gone 5 times now but it’s been a couple of years since we’ve gone. We are thinking about attending next year but that kinda depends on when grad school starts for me. Otherwise it will be in another three.
I agree about the elitism and that’s actually exactly what ID was talking about. I’m glad to hear that there was less of it this burn. It shouldn’t be like that but it comes down to who camps, who got to the playa first, etc instead of just sharing the experience.
I typically greet when we go because I love helping out all of the new people who get there and are in a state of shock from the front gate and just look out at the sea of tents, lights, and crazy structures. It’s very satisfying to help orient them to their new temporary home.
Next time we go though we won’t take Holden along as it was brutal bringing a two year old there. Next time he goes he’ll be 11 or 12 at the youngest. And I agree with you about Brad’s window not being closed. It’s never too late to attend.
james
[quote]pushharder wrote:
[quote]Dr. Pangloss wrote:
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I’m Push W. Harder and I approve of this post.[/quote]
What’s the W stand for?
[quote]Dr. Pangloss wrote:
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NICE!!
[quote]pushharder wrote:
[quote]Iron Dwarf wrote:
[quote]pushharder wrote:
[quote]Dr. Pangloss wrote:
[/quote]
I’m Push W. Harder and I approve of this post.[/quote]
What’s the W stand for?
[/quote]
Winchester![/quote]
But of course!