August 29th: Man II
As of this afternoon the new man, Replacement Man, is nearly finished, awaiting some neon. The Man Krew built him on site, working round the clock, and he’ll be ready to raise tomorrow. Access to the...
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August 30th: Towers
View of BRC from the oil derrick Sky High, Part I A big wind storm blew in this afternoon and covered the city in a swirling fog of fine dust. Lots of people ducked for cover, but plenty of us pushed...
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August 31st: Art Appreciation
Crude Awakening figure Art This afternoon I finally rode my bike out to the open playa and looked at some of the art installations. I feel like I’ve missed a lot of the art this year since I haven’t...
View ArticleBonnaroo, Baby!
Burning Man is headed to the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, Tennessee next week to participate in the 7-year old event as Bring It! an amalgamation of Burners Without Borders, Burning...
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Bringin’ It to Bonnaroo: Gittin’ Ready
Tennessee is definitely different than Nevada. Cases in point: • It’s humid. • All y’all have an accent. • The landscape is lush and green and flat and far. • People make the distinction between...
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Bringin’ It to Bonnaroo: Stuff is Happening
Notable quotes from the morning meeting: Carmen to Smoke Blower: “Do you have a shirt that is not nudist related sir?” Marian to the group regarding the fruity moonshine in jars from the back of Cowboy...
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Bringin’ It to Bonnaroo: Let the Music Begin
I thought the Hug Deli sounded kinda dumb actually. When we were talking about it on conference calls during the planning stages of this trip, I thought it sounded lame. But it was going to be just one...
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Black Rock Solar Celebrates Five Years & Two Megawatts
[Marnee Benson is the Deputy Director of Black Rock Solar, the solar non-profit spinoff from Black Rock City LLC.] And then one day in July, under a blazing Nevada sun, the veteran Black Rock Solar...
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My, How You’ve Grown: The Burning Man Effect in Nevada
During the past 25 years, Burning Man has had a profound cultural and economic impact on Reno and the surrounding area. Burning Man culture, and Burners themselves, were not embraced by Northern Nevada...
View ArticleFinal EIS Due Out June 14
Tomorrow we expect the Bureau of Land Management’s Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to be published and linked on the BLM ePlanning website. I’m here today to give you an update on the EIS,...
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August 1st: To Gerlach in the Subaru
I left Reno at 3:30 this afternoon, two hours later than planned. There was a lot to do before I came out to Gerlach since I’ll be gone for a month. Take care of my dog, get the house dialed in,...
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August 2nd: The Golden Spike & Office Space
p.fullbreak { clear: both; } A Day at the Office I spent most of the day in the Burning Man Office. You may have guessed, this isn’t a typical office. It’s way better. First of all, it’s on Main...
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August 3rd: Supplying the Burn
p.fullbreak { clear: both; } Supplying the Burn Hazmatt is Burning Man’s Purchasing Manager. He’s a dot-com refugee who now oversees acquisitions and requisitions for everything needed to erect,...
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August 4th: Form Stakes & Range Finders
p.fullbreak { clear: both; } “Four inches left. Mark it, 5:00 and Arctic.” That’s the word from the Octagon to one of the teams on the Survey crew. Coyote’s got one eye on the transit and a radio in...
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August 5th: What It’s Like Here
p.fullbreak { clear: both; } Last night there was a bit of a party at the Social Club. It was fun enough that a few of us made the rounds this morning apologizing hopefully for whatever we might have...
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August 10th: Fence
p.fullbreak { clear: both; } Fence. Say it to a normal person, and they might look at you like: “Yeah, so what?” Say it to DPW and they’ll get a semi-crazed look in their eyes. A little drool maybe....
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August 11th: Day Two on the Playa
p.fullbreak { clear: both; } You might be wondering what the DPW subsists on during long hot days on the open playa while they toil away pounding t-stakes, tying fence and erecting huge structures....
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August 12th: Super Dave & Meteor Showers
p.fullbreak { clear: both; } Last night we celebrated completion of the fence as well as our last big night in town. I hung out for a while with Ray Posado, Burning Man Transpo Manager. He’s had a...
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August 13th: Via the Playa
p.fullbreak { clear: both; } Woke up at 6:30 (with great difficulty) and headed out to the playa for a 7:30 meeting at the DPW Depot, our first morning meeting on the playa. Everything’s different now....
View ArticleAugust 15th: I Live in Black Rock City
I got back from Reno last night, just in time for dinner on the playa and a really great night out at Crane Camp. People are starting to drive around now in the evenings, visiting each other and...
View ArticleAugust 16th: Whiteout!
Dude, major dust storm today. Major. But first, a word from our Placement Team… On the way to the DPW meeting this morning, it was sooo cool to see the lineup of vehicles making the slow speed...
View ArticleAugust 17th: Booty Shorts Day on the Shade Crew
Shade, Baby Shade is not a luxury item in Black Rock City. It’s essential. Right up there with water and sleep, you gotta have it. So it should come as no surprise to find out that Burning Man has a...
View ArticleAugust 18th: Early Man
After a really good morning workout and breakfast at the commissary, I drove to Gerlach to work in the office. Andie Grace was there, and so was Tom Price, Mishka, and Tomas. I was so tired that I...
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August 19th: Bring Your Goggles
The Way It Is Today was so dusty and windy that it took me about 20 minutes to get from the Depot at 5:30 and the outskirts to 3:30 and the Esplanade. I had to stop completely and wait about ten times...
View ArticleCommunity Bike Project
This morning at the DPW meeting we got a beer cozy. In case you don’t already know, I’ll tell you: DPW swag is cool. The morning meetings usually last about half an hour, and it’s a chance for everyone...
View ArticleDPW Safety Meeting
4:20 Spire One of the DPW crews has been putting up spires for days, along the Esplanade and down each of the Promenades at 3:00, 6:00, and 9:00. During the dust storms last weekend the spires and...
View ArticleAugust 22nd: Heavy Equipment Rules
I spent the morning with Support Services. This is the heavy equipment team, the crew with the Cadillacs. They are led by a guy named Big Stick and dispatched by a dude called Chaos. One of them...
View ArticleAugust 23rd: It’s Art, Not Math
At this morning’s meeting we talked about the completion of the solar array, the progress of the Community Bike Project, and plans for the DPW parade on Saturday of the event. Johnny Amerika and Rock...
View ArticleAugust 24th: Upper Management
This might be the only organization where people can wear anything they want and still be judged on the caliber of their work and dedication. Panties and bras, 4” platform boots, cornrows and corsets....
View ArticleAugust 25th: Serendipity
Morning Meeting Today was the last morning meeting until after the event for the Black Rock City Department of Public Works. One of the things we talked about was the DPW parade next weekend. There’s...
View ArticleAugust 26th: Yellow Bikes & The Gate Opens
Loose Chains and Steep Hills Today was the day we got to ride Yellow Bikes (the green ones) en masse from the work ranch, formally known as Black Rock Station, to the playa. We were supposed to meet...
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August 27th: Community Services
I spent today with Harley Dubois, Director of Community Services and Playa Safety. As such, she’s in charge of one or two little things like: * Theme camps & villages * Placement * Ingress &...
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August 28th: Man Down
Last night at about 3:00 am, as the moon was fully eclipsed and thousands of people were celebrating out on the playa, someone set the Man on fire. He’s still standing, but he’s burned to a crisp. We...
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So, You Want to Visit the Playa This Summer… Part 2: Updates from BLM
A series about visiting the Black Rock Desert in the summer of 2021, with updates from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), insights into desert life, responsible recreation on public lands, Leaving No...
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So, You Want to Visit the Playa This Summer… Part 3: Responsible Recreation,...
A series about visiting the Black Rock Desert in the summer of 2021, with updates from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), insights into desert life, responsible recreation on public lands, Leaving No...
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