Was there a lot of sand on the playa this year?

[fle33]

I took a break in 09. Over the past 3-4 years the amount of sand building up on the playa has been increasing. How was it this year?
Was there any rain during winter to flatten the sand and dust out?

If its the same rainfall this year I'll leave my bike at home in 2010 (Australia)

Thanks.

[ibdave]

Sand?? You must of been on a different Playa that the rest of us...
No sand on the Playa,
Just Playa...

[jkisha]

It was pretty good this year. Didn't get thrown off my bike once! No dust dunes like last year.

JK

[ygmir]

It was pretty good this year. Didn't get thrown off my bike once! No dust dunes like last year.

JK

I gotta ask, though, JK.......relating to your avatar and all:

but, did you get jerked off it?.........

[jkisha]

It was pretty good this year. Didn't get thrown off my bike once! No dust dunes like last year.

JK

I gotta ask, though, JK.......relating to your avatar and all:

but, did you get jerked off it?.........

LOL, maybe once, but it was out in the deep playa, late at night.

JK

[ygmir]

hahaha,
'as it should be'.....so it is..............

[Captain Goddammit]

People that have never been to Black Rock Desert are always referring to the "sand" but I've never heard that from someone who's been there!

[theCryptofishist]

Playa floor sucked. Sucked, sucked, sucked, sucked, sucked!
I couldn't use the push chair, and I got stuck more times on the power chair than last year.

[Artemis]

Playa surface was particularly bad over by 3 keyhole for some reason.

In other areas it seemed slightly better than last year, but I got stuck a bunch of times per day where I had to stand up on pedals and use entire bodyweight to get moving again. (I know, I know, not an option for cryptofishist).

I'm going to try and take bike to a shop before I head to BRC next year to see if they can loosen the chain a bit (hoping that will help but am a little clueless). It's a one-speed but if I could change gears I wouldn't be in that one!

[Artemis]

and hey, yeah, OP called it sand, but (s)he's from Australia! cut some slack

[Boijoy]

I thought the surface conditions improved from last year around town & in front of the man. But deeper into the playa it sucked. I keept thinking I had a flat tire.

[Bob]

Indeed, very little sand, mostly silt & clay.

[Fire_Moose]

....it's fish shit

[Ugly Dougly]

It's a very fine sand, called by those without geology degrees "dust".

And there were places - especially on rutted roads - where my trusty steed got bogged down in fine sand until I kicked 'er in the guts.

[Sail Man]

Playa floor sucked. Sucked, sucked, sucked, sucked, sucked!
I couldn't use the push chair, and I got stuck more times on the power chair than last year.

Maybe a set of Super Swampers would help
And a gas engine.
Possibly tire chains?


Oh, and a drink dispenser. That would help the best because then you really wouldnt care

[klondike_bar]

It was my first year, and the dust was within reasonable expectations.

many festivals involve pits of mud on all the paths, whereas burningman has slight dust/sand dunes.

There were a few times that i had to get off my bike to either trek across a bad patch or get a better kickoff a few feet to the side.

however, the potholes surprised me. I didnt expect that thered become actual ruts in the ground, being almost as difficult to navigate as the sandy patches.

[Ugly Dougly]

We needed personal hovercrafts.

[octoboi]

Granted this was my first year on the playa, so I don't have past years for comparison. I loved it.

I had been told stories, read a lot of the boards, researched like crazy, and had this impression that the dust would be a difficult bike ride. I would say that easily 70 percent of the time I had no issues with it and truly enjoyed the bike rides through it no matter the random bright color or interesting event that called us to seemingly random paths.

There was at least one time when we were heading out towards the man or the temple, I forget which, when I was mired to a complete stop, but then I learned that I had to focus on the skills of my long lost youth and actually stand up on the pedals and really put some effort into it, as that or walking were my only options. Well, or to park the bike randomly and grab an art car.

There was another time when I was wandering from our camp on 4:30 and Chaos, to get ice, and I thought it would be fun to try out my costumed platform shoes. Wow, that was an error I will not repeat. Apparently the dust, when it forms those little soft bowls, creates a platform shoe trap designed to bring the wearer of said shoes down to face the dust personally. I made it to the ice camp, red wagon and body intact, without a single fall. I had plenty of near falls and felt that my ankles were going to give at some point. About a third of the way back to camp, little red wagon filled with ice, the trap got me and I did a nice little face plant in the dust. I got up, dusted myself off (hahaha) and went along my way while showing just a little more caution. Had I done that same manuever at home, I believe that words to cause a sailor to blush would have been vocalized rather loudly and my general demeanor for the day would have been ruined. As it was, I was in playa mode and so relaxed and happy that it only caused me a slight look of concern as I dropped and then a quick mental note not to bring these same shoes back in 2010.

Near the end of the week, I did notice more and more of these little traps in the roads, but I suspect that this is natural after having 40k plus people wander through them on bikes, feet, art cars, and the like.

Dan (currently in search of playa name)

[Ugly Dougly]

There was at least one time when we were heading out towards the man or the temple, I forget which, when I was mired to a complete stop, but then I learned that I had to focus on the skills of my long lost youth and actually stand up on the pedals and really put some effort into it, as that or walking were my only options.

Right, drop into first gear, and power your way out of it. That was kind of fun actually.

[fle33]

[quote="Captain Goddammit"]People that have never been to Black Rock Desert are always referring to the "sand" but I've never heard that from someone who's been there![/quote]

Increase your sample pool captain!
I've crossed the big pond to the US 5 times now for Burning Man.... and so am qualified to say that "sandcycling" by any other name is just as annoying..

Being from a country surrounded by sandy beaches, and living within strolling distance to a beach, where I walk my dogs daily, I can say that the playa sand is really a lot like beach sand.. less than 1mm (1/32") kinda hard, everywhere.. and really tough to ride a bike in..

It was really sandy in the deep playa and the open wind swept areas.. I guess the wind was able to blow away the lighter "dust" leaving only sand dunes. The roads are more of a "dusty" kinda sand..

sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand

[theCryptofishist]

Playa floor sucked. Sucked, sucked, sucked, sucked, sucked!
I couldn't use the push chair, and I got stuck more times on the power chair than last year.

Maybe a set of Super Swampers would help
And a gas engine.
Possibly tire chains?


Oh, and a drink dispenser. That would help the best because then you really wouldnt care :lol:

Okay, you work ems. Next time you get some person in a fancy chair like that who dies on you, snag that chair (I know you got room in the ambulance) and bring it to me.

[Ugly Dougly]

sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand sand

Deserts can be like that, you know.

[Captain Goddammit]

Increase your sample pool captain!

Shit, I've been going to the playa for about ten years, lol.
No offense intended.
I'm glad it isn't sand, I'd have to fit much larger wheels and tires on the Land Yacht, harder to conceal. And I'd have to call it the Sand Yacht. Airstream didn't make a model called "Sand Yacht" for me to get the cool chrome side emblems off of... that would be a problem.

[oneeyeddick]

You could get them custon made to say "Captian's little Dinghy", and then you would be covered either way.

[pinemom]

Fishy you still need.....

[littleflower]

Fishy you still need.....

can we pool together and get her one?

[ygmir]

a swimming fundraiser?..........

[Token]

He, he ... Raver Camo

[MyPlayaUserName]

Personally, I felt this year's playa was LEAGUES better than last year's. Much more firmly packed. It was only out closer to the barrier fence that you really had to keep an eye on where you were riding.

[Simon of the Playa]

i don't know what the fuck you people are talking about.


it tasted EXACTLY like last years...


5 years ago, it was a little more playa-y, but not to overwhelm the palate.


i found this years playa to be robust, and full flavored, with just the right hint of gypsum for body.


all in all, an excellent year, and i for one have bottled some up and put it away in my climate controlled suitcase, as a "Reserva".

cheers.