MV application, hoping I did the right thing.

[mshaman]

The member of my camp that has the most experience with MV applications lives 2000 miles away. He has already submitted applications for 2 existing MV's.

I submitted applications for several new ones that are being built here in Colorado. I felt it was better to go ahead and get the application in than to wait for better artwork or photos.

The vehicles are big, provide service to the playa, and will be radically illuminated. They are completely mutated or built from scratch, no schoolbus with some paint on the side and paper-mache on the hood.

I didn't realize that there were on the order of 1500 MV applications last year and that only about 600 were accepted (as I'm told by a local burner who has an MV--I haven't validated the claim).

This has me concerned because I just submitted some early sketches we had with our application, not really spectacular renderings of the vehicles. The ticket fiasco has slowed construction significantly (lost 75% of our labor and donors) and if the DMV wanted photos, what they'd get is things like a pile of plywood, a truck frame with a custom powertrain, and some box tube that has been cut but not welded yet.

Does anyone who is intimate with the process know if I have hurt my chances here? I don't really have a gauge of how far along the DMV wants us to be with the car in order to approve or disapprove the project. I also don't have a good sense of how the text, art, etc. are valued in the application process.

It seems ludicrous that the DMV would expect you to spend a few hundred man-hours and thousands of dollars to complete a project that may or may not be amenable to them, and has a 30% chance of being approved. On the other hand, I imagine that most of the rejected applications are golf carts with with some crap hung on them that are really just personal transportation attempts, and that they'd want some certainty that the project will actually be completed before approving it.

Thoughts, experiences on how this process works?

I'm guessing someone will ask, so here are the concepts:
1. Gypsy Wagon, body built from scratch to look like a traditional Gypsy Caravan, but big, with 2 stories. Roof deck, 1930's truck chassis (with spoke wheels, not Budds), gypsy readings and performers by day, party for 70 with wet bar by night.
2. School of gypsy wagons: 6 converted cooler-scooters that look like gypsy wagons. They spend most of their time racing around an AstroTurf track in our camp (no MV application required for that, as I understand it), but we want to be able to follow the big wagon like a school of fish giving away schwag (stuff promoted by the snake-oil salesman on the back of the big wagon).
3. Love Rocket Ajax, inspired by the War Rocket Ajax form the 1980 camp film "Flash Gordon". The "fuselage" is built form 2 airstream trailer bodies, delta-wing dance-floors, wet bar, custom structure (no truck frame, wheels are in the same positions they'd be in on an aircraft landing gear). Party for 50 at night, campy art tours during the day.

Cool concepts, my concern is getting through the application process alive. Input/feedback appreciated.

[lemur]

i worked all almost all of the processing sessions last year.. the figure your local burner friend gave of over half being denied doesnt jive with what i saw...its way off.. .... and it seems to mix in handicapped/disabled vehicles with the non disabled vehicles... of which well over 600 nondisabled were invited

sending sketches doesnt hurt your chances, if the people processing feel like it seems like theres not enough info to make a proper judgement youll be asked for more info/better pictures/sketches.. judgements wont be made unless it is clear whether or not the thing would be able to comply with the guidelines or not.. even being denied you are given an appeal.. and throughout the process youll be told where problem areas are, where concerns are..etc

built from scratch doesnt guarantee an invite, of course.. the vehicle will be judged on the guidelines posted and one of the things that is considered is your vehicle intent you fill out in the application.. again, you get an appeal for anything that would get denied..

and sketches are OK.. theres many sketches that get invited... and if it doesnt seem like enough info it will go into a holding queue until more info comes... so.. dont worry.. youll get chances to make your case..

and of course! you can email the dmv with updated pictures at any time in the process, put your vehicle name in the subject and be as descriptive as possible..


edit: i would also add that a flickr page or website with in process images can be helpful.. something that could likely be added to your application after it was made in an email to the DMV..... just to give you some perspective... last year i remember at least one vehicle that got the invite nod when we saw the quality of work that was done on just a single portion of the vehicle.. it was well done. that can inform the level of skill/work thatd be expected on the rest of the vehicle.. and may be enough for an invite.. also another person showed an image of a previously completed MV that showed very good workmanship.. again they got an invite because their sketch/idea, based upon previous work.. was very likely to come out good.. in the processors estimation..


(i dont represent DMV in any official capacity.. the actual policies and rules/guidlines/implementation of the stuff may be different from official policy.. this is just my opinions from being a lowly DMV volunteer off-playa during processing season)

[lemur]

Does anyone who is intimate with the process know if I have hurt my chances here? I don't really have a gauge of how far along the DMV wants us to be with the car in order to approve or disapprove the project. I also don't have a good sense of how the text, art, etc. are valued in the application process.

It seems ludicrous that the DMV would expect you to spend a few hundred man-hours and thousands of dollars to complete a project that may or may not be amenable to them, and has a 30% chance of being approved. On the other hand, I imagine that most of the rejected applications are golf carts with with some crap hung on them that are really just personal transportation attempts, and that they'd want some certainty that the project will actually be completed before approving it.

a well written and very descriptive application full of text about how you plan to build your thing, what your intent is.. can go a long way to letting the processors know that you can actually do what you plan on doing.. it is certainly valuable.. and.. you can update the info with an email to the DMV if you feel its needed... all the art/info/pictures/websites you can throw at it will only help you...

the DMV does as much as they can in the processing of applications to avoid people hauling out their vehicle to the playa if it wont get an onplaya license.. saying no on the playa after people haul stuff 3000miles out isnt good.. so the more info they have to make a determination in the processing season the better.. you get an appeal as well, if denied.. and you have a chance to address any concerns.. so you do have the ability to make things right..... but yeah, some stuff doesnt meet the bar, some appeals do get denied.. and people have spent a lot of time and money on making those things and it sucks for them.. but! as there are many many hundreds of vehicles who do get invitations.. it is certainly do-able... just meet or, preferably, exceed the minimum criteria.. and be awesome.

[mshaman]

Thanks lemur.

[Bob]

You could bypass all that bullshit and build gypsy wagons to pull by bicycle. Campmates did this in 1999 after getting royally fucked over by the DMV in 1998.

[lemur]

lots of MVs i see where i think 'why didnt they just make it pedal/human powered?!'

sure would bypass a lot of rigmarole

[mshaman]

Heh, we could make the little gypsy wagons pedal cars... beautifully ludicrous. Good ideas...

[zerzura]

Or the little gypsy wagons could be RC controlled.

[trilobyte]

You should also be able to update your application at a later date, as your plans get more fully formed. Send an email with your vehicle name (as it appears on the questionnaire) in the subject line, and then include the updated info. In the case of specific questionnaire items I'd recommend including the question # and then the revised info (when I had to do that on my theme camp questionnaire, I went to the acknowledgement email I got when I submitted the form, it lists all the questions, numbers, and info you provided).

[gyre]

If you want to check whether a concept is viable, you can ask this before any application is submitted.

I've done this.


I'm horrified at the idea of butchering airstreams.