UK Newbie, reporting for duty! o7

[Martwizz]

Hey guys! Me and my good mate are coming to BM this year all the way from the Isle of Wight (thats in the UK)

Because we're splitting for college/uni this year, we thought we should take the summer and have the most memorable of our lives, and Burning Man seems like the perfect exeprience.

We're both 18, very independant and recourseful. But as you can guess, coming all the way from the UK to live in a desert for a week whilst bieng self sufficient is no simple task, and neither of us drive! We're in the process of planning flights, shit to bring, and all the technical side... but we could really do with some help.

Neither of us will be able to drive by the time we get out there. Although there is a slim chance we may visit a friend in colorado who could join us and drive us all down, it is likely we will need info on transport, or to hitch a ride out there from Reno. And while we can bring most of the kit, we might need help with the 100+ odd litres of water. And bikes!

Also, we figured it'd be best to join a camp because we want to make the most of the time, but we are unsure which to join!

We'd really appreciate it if people could give us suggestions, maybe show us to some other UK BM groups, or maybe offer some help with transport... if someone could lend us a couple of bikes for the weekend this would be great too!

I realise its alot to ask, and its horrible to have to be so dependant on other people, but we are going to do our hardest to return each and every favour twofold!

SO ANYWAY....

Marty (me) and Joey (him) are coming to burning man to see YOU, this 2008. =D

[mdmf007]

Greetings and have a blast - thees lots of groups out there. Just read and make some connections.

Most groups will want a firm commitment of your participation and may be leary of a "might be there"
the two or three of you will do fine by yourselfs even without a group to hang with.

Either way works well.

[Sensei]

Didn't I read in the JRS (Jack Rabbit Speaks!) that they're going to have bike rentals this year for those coming from over 1,000 miles away? I believe you may be in luck. If not, no matter. You'll do just fine on foot, maybe even better.

Getting a ride from Reno shouldn't be too difficult - on Sunday there'll be an almost solid line of cars, trucks and pirate ships from Reno to BRC.

It's early and lots of these so-called 'burners' are last minute types. Come July, you'll see lots of posts from people looking for rides, and other people looking to fill out their motorhomes, buses and alien spacecraft for a nominal fee. Heck, you might even get lucky and find a motorhome full of hotties who'll take pity on your limey butts and give you a ride for free because you talk funny. Stranger things have happened.

Keep the faith. England expects that every man will do his duty.

[sunnygaybraham]

Hello Martwizz, I too am coming all the way from ol' blighty for the occasion!

So what's all this about free bike rentals? How do I find out more about this?

Looking forward to meeting everyone :) x

[brickmaster]

The rentals are not free. They are offered by someone from reno/sparks by the name of Rat. The rental is 40 dollars for the event. As far as I'm aware all the bikes are gone though. I emailed Rat right after the last jack rabbit speaks newsletter and they were already all pre booked. It was/is a really cool and generous idea so my hat goes off to rat!

[sunnygaybraham]

Oops, I cant believe I actually imagined the word "free" - thats wishful thinking for you!

[brickmaster]

Don't worry about it

Anyway you can buy bikes in reno for next ot nothing anyway. Walmart sells bikes for about 50 bucks.
The only thing you need to worry about is how to dispose/gift them afterwards.

Do not leave them on the playa.

If, as happened to us, one of your groups bikes are stolen/borrowed, go to a large art installation where people will have abandoned bikes and offer to take one off their hands and dispose of it yourself.

[sunnygaybraham]

Yeah I'm up for buying a bike so I can customize it and make it simply beautiful. Always wanted those silly little tassles on the end of my handlebars :)

Having some dilemmas about how we're going to transport (let alone acquire) all our gear. Bikes, silly sized water containers, industrial strength tent pegs... don't think it's all going to fit in the boot somehow!

[brickmaster]

It all depend on how many of you are going and on how big the vehicle. IMO only 3 peolpe are able to fit into a normal saloon with gear. We are 4 so we're renting a minivan.
Everything wil fit alright
You will buy a bike rack for ther bikes, so they don't take up any space. Water, if packed correctly doesn't use as much space as you'd think it does.
Suitcases can be a problem.
Pack light. Don't use all of your baggabe allowance when flying in.

Also buy some of the stuff this side of the atlantic on ebay. Sometimes it is cheaper than in US shops.

I recomend at least buying your tents here and bringind them over. That way you can test them out first.

The worst thin you could do is buy a brand new tent before the event and never put it up once. It could be missing a pole or anything.

I think this year I will bring my shade structure with me as well as my second bag.
It is small enough not to be charged extra.

You can get dust goggles and stuff here online if you want or in US. The advantage of getting stuff here is it gives you plenty of time to make it beautiful

[sunnygaybraham]

Yeah I think we're planning/hoping to get most of the things we need in the US. We're flying in on like the 5th so will hopefully have plenty of time to gather everything we need in time.

Have you been many times before? I'll also be in a group of 4, have you ever been part of a larger camp?

And you know this whole thing about not being able to dispose of 'grey water' onto the playa... if we just hook up one of those solar showers in the open and let the water run everywhere will that cause a problem? Is it just big camps that they dont like you emptying your water everywhere?

Not sure how well worded this post is, I've had a couple. Sincerest apologies :( I mean :D x x x x

[AntiM]

Yes, letting the water run all over would be a problem. Check the threads for the greywater topics, there are simple and efficient ways of evapping off the water. A couple black trash bags, an old towel, some wood for supporting the sides and you're good to go.

We do have a solar shower, Larry washes into our black cement mixing flat ... which is our main evap pond. Mostly for dish washing, we're had food poisoning in camp because one year our newbs wiped plates down with clorox wipes and didn't rinse them. Not doing that shit again! Generally, he's the only one who showers, I use a garden sprayer as I don't like the feel of solar shower. Mist and wipe, I'm good to go. I don't wash my hair, it tangles, just tie it up for the week. Everyone else in our camp goes to human carcass wash or uses baby wipes. To each their own.

[gyre]

If you're renting a van, consider a full size one.
Prices are sometimes close or even cheaper for a cargo van.
Beware of the teeny tiney van!!!
There are micro vans even here now.

I drove a microvan to denver for someone and it was smaller than my volvo.
When I put my speakers in the back I couldn't even tilt the seat back.
It was dangerously slow and unstable in the hills too.
I really felt sorry for the people that owned it.
It was going to Salt Lake City, I think.

[brickmaster]

If you are flying in on the fifth then you will have no problems.

But please trust me on this. You must put up the tents at least once before attending.
While I don't know anyone who had a bad tent at BM, I do know of people who went way out in the wilderness in Sweden with a brand new tent that was missing an entire set of poles. The F****ing idiots risked their lives with that move.

With grey water you might find it easier to bring it out with you. We just bought a large funnel so that we could pour it back into the bottles.

You cannot dump any grey water anywhere. This is a big no no.

You can only use small quantities of fresh or melted ice water to keep down dust.

Also since you are going in a group you need to make sure that everyone understands, but more importantly embraces, the rules/guidelines of BM.

But since you are researching this early I know you will be ok

[ibdave]

Also since you are going in a group you need to make sure that everyone understands, but more importantly embraces, the rules/guidelines of BM.

Great words of WISDOM.......