carrying stuff

[weirdscience]

Sorry for all the noob questions coming from me .

But with all your great bm experience i think (even with the snark) i can get good advice and ideas.

so as all of you know with costumes there are pros and cons PRO you look fuckin fantastic , CON how do you carry all your shit with .. such as chap stick , pack of cigs, lighters, camera, water bottle, sunscreen, mister, and the few things you need when out on the playa? how do you carry your stuff?

[Shambala]

This may be a great chance for you to work on self reliance. Try to think this through and figure how you can carry these things with you while out in the Black Rock Desert.

Many people have major challenges, like how do I carry my chapstick, but they try very hard to figure important things like this all by themselves.
You can also use the search feature here and can get some hints about where to put your cigarettes while walking. There is a book that you may be able to check out of your local library called, The Little Engine That Could.

Best of luck with these daunting issues.

[weirdscience]

This may be a great chance for you to work on self reliance. Try to think this through and figure how you can carry these things with you while out in the Black Rock Desert.

Many people have major challenges, like how do I carry my chapstick, but they try very hard to figure important things like this all by themselves.
You can also use the search feature here and can get some hints about where to put your cigarettes while walking. There is a book that you may be able to check out of your local library called, The Little Engine That Could.

Best of luck with these daunting issues.

lol i was thinking about getting a ninja utility belt

[C.f.M.]

.......................................... /sigh

Did you even TRY to think about this answer, or google it, before asking?


Get a fucking backpack, dumbass. Or a hip belt. Or some pockets. However the hell you carry shit around, that's how you'll do it at Burning Man.

[Bob]

[ygmir]

a shopping cart........those skinny wheels work fine, and, you might get free food.

[mudpuppy000]

Same way they do in prison!

[Simon of the Playa]

with my pet mule from boston dynamics, duh...







the cops NEVER stop him....


because they CANT!

[Dr. Pyro]

Quit smoking. Do us all a favor.

[Simon of the Playa]

look who's talking Mr. Hair on Fire...

[Bob]

[Da Mule]

with my pet mule from boston dynamics, duh...

the cops NEVER stop him....

because they CANT!

1) I'm NOT Simon's pet.

2) I'm already busy and am not going to carry your stuff too.

3) I'm not from Boston.

4) It's true the cops CAN'T stop me. I will continue to eat cheez doodles, in public and refuse to pay the stupid tax.

[Shambala]

Alex, the first thing you have to do is fix your signiture line.
(whos awesome.. your awesome) to "Who's awesome? You're awesome."
Next, you might consider if Burning Man is the place for you. Consider yourself getting caught in a 12 hour dust storm in the deep playa and not knowing what direction to head to get back to your camp. Can you survive? Also consider, when you get back, that your tent has taken off in flight. How will you handle this? Do you think you could be radically self reliant?

[C.f.M.]

Alex, the first thing you have to do is fix your signiture line.
(whos awesome.. your awesome) to "Who's awesome? You're awesome."
Next, you might consider if Burning Man is the place for you. Consider yourself getting caught in a 12 hour dust storm in the deep playa and not knowing what direction to head to get back to your camp. Can you survive? Also consider, when you get back, that your tent has taken off in flight. How will you handle this? Do you think you could be redically self reliant?

Did you mean "radically self-reliant?"

[Shambala]

Yes, and thank goodness it was within the hour so I could correct it!

[much2naughty2]

Mr weirdscience. Google Camelbak. Buy a model with pockets. Google Fanny Pack. We went so crazy this year that we brought both a fanny pack and a camelbak. We also bought a basket for out bikes. Never used the camelbak(but they are an awesome product), and by second day we were carring our fanny packs in our bike rack.

If you are that worried about getting back in a dust storm, buy a GPS. We used one this year to get back at night and saved a lot of footsteps.

[junglesmacks]

[SilverOrange]

[Savannah]

I have adaptations that took me a few Burns to settle upon, so I don't mind sharing, weirdscience, however, they are being severe with you for your own good. (Btw, If you can take it in good humor and learn to use the "search" function or lurk + read more, you stand a chance of surviving out there, particularly without being a burden.)

I use a gorgeously dust-colored backpack from the Army/Navy store. I find that starting out dust-colored (and probably used) saves me any obsessives-compulsive stress about how dusty or abused it is. Ha! I have caribeeners down the back (on handy fabric loops these Army/Navy bags so often have) attaching items I use a lot so I don't have to unfasten it every single time I want something, like my goggles, a camping cup, a flashlight on a loop, hand sanitizer, etc. Lighter caribeeners are actually much better (they drag the pack down less, with their combined weight) as long as they aren't totally flimsy ones. The weight of the metal creates a little stress on the fabric, cumulatively. This goes against the hardcore I-love-giant-pieces-of-metal instinct, but it extends the life of the bag's seams considerably.

Backpacks are great for daytime bike riding.

Next year I will 1) embellish my bag more 2) light it even better. (Lighting your pack makes you slightly less likely to be run down by an art car.) 3) I might make a matching playa coat & bag, for ultra-fabulousness.

After several days of carrying a backpack while wearing a tank top or similar, dust trapped under the straps can really irritate the skin. (Solution: wash off dust with soap and water and maybe a little lemon juice, really gently (don't scrape), apply neosporin and let it sink in, & carry the bag differently or carry a different bag). It's nice to have an alternate bag whose straps and/or carrying area rest on another area of the body, like a messenger bag. Having to take a backpack off every time one wants something can also be annoying, especially during a photography expedition.

[junglesmacks]

2) light it even better.

This.

Get one of those ready made 10' EL wire strands if nothing else and loop it all around the sucker, and put the battery box in the pack. I saw some super cool backpack light jobs with EL wire.. full on sequenced flames n shz. Love it.

[weirdscience]

well i forgot to say no back pack but i guess if you wanna carry a lot of shit i guess its the only way i found a bad ass one with a camelbak already in it , also i have bought el wire to light me up real good , and to the person who asked in a dust storm at night if i could find my way back... yes i would for one i have a great sense of direction and two i would have a compass always have one of those and three i would walk my happy ass to the man figure out which way camp is and if my tent blew away... eh screw it ill sleep on the floor http://www.dakine.com/snowboard/packs/s ... o-dlx-20l/

i guess ill shut up now since all i seem to get is snark no more questions from me

i don't seem to think before i post also its not a good idea for me to post something at 328 in the morning while im sleep deprived

[Savannah]

Get one of those ready made 10' EL wire strands if nothing else and loop it all around the sucker, and put the battery box in the pack. I saw some super cool backpack light jobs with EL wire.. full on sequenced flames n shz. Love it.

I will be using battery operated christmas lights, I think. I wore some this year and really liked how they looked. (This time, I think I'll actually stitch some onto a pack in a festive way instead of just wrapping myself in them, which worked fine but had . . . lower production values.)

[Simon of the Playa]

such as chap stick

may i suggest you stick the lip balm in the most obvious place.

[junglesmacks]

http://www.dakine.com/snowboard/packs/snow/heli-pro-dlx-20l/

That's exactly what I have and use and it's the absolute bomb.

[baconqurlyq]

Go to a thrift store and buy a few different ways of carrying your stuff around because I think everyone has a different preference. What you think will work while you're home is WAY different than how you'll feel about things on the Playa.

I took a Camelbak and a messenger bag. I like the convenience of having a lot of water on me for long treks away from camp, but I hated having to fumble with the pack every time I needed something (particularly when I needed toilet paper and hand sanitizer at the portos).

I already bought a fanny pack for the most-used items, and I'm keeping the camelbak for the water and other stuff (goggles, bandanna, etc).

[C.f.M.]

You really don't need to carry a bunch of stuff like that. Just ask people! Everybody's really nice and sharing - they'll have tons of chapstick and cigarettes to give you. The Playa provides!!!

[Savannah]

but I hated having to fumble with the pack every time I needed something (particularly when I needed toilet paper and hand sanitizer at the portos).

To get around this, I make a mini bag with

* travel charmin
* hand sanitizer on a caribbeener (available at some drugstores)
* small light

to be broken away from the bigger bag (or carried down the block). Trying to manage a backpack in the portos is No Fun.

On a related note, this was the first Burn of 6 in which I got comfortable using a freshette and bottle in my tent. Oh my god, it saved so much time and annoyance. I recommend practicing at home, though, because it makes it psychologically much easier.

[Shambala]

i guess ill shut up now since all i seem to get is snark no more questions from me

i don't seem to think before i post also its not a good idea for me to post something at 328 in the morning while im sleep deprived

My dear boy, your words redeemed you! Feel free to ask real questions about your upcoming trip. There are lots of logistical things that you will need answers for. You may want to join local burner groups and make some new friends that you can travel with. There are oodles of resources here and all you have to do is dig a little. The search feature takes a bit of getting used to, but works well once you master it. I give you credit for staying with this thread. Lesser people would be hiding under their covers by now!

edit....
Fucking eh--you fixed your signiture line. If you PM me your address, I will send you one of my coveted laser cut BM necklaces for your very own. You earned it kid!

[junglesmacks]

That last post deserves either a group hug, or a long slow patriotic clap..

[Eric]

Weirdscience_ there's a great thread somewhere on the board called "things you wished you had known your first time" of something similar- find it. Read it. A lot. It will cover lots of your questions.

As for this question- in SF I use a bike messenger bag. On the playa you couldn't give me enough money to use anything with straps- no bag, no backpack, no camelback. I find them all hot & irritating and haven't used them since my first year.

My preference is a Pod Belt- I've been using one since my second year and will probably use one as long as I go.