The post-STEP catch-all thread

[FIGJAM]

Somebody just said they could over here...

http://eplaya.burningman.com/viewtopic.php?f=290&t=55645&p=867868#p867868

[trilobyte]

No, you can not. The last minute will call instructions are for tickets purchased in the pre-sale, main sale, or through directed tickets and NOT for your non-transferable STEP tickets.

viewtopic.php?f=290&t=57257

[FIGJAM]

Who is JenniferS and why did she tell him he could?

Damn Trilo, I don't want to add to your headaches in dealing with this!

[FELIXWOLFRAM]

Why don't you just trade tickets? The direct distribution are physical tickets. You use that one, she gets the STEP ticket.

Wow...Why didn't I think of that?..Thanks pink!

[pink]

You were overthinking the issue. and of course panicking!

You are welcome!

[tanksalot]

A huge part of the difficulty in selling a STEP ticket is the coordination of the seller and the prospective buyer in arrival time at BM. With just one person on a computer, ownership transfers could be accommodated and hundreds (thousands) of people won't get screwed for $390 or so since coordinating arrival times, especially with no cell phone service in the BM area, is a major bummer. If someone has just one STEP ticket and has learned they can't make it, there's no alternative but to lose the $390.

How is it so different that scalpers invest in tickets with the hopes of making $$$, but BM management can print (STEP) tickets, sell them for $390 and then make transfers due to unforeseen conditions nearly impossible?

There's still time to rectify this situation, but action needs to happen now!

[tanksalot]

Yes, I'm a Burning Man virgin. Hopefully that doesn't automatically make me wrong. If I AM wrong, please give me reasonable, coherent reasons why that is so. Thanks.....a lot!

[junglesmacks]

The entire point behind STEP tickets was to specifically give the lottery "loser".. and only the lottery "loser".. a second chance at getting THEM a ticket. From the outset they have been clearly labeled as NON-TRANSFERABLE. If you were awarded a STEP ticket, you were told this many.. many times.

- Tough titty

- Now, shut up.. hippie.

[International Incident]

Oh my, I guess someone didn't read the terms and conditions.

Mate, you bought it, you own it.

You had a choice to either take the STEP ticket - with the tight terms and conditions - or take your chance on the open market. You made that choice. Let the buyer beware and all that.

Get over it. Seriously.

[tanksalot]

I've re-read the emails I had received informing me about the STEP program and that I was eligible. Those DO NOT mention a lack of transferrability, but yes, the FAQ does. Since I was really concerned about not being able to attend, and since I was excited to be able to get tickets, I believe my not paying real close attention to the terms and conditions, coupled with my optimism that my friend was going to be able to go, could be understandable.

I am somewhat surprised at the lack of empathy for me and the many others in the same position. The only thing that I can see being gained by BM management maintaining their present position is $$$ at the expense of those who had been looking forward to the event and ran unto unforeseen circumstances. If you're building a community that values participation, gifting and social interaction, why treat individuals who have made misjudgements with such disdain and indifference to their plight?

[junglesmacks]

You're new here, I can tell.


We value above almost all a sense of radical self-reliance.. which means in a nutshell to take care of your own shit and be prepared and informed as to not make your problems and/or lack of planning other people's problems. Don't mistake the motivation behind the lack of empathy as greed or any other conspiracy BS, but as a concept that rules are rules and they're there for a reason.

Get over it. Move on.

[theCryptofishist]

We on this board are utterly exhausted with the whole ticketing thing. We've been going through the pain and worry about our own tickets, and we've been reading ticketing proposals for 13 months. Make tickets non-transferable! has been one cry. We did our best to explain why that wasn't a good idea, and I'm sure there are people out there who are biting back an "I told you so!"
It generally goes under the name "compassion fatigue." There's also a preference for people who do not wail and offer solutions that take a lot more time and trouble than the proposer realizes. And for people who've read the board and aren't covering old ground.
I'm sorry you're losing your ticket money. I know that's not easy.

[Rice]

"I told you so!!" There, I said it. Have been keeping that back for quite a while...

There is no perfect solution. We cannot have everything.

If tickets are easily transferable, scalpers will be able to make profits. Are you a scalper who is trying to offload your tickets??

{Standing up, he storms off shaking his head with disbelief...}

[wh..sh]

A huge part of the difficulty in selling a STEP ticket is the coordination of the seller and the prospective buyer in arrival time at BM. With just one person on a computer, ownership transfers could be accommodated and hundreds (thousands) of people won't get screwed for $390 or so since coordinating arrival times, especially with no cell phone service in the BM area, is a major bummer. If someone has just one STEP ticket and has learned they can't make it, there's no alternative but to lose the $390.

Although, I am not going to support that "I didn't read FAQ" reasons, I do agree that STEP ticket not being transferable is not the most convenient thing.
Sure, it's for lottery losers who didn't win tickets. And if lottery tickets are transferable, so should be the STEP ones.

The more I work with the logistics of buying someone's STEP ticket, the less I agree with the the non-transferable part about the STEP ticket.
Unless you know the person personally or travel with the person, it can be a nightmare to get it transferred to someone.

Edited to remove some info.

[tanksalot]

Are you a scalper who is trying to offload your tickets??

.

No, I'm in Connecticut and have wanted to go to BM for years; just "something else came up" other years. This year I decided I'd go. Bought a camper on Craigslist in Las Vegas, and, unless something catastrophic happens, I WILL BE THERE. My son and daughter have a camp, but I'd prefer to just visit theirs.

I do believe in solving my own problems, and, somehow, this will get resolved. I've learned that I can pick up my ticket and put someone else's name on the second ticket, which is what I might do. I could also pick up both tickets, drive to Fedex someplace and send the purchaser the ticket. The Deep uncertainty that not really KNOWING you've got a ticket until you show up at Will Call and learn the seller kept his word is certainly a downer for most prospective buyers.

"Thecryptofishlist"....thanks for caring. Tanksalot

[Triken]

The way I understand it, if the original buyer of STEP tickets will be attending, (bought two, using one)
they arrive with (or before) the buyer of the second ticket,
and can transfer the second ticket to that buyer's name,
(EXACTLY as it appears on said person's proper ID).

This is the same procedure as it would be if the original person
(for whom the second ticket was bought) was attending.
The only difference is that the second person is not the original intended.

If I'm wrong, I need to know...
((ready for the snark~ bring it on!))

[tanksalot]

This would not harm the STEP buyers who can't make it, and wouldn't encourage scalping either, while alleviating the stress for a lot of people.

[FIGJAM]

There isn't anyone there to do what you suggest.

[Triken]

There isn't anyone there to do what you suggest.

That procedure is EXACTLY what we were told for people with two tickets and separate arrival times.

[pink]

It's done at Will Call. If the actual STEP buyer can't make it, then you're SOL.

Actually all of these people should blame the community that insisted on nontransferable tix, not the Borg. Originally the tix were going to be transferable, but there was so much outroar, the Borg changed policy. So dont blame the Borg for this one.

[clocksnmirrors]

Originally the tix were going to be transferable, but there was so much outroar, the Borg changed policy. So dont blame the Borg for this one.

it's as if someone made a wish on one of those damnable monkey's paws....

[lucky420]

tiken,

you got it right.

[Elliot]

Thank you, Lucky420.

But I still have not seen anyone spell out that one STEP ticket, out of two, can be left at Will Call for the person arriving later. This would need to be spelled out with all the pertinent words in one paragraph. There is too much room for a $390,- error otherwise. The source of that information should also be identified. Trilo, are you worn out yet?

Conceivably -- conceivably -- STEP tickets might be barred from that program also, "for good measure". Absolute clarity seems called for. Thank you.

[lucky420]

Q: Can I transfer tickets I buy through STEP to somebody else after I buy them?
A: No, tickets purchased through STEP are non-transferable. Both tickets will be held at Will Call under the name of the purchaser. If both parties are arriving separately, the buyer of the ticket may collect both tickets and then leave the second under the other name at the Will Call window.



there ya go.

[lucky420]

this is from the FAQ regarding STEP on BM page.

I made sure of this before purchasing 2 STEPS because I was pretty sure the other person I am selling to would be arriving after me...

and you're welcome Elliot

[Triken]

Q: Can I transfer tickets I buy through STEP to somebody else after I buy them?
A: No, tickets purchased through STEP are non-transferable. Both tickets will be held at Will Call under the name of the purchaser. If both parties are arriving separately, the buyer of the ticket may collect both tickets and then leave the second under the other name at the Will Call window.



there ya go.

Thank you, Lucky 420...
in my case, I am the original purchaser, and that is the proper procedure no matter who uses the second ticket.
(Unless both arrive together, eliminating the leave the second... part.)
Knowing when I expect to hit the will call allows the second person to plan accordingly.

[Elliot]

Wondermuss, Lucky420! That is exactly the paragraph I wanted to see. I'm sure I read it at one time or other, but there is so much information on the web site that it becomes a blur, and only what seems relevant at that time sticks in my mind. And this issue did not actually come up until recently. Again, thanx for helping us confirm this beyond all doubt!

[lucky420]

It's been crazy time for tickets this year.

Just make sure the name you put on the second ticket matches that persons i.d.

[theCryptofishist]

Wondermuss

Is that Norwegian or just messing around?

[sassygirl]

I know I'm not the only person out there who got screwed by STEP. It took me several weeks to get a Burning Man representative to send me the link in order to resell my extra STEP ticket back into STEP. In the meantime they dumped 1000 tickets into STEP thereby eliminating the queue. Now we're just supposed to eat a $400 ticket that was sold under false pretenses (those being that we could sell our ticket back to STEP as long as we did it before the August 7 deadline, which turned out to be totally false)? I think not. It's not remotely fair and I can't afford to do so. I'm wondering what to do now. Any advice would be appreciated. At this point I'm contemplating contesting the purchase through my credit card company and potentially contacting the better business bureau since I've gotten no response to inquiries sent to Burning Man organizers. I've been attending Burning Man for 5 years now and am SOOOO disappointed in how the ticket situation has been handled this year... what a boondoggle. Any advice or help would be much appreciated. Sorry this post is half question and half rant but I'm at my wit's ends here.

Sassy