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Is Burning Man worth it?

S

samhandwich22

Greenlighter
Joined
Dec 27, 2009
Messages
20
I have a ticket to burning man this year and need to decide whether to go or to sell it. I have never been to the event before but have numerous peers who have. Clearly, it is a unique and incredible experience where many people proclaim that it can change your life but attending is going to be incredibly expensive for me (besides the cost of the $300 ticket, I would have to take several days off of work) and I need to decide if its worth it.

I love a good festival where I can freely socialize and take drugs on certain days, however the environment there seems like it would be very uncomfortable. Here is what I understand to be expected based on what my peers who have attended tell me:

-It will be extremely hot during the day
-whatever possessions you bring, you should be prepared to lose them
-dust storms are severe and frequent, dust will get into your tent, it will ruin your sleeping bag and bicycle. you will need to wear a particle mask and goggles

These peers are on the fence about returning again. On one hand, they had an incredible time, on the other, they were greatly hassled due to the conditions. I keep thinking that when I go to festivals or take drugs, I like to be in a relaxed and mild environment so that I can enjoy them. With burning man it seems that I am going to have to constantly concerned about dehydration and dust. This is not only about comfort, but about safety.

I am a very experienced wilderness survivalist so I am not particularly concerned about my survival but I cannot imagine having to mix a survival scenario with a festival scenario. When I go climb mountains, I am focused and dedicated to the expedition because I constantly have to be concerned about safety and act responsibly- the threat of dehydration or heat exhaustion are perennial. I traditionally enjoy going to festivals because I can let loose and not have to worry about all of that stuff. Having to mix the two together seems arduous and annoying.
I am not too hot on the idea of having my gear and equipment being destroyed either. I proposed to a friend that I could take and sleep in my subaru impreza hatchback instead of a tent. He (having been to Burning Man previously) advised me not to take that car because its fairly new and would inevitably get damaged by the dust. He claims that his jeep had dust deeply embedded in the air conditioning system as a result of taking it.

I would be very interested in hearing people's opinions on Burning Man. For what its worth, yes I am very open-minded and oriented to the festival culture but I have just never had to think about such inconveniences when planning to go party.
 
I'm going to assume you have already done plenty of research, read their website, forums, etc. Burning man is the best gathering you will ever attend.

What are you going to contribute to the artmosphere of the event?
 
Why did you think this topic appropriate for CEP?
(moving to...2nd Opinion (I guess NSASADD would have also worked...))

ebola
 
i'd rather spend a week in hell than with that many hippies (who pay for expensive tickets to camp outside lol) and ravers, but i'm guessing most people here love it.
 
It sounds like you want to go to a music festival. Burning Man is definitely not a music festival
 
ugly said:
I'm going to assume you have already done plenty of research, read their website, forums, etc. Burning man is the best gathering you will ever attend.

What are you going to contribute to the artmosphere of the event?
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I have done as much research as I could but I believe that there is only so much to this event that I can conceptualize until I actually experience it. If I do end up attending, then my contributions to the community would probably be in the form of food. I suspect that many people will be bringing basic non-perishable staples... since I do so much extended outdoor activity, I have become somewhat of an expert with making elaborate dehydrated meals and providing someone else with an amazing meal can really brighten their day.
I am also particularly good at assisting or counseling people who are having drug experiences gone awry so for the purposes of this event, I will call myself a healer ;-)
 
ebola? said:
Why did you think this topic appropriate for CEP?
(moving to...2nd Opinion (I guess NSASADD would have also worked...))

ebola
Click to expand...

oops sorry! This was accidental as I was browsing multiple bluelight forums at once when I started this thread. I like to surf the internet by having 15 different tabs opened at once, I must have gotten them mixed up.
 
you may be right, crimsonjunk. I attended sasquatch music festival this year which is by no means anything close to burning man. I like the idea of having an objective and things I know I look forward to seeing. After one of my favorite bands would perform, I would run over to the next stage for the next act, always occupied. Besides all that, they have taps that let you fill up with as much water as you would like to carry for the day and the climate is less intense. Granted it can get hot during the day and very cold during night but its certainly more comfortable than the black rock dessert. Its a more relaxed environment where I can take drugs without having to be so concerned with dehydration and dust storms.

Still I feel inclined to experience the much hyped about gathering known as burning man, but it would be very expensive and inconvenient to attend.
 
I've never been to burning man, but I was just at BOOM in Portugal for 8 days.. And after that I could honestly say I would attemp burning man but not without extreme preparation beforehand.

BOOM had roughly 30,000 people, it was very dusty infact my lungs are still coughing up dust.. It was so hot in the afternoon all I could do was lay down in the shade and it often got freezing at night. They had free drinking water which was an enormous benefit, this would be my biggest concern with burning man.

What I found with my experience with BOOM is after about day 4 the heat really takes it out of you and it can be a struggle to do anything, I imagine this is more severe with burning man..

If your fully prepared I would totally do it, but I definitely wouldn't go unorganized.
 
You'll never know unless you give it a go. I know I've paid a lot of $$ for many events, and have never regretted it.

If you can afford it, do it. If the costs associated with the event are going to negatively affect other aspects of your life, then pull out.
 
i've been 4 times. but i haven't been in 9 years. it was beyond worth it to me all 4 times.

ymmv.

alasdair
 
$300 ticket? christ almighty. doesn't that kind of go against every thing burning man stands for?

i don't know anything about it. but i just looked at their website, and they operate as an LLC.
 
ChickenScratch said:
$300 ticket? christ almighty. doesn't that kind of go against every thing burning man stands for?
Click to expand...
last year, burning man paid about $1,000,000 to the bureau of land management in permit fees. installing, maintaining and removing toilets is about $600,000. fees to other local agencies (e.g. county law enforcement, nevada highway patrol) is about $300,000. etc.

where do suggest that money comes from if not ticket sales?
ChickenScratch said:
i don't know anything about it.
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indeed.

alasdair
 
I've never been but plan on doing it at some point, not this year though... mostly due to funds

Ive heard from friends who have gone that you don't go to burning man to have 'fun' (lol) but you go for the experience. It's work, it's tough on you mentally and physically, but its also something that is a very positive and eye opening experience that they don't regret at all.

If you already have the ticket man, you might as well go! You can always make more money, but you won't always get to go to burning man!!!
 
300 bucks seems like nothing once you start reading through the theme camps. Over a half-mile long solar system model? Alien abduction simulation? Band Camp? Giant Hamster wheels? Any good music festival runs a few hundred bucks, and this seems like all the insanity of Rothbury times 100 minus the bands, but there's still gonna be musicians and artists there. It sounds like a fucking blast, I can't wait to go!

I probably won't go this year, but I'm getting out there ASAP for sure. I've hiked in 90-100 degree weather with a heavy tweed jacket before, and I've done that many days in a row. I know how to rough it, but I'm sure the desert sun is going to be something I'm not prepared for at the moment, but that doesn't scare me.
They have a sunscreen massage camp with real missuses!
 
Hell yeah it's worth it. It's not like a music festival in which you're constantly surrounded by noise 24 hrs a day. It can be that way if you want to. It just depends on where you camp. The great thing about burning man is that there is something for everyone. People are over-exaggerating about the heat. It's not that bad. On the contrary, it gets pretty cold at night.
 
The cost of the ticket itself is one thing, but the auxiliary costs of attending (gas, food, etc) can easily stack up.
I have a very challenging work situation right now. I work at a university as a rock climbing instructor and facility supervisor, I get paid hourly so everyday that I need off is also lost money. But what makes things very difficult is that i work on a university schedule, and that burning man starts just one week after classes begin, which means I only have one week to get all of my shifts covered (many of the other staff members are students and cant commit to anything until school begins and they have their class schedule finalized- which often doesnt happen until after the first week). There are only a handful of people qualified to do my job so it would be quite the gamble to hold on to the ticket and risk not being able to get all of my shifts covered, and therefore, not being able to attend at all and being stuck with a ticket.

Besides my specific challenges to cost and scheduling, my greater concern is the dust and climate. I just notice that I enjoy things more when I am more comfortable and the burning man website states that temps regularly exceed 100 degrees. I have been hiking in heat less than that and it surely makes a difference in your energy levels. Its enough to make an enjoyable hike into an arduous miserable one even though I am always very well supplied for hydration and electrolyte replacement. Lastly, I have a great concern for my personal property and as rumor has it, if it doesnt get stolen or vandalized, the dust storms will do a number on everything from my car to my tent.

I hope I am not sounding too argumentative, these are just the things I have heard and why I am so on the fence about it.
 
Like i said, they are over-exaggerating about the heat. Yes, it can exceed 100 degrees but not all days. Maybe you'll get one or two days that it'll get really hot but not for that long. Aside from the freezing temperatures on some nights, the weather is perfect IMO. The dust storms do get pretty rough so you should probably put your really important stuff in your car. While the dust wouldn't necessarily ruin your car , it can do a number on your clothes. Vandalism and thievery doesn't sound right for a burning man event although isn't unheard of for the most recent events. If you're really worried about thievery, just keep the important things in your car and keep it locked. Also, make sure you bring a lock for your bike.

Just go. Once leaving burning man, you'll come to realize that it was all worth it. :)
 
ChickenScratch said:
fair enough. just seems pretty steep for a ticket.
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pretty steep? in what way (given the small handful of sample expenses which i listed).

it's hard, if not impossible, to compare burning man to any other festival for obvious reasons but if you go to coachella and camp onsite, your ticket will cost you over $300. bonnaroo, just under $300. sure, you'll have a fun time (or might) at those but it's hard to imagine either of those getting anywhere close to burning man in terms of an experience (i've only been to coachella for comparison).

further, $300 is the most expensive burning man ticket. they have always offered tiered pricing levels, including thousands of tickets at cheaper prices (including scholarship and low income tickets), in order to provide less expensive tickets for others. people paying the highest price subsidise those buying lower-priced tickets. add into the mix the fact that burning man doesn't profit from corporate sponsorship or fees from vendors.

there's a lot of ignorance surrounding burning man and "the tickets are expensive" is just another example.

that said, it's definitely not for everyone and it sounds like you might be better off without it, cs.

alasdair
 
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