Burning Man 2021

I was asked about Burning Man 2021 in the Live Stream thread, starting with this post. The topic, I think, is worthy of it's own thread.

As background, the organizers lost a lot of money due to cancelling the event last year. No, the virtual Burning Man doesn't count and everybody knows it!

I went to the Burning Man web site to see what they say about BM 2021. It looks like the site hasn't been updated since at least August, since it refers to August 30, 2020 as a date in the future.

This article makes the prospects of an official Burning Man this year seem poor.

This is not a drill': Burning Man pleads for donations, says 2021 event in danger.

As much as I liked Burning Man 2018, I am also still mad over how badly the online ticket sale was managed and think the event has become too big. It would not be surprising if the ineptitude that caused that permeates the entire organization. If the current "project" goes under, I hope something smaller and better will rise up out of the ashes.

The question for the poll is do think there will be an official Burning Man 2021?

Go to a smaller local burn
Probably have more fun

Please, no more Burning Man, at least in Northern Nevada. Move it to Vegas. The Strip would be perfect.

Election Fraud ! There is more than 100 % in the Poll.

Quote: Wizard

This article makes the prospects of an official Burning Man this year seem poor.

This is not a drill': Burning Man pleads for donations, says 2021 event in danger.

This article at Trippingly is much more optimistic, not because it thinks BM will get its ducks in a row, but rather because it thinks BM has its back against the wall.

The way it looks is that 70,000 tickets must be sold or else organized Burning Man will cease to exist. They, therefore, have EVERY possible incentive to make the 2021 event take place ... or to at least sell all those tickets. (This is why buying tickets is starting to look more like a wager instead of a transaction. It's becoming increasingly doubtful that any money will be refunded if the Burn is cancelled.)

The problem, of course is Covid. The org must hang its hopes on most people being vaccinated by the time late summer arrives. Unfortunately, the vaccine rollout isn't inspiring much confidence. Authorities like Dr Fauci are now talking about Autumn at the earliest (I'll let the Covid threads here debate the timelines), too late for a 2021 Burn. In this scenario, the org would be curtains (although they could try pushing the date back).

Another issue is permits. Even if BM organizers (not exactly unbiased judges) decide the safety level is sufficient for 2021 to take place, the government may (in the form of the Bureau of Land management) declare the event a "super spreader" and deny the use of Black Rock. In this case, Trippinly argues that BM will make the big decision to move Burning Man onto private land. This, however, would create new problems.

Last year, some unofficial Burns took place. One of these was at Baker Beach (site of the original Burning Man), and another on the current BM Playa itself. (Some of the art from this latter event is still standing.) The org made no money from these unsanctioned events and, indeed, condemned them as virus spreaders. If the official event were to now avoid government warnings by moving onto private land, charges of hypocrisy would be inevitable. (To be fair, they may not have much choice. If the only options are minor taint to the brand name vs nonexistence, the decision become an easy one.)

Another problem would be what such a Covid shrouded event would even look like. How would the camps be arranged? What about the privies? Hugging, much less orgies, would be out of the question. What if mask wearing free spirits begin mask shaming non mask wearing free spirits and a spirited brawl erupts? It doesn't sound like a dream experience to be crossed of one's bucket list.

But who knows? Maybe things will turn out alright. Maybe Covid will be gone by late summer. Maybe some rich philanthropist--a high tech billionaire perhaps or a corporation--will donate 10 or 20 million dollars for the publicity. On the other hand, such largess might come with a quid pro quo. Does "Qualcomm presents Burning Man sponsored by Home Depot and Apple Computers" sound like something the free spirited burners would be attracted to?

Trippingly makes a good case that Burning Man will indeed take place in 2021 (it's all about money and survival), but notice one thing. Embedded at the top of the article is the Burn Clock from the BM official website. This clock counts down the months, days, hours, minutes and seconds before the next burn. A caption reads, "Check the Countdown. If it’s tickin’ down, that’s a good sign…."

The clock stands frozen.

Quote: Wizard

As much as I liked Burning Man 2018, I am also still mad over how badly the online ticket sale was managed and think the event has become too big. It would not be surprising if the ineptitude that caused that permeates the entire organization.

I don't know if it's fair to call out BM on the ticket sale issues. Comparable events such as Comic-Con (where ticket demand far exceeds supply) get similar complaints.

From what I read, BMorg (at least as a business) was competently run carrying an estimated cash reserve of 12-14 million dollars. The trouble is it's a one-trick (sparkle) pony. The burn is the only product, which is fine during normal times. With their cash reserve, lawyers and PR department, they were prepared for any contingency -- except for a pandemic shutting down the entire planet.
----------------------------

The 100 million vaccines a day promises to make for interesting speculation. If (and it's a big if) true, then roughly three quarters of the country could be vaccinated by Burn time. Could the Burn, with special precautions, still take place as normal?

Well,

In other news, it's now rumored that Japan is seriously thinking of throwing in the towel on the 2020 Summer Olympics (along with the 25 billion they spent on it). They just can't see how it could be done with crowds (by definition), and athletes in team sports (by definition), all in close proximity to each other.

If the rumor pans out, what chance does Burning Man have?

Quote: Gialmere

I don't know if it's fair to call out BM on the ticket sale issues. Comparable events such Comic-Con (where ticket demand far exceeds supply) get similar complaints.

From what I read, BMorg (at least as a business) was competently run carrying an estimated cash reserve of 12-14 million dollars. The trouble is it's a one-trick (sparkle) pony. The burn is the only product, which is fine during normal times. With their cash reserve, lawyers and PR department, they were prepared for any contingency -- except for a pandemic shutting down the entire planet.
----------------------------

The 100 million vaccines a day promises make for interesting speculation. If (and it's a big if) true, then roughly three quarters of the country could be vaccinated by Burn time. Could the Burn, with special precautions, still take place as normal?

Well,

In other news, it's now rumored that Japan is seriously thinking of throwing in the towel on the 2020 Summer Olympics (along with the 25 billion they spent on it). They just can't see how it could be done with crowds (by definition), and athletes in team sports (by definition), all in close proximity to each other.

If the rumor pans out, what chance does Burning Man have?

Burning man is about the people, won't work
But
Olympics can
It's mostly a TV event for the world anyway
It can be done without the fans
Just invite the athletes, coaches and family
Spread it out over the entire summer so only a fraction of the athletes are in Japan at any given time.

Quote: Gialmere

I don't know if it's fair to call out BM on the ticket sale issues. Comparable events such Comic-Con (where ticket demand far exceeds supply) get similar complaints.

One easy to reduce demand is increase the price. However, I can see how some events like Burning Man wouldn't be the same if only the wealthy could afford to go. In that case, I think the fairest thing to do is have a lottery. That's not perfect, as it incentives scalpers, but I can't think of anything better.

Quote: Wizard

One easy to reduce demand is increase the price. However, I can see how some events like Burning Man wouldn't be the same if only the wealthy could afford to go. In that case, I think the fairest thing to do is have a lottery. That's not perfect, as it incentives scalpers, but I can't think of anything better.

Let the market set the price
If they plan on selling 70k
What do you think would be the break price from a sellout to having some tickets availible?
The 425 price is the 2019 main sale price
I think maybe 750 may be the market price
That's not outrageous
I can't see 70k paying over 1k

Now that I live in an RV, I could easily do this but
Those dust storms just scare me
Just not good for the health of my truck engine
I simply hate dust at a festival
I did Bonnaroo one year when it was hot and dry
With about 100k, just a permanent dust cloud over the whole festival.
Disgusting
Gets into everything including your eyes and food
Uggh

Quote: terapined

Let the market set the price

In my opinion, given they are in financial trouble, they should do away with the open sale, or whatever it's called, with the cheap $425 tickets.

I think anybody who has applied for an art installation gets tickets at that price through another sale, which is completely fair, as they are contributing. That will bring in the artistic crowd. Let the spectators pay the full price.

Quote: terapined

Now that I live in an RV, I could easily do this but
Those dust storms just scare me
Just not good for the health of my truck engine
I simply hate dust at a festival
I did Bonnaroo one year when it was hot and dry
With about 100k, just a permanent dust cloud over the whole festival.
Disgusting
Gets into everything including your eyes and food
Uggh

And all that white dust ends up in Reno covering our streets and inside businesses including the airport, hotels, stores,etc. The cars can’t get that dust off in a single wash, most have to go through twice. The car washes makes a killing. Yes, freaking mess that lingers around for weeks. Hate Burning Man, they need to relocate.

Quote: Vegasrider

And all that white dust ends up in Reno covering our streets and inside businesses including the airport, hotels, stores,etc. The cars can’t get that dust off in a single wash, most have to go through twice. The car washes makes a killing. Yes, freaking mess that lingers around for weeks. Hate Burning Man, they need to relocate.

I still have Burning Man dust on dust on some of my stuff from 2018.

For those interested...

This blog entry at Burn Life takes a more in-depth look at the income/outgo finances of Burning Man. It's actually from 10 months ago discussing 2020 but, most of the issues and options are the same today.

Also worth perusing is the comments at the end along with some of the more recent blog entries (if you're trying to read the tea leaves).

From the spreadsheet:

~125 employees @ ~70K /year

Is that a full time gig for 125 employees?

One of the official Burning Man journals has officially announced that in mid-February there will be an official announcement on whether the 2021 Burn will officially be green lit; just don't consider this official announcement to be all that official. It comes with the caveat that even if they move forward, there's no guarantee the event will actually take place.

Fair enough, I suppose, under the circumstances. But boy, if they start selling tickets they better explain the refund policy in triplicate. According to the journal, BM reached its goal of $12 million in donations. (Most sources say only 5 or 6.) The suggested donation was $425--the price of a ticket (because BM is all about generous giving dontcha know: hint hint wink wink). So we'll see if they can pull this off.

The journal entry is rather tedious reading with facts having to be sifted out from all the rainbow and unicorn blather. This edm article gives a synopsis and also includes a link to the journal entry for those interested.

Well, Burning Man has made it's promised February announcement. It essentially kicks the can down the road with talk of a final decision in May (although even if it's a green light they still reserve the right to cancel).

For now they are moving forward only with things that must be done if the event takes place and putting off anything they can until a final decision is made. Thus, a 2021 Burn will be a watered down affair at best. I don't envy their position. A few of the main camps have already announce they will not participate this year regardless of what decisions are made. On the other hand, a poll of burners shows two thirds of them willing to show up if it happens.

Only the Covid gods know I suppose.

Story at SFist

Official Announcement at BM Journal

Although not official yet, it appears there will be a Burning Man in 2021. An announcement is expected soon. As speculated, it will be a smaller, watered down festival with fewer attendees. The idea seems to be to put on a break even event to keep the money flowing and allow them to survive to reach the more peaceful waters of 2022.

However, there's already a problem. Covid of course. It was announced that (should the event take place) all attendees MUST be fully vaccinated. This quickly divided the community. Some think this a no-brainer precaution. But a backlash group (including one of the founders) feels that telling people what they can and can't do with their bodies goes against everything Burning Man stands for. The org has backed off its original position so we'll see what happens.

The org has other problems as well. Due to it's colonial history, the theme for 2021 "Terra Incógnita" had to be changed to "The Great Unknown". It's also been pointed out that there's a lack of diversity on the org's board. And why (people ask) are non Native Americans allowed to run around wearing Native American headdresses on the Playa? The dilemmas of the 21st century eh?

Meanwhile, on the financial front, it's been announced that for $2,500 you can buy a reservation allowing you to buy regular-priced tickets to the next two editions of the festival. In other words, for a non-refundable price you will be guaranteed the privilege of spending more money to buy tickets. 1000 of these reservations will be for sale. The reason is obvious enough: they need the cash. 2020 almost killed official burning man and an extra 2.5 million would give them room to breath. The optics, however, are terrible. For an event that touts itself as nonprofit, noncommercial and no money allowed, it sure looks like money talks when you pay attention to that man behind the curtain.

I guess the true reality is that it costs a lot of money to have an event where no one needs money.

In somewhat of a surprise move, Burning Man 2021 has been cancelled. According to the official announcement...

Quote: Burning Man

Although here in the United States we may be feeling the weight lifting and the light at the end of the tunnel brightening, we are still in the pandemic, and the uncertainties that need to be resolved are impossible to resolve in the time we have.

It seems Covid issues (like fake vax cards) and other issues (discussed in earlier posts) make it too risky to have this year's event.

Full Story at SFist

For those interested, here is a billboard report on the Free Burn event that took place on the Playa earlier this month.



[Photo] A man rendered in drones hovers above Free Burn in the Black Rock Desert on Saturday, September 4, 2021.

I have heard of those smalled burning man festivals but does anyone have any link where I can read more about it?

It appears that Burning Man 2022 will take place no matter what, covid or no covid. Changes this year include new restrictions designed to curtail "glamping" and also you'll now have to start bringing your own coffee.

Full Story at Reno Gazette Journal

My radical idea to reduce the carbon footprint, cut down on glamping, increase self-sustainability, and significantly cut down on noise pollution would be to ban portable generators. Hopefully, that would leave only hardy soles, like myself, who don't need air conditioning to make it through the experience. During the hot hours of the day, most people are resting in air-conditioned RV's, powered by portable generators. This kind of luxury is not what Burning Man is supposed to be about.

A down side to my idea is I predict a lot of people would get sick or die from heat stroke.

Another down side is I predict the RV people would bring extra gas and use the internal RV generators, while the engine idled. At least the noise pollution would be less.