Playa Info


2005-passage

Key Sites


Other Interesting Sites


Theme Camps


Bikes


  • Rat - rents bikes for Burning Man and lives in Reno. "We picked ours up on the Saturday before Burning Mann and dropped it off at our convenience, just leave a note and you'll get a refund. Bikes are $40, with $20 of it being a deposit. The bikes are a little rough around the edges, but they did the trick for us last year." (info from E-Playa board)
  • Playa Bikes - the bikes are expensive, but look really great and are built extremely well
  • Black Rock Bicycles - a pricier rental solution
  • Bike Lighting Kits - give yourself a high-tech, pimped out ride
  • Bike Trailers - information and resources for bicycle trailers
Notes
  • You don't want to take a nice bike to the playa - just make sure you have a bike that works.
  • Goodwill, Craig's List, Tribe, and other resources may have used bikes.
  • If you buy something new, get a basic bike at someplace like Target, K-Mart, Wal-Mart, etc. for $75 or less.
  • A bike lock is a good idea (it prevents people from accidentally taking/borrowing the wrong bike).
  • Don't be afraid of painting and decorating your bike.

Shade Structures, Tents, and Camping Gear


  • All-4-Canopy - great supplier of kits and components for shade structures
  • Tarps Direct - solid source for tarps of all sizes and colors
  • Aluminet - great alternative to tarps (also available - Aluminet Ultra)
  • Desert Domes - iffen you want a dome, here's where to go
  • Pacific Domes - another great place to get domes of all shapes and sizes
  • GeoDome - geodesic design software for those interested in creating their own dome
  • Monkey Hut - Instructions for building a PVC quonset hut shade structure
  • REI - camping outfitters
  • CampMor - camping outfitters
  • Sierra Trading Post - camping outfitters
  • Twin City Surplus - sells camp gear, camo netting, etc. and is located in Reno (they can hold purchases for pickup en route to Burning Man)
  • LoadUp - military surplus place that sells camo netting and all sorts of gear
  • Major Surplus & Survival - another surplus place with camo netting, camp/kitchen gear, etc
  • PlayaTech - info and plans for DIY wooden playa furniture you can build & burn
  • InflateUs - inflatable couches, chairs, and mattresses
  • Rebar, Rope, and Rigging FAQ - an excellent reference guide
Notes

Clothing and Playa Wear


Fabric, Trim, Buckles, Hardware, Body Paint, Craft Supplies


Notes
  • In Los Angeles, go to the fashion district (downtown at 9th & Maple) for great fabric prices and deals

Food and Hydration


  • Burning Beach - playa recipe site (with downloadable cookbook)
  • Minimus - individual and travel size supplier (condiment packets, etc)
  • Bannock Recipe - easy-to-make pan-fried bread used in Native American Indian tacos ("Extremely delicious and highly recommended. I suggest pressing each one flat and then frying in a small pan with a little oil on medium heat. The recipe will make approximately 10 taco-sized bannock loaves." - Trilo)
  • Solar Oven Info - making and using a solar-powered oven
  • CamelBak - top of the line hydration packs
  • Platypus - top of the line hydration packs and gear
  • Dry Ice Info - everything you ever wanted to know about dry ice
  • Water Info - information on water and where to get it, from the official Burning Man web site
  • Gatorade Powder - replenishes electralytes and tastes better than other solutions (get powdered stuff at grocery stores)
  • Alacer Corp. - makers of Emer'gen-C
  • Pedialyte - yet another way to replenish electralytes (Walgreens has 33.8oz grape, fruit, and bubble gum flavors)
Notes
  • Plan on bringing 2 gallons of water per person, per day to cover bathing, cooking, and drinking needs.

Generators and Power Equipment


Notes
  • "Honda super quiet generators are well worth the premium price. They're extremely easy to use, reliable, and very quiet. Yamaha also makes great stuff, though I've never used it personally." - Trilo

Sound Equipment


  • Crown K Series Amplifiers - low power draw, enclosed 2U power amps
  • Mackie SRM450 - excellent portable active PA speakers
  • Bag End - incredible PA speakers (incredibly expensive too, but a guy can dream)
  • Turbo Sound - another great PA manufacturer
  • Cerwin Vega - professional line from CV
  • JBL - manufacturer of solid PA speakers
  • Parts Express - speaker parts, components, and cables/wires/connectors
  • SpeakerBits - speaker parts and DJ accessories
  • Pioneer - excellent manufacturer of mixers and professional CD players
  • Numark - maker of mixers, professional CD players, iPod mixing gear, etc.
  • Road Ready - flight cases for sound gear

Miscellaneous


  • Cruchy's List - fairly comprehensive list put together by LA burner Crunchy
  • Church Of Mez - great advice for 'leave no trace' cleanup plans
  • BED - the Bureau of Erotic Discourse teaches sexual boundaries and educates on rape/assault prevention
  • Playa Name Generator - hilarious web widget
  • Burning Man Countdown Widget - countdown widget for Mac OS X 10.4 or later
  • Burncast - podcast made for burners, by burners
  • Hooping.Org - a great resource for hoopers and hoopmakers alike
  • PlayPoi - photos, videos, news, blogs and more about the world of poi
  • Pyrokinetics - makers of Pendulum and Pendul-Up, two of the most amazing fire sculptures ever
  • Civilized Explorer - all kinds of links and information for stopping in Reno on the way to/from the playa
  • Reno Travel Resources - comprehensive resource guide for Reno, compiled by the Reno regional group and hosted on the official site
  • Freecycle - Think of it as Craig's List, except everything listed is free!
  • Dick Blick - art supply store
  • Flax - art supply store