flying to Burning Man

out of curiosity, since I have a group of friends who might be
interested; has anyone out there flown to Burning Man? I would
be curious about the logistics involved (what amount of stuff,
water, etc.) you were able to carry -- was it sufficient for a
half decent/confortable stay? -- I know, there are info
on BM web site, but I would prefer some first hand and possibly
critical -- which the web site is not -- info on the matter);

In particular; I have found many pictures online of the event
itself, but very few of the airfield proper, tie down/aircraft
themselves; it might help to get the picture so to speak of what's
involved, tie down conditions, etc.

Note that I am not debating whether the whole thing is a good
idea or not :-) -- still opened to discussion with said friends --
just trying to figure out the implementation details...

--Sylvain

Ooh, interesting question. I'm also curious about this, what kind of
surface does the airport have? How long?

One thing, any plane parked on the Playa would need lots of protection
against the fine dust and high winds, I bet it could craze
plexi-screens pretty quickly.

"Ben Hallert" wrote in message
ups.com...
One thing, any plane parked on the Playa would need lots of protection
against the fine dust and high winds, I bet it could craze
plexi-screens pretty quickly.

Yeah, no kidding. Parking my plane four days at Las Vegas, it wound up
covered in desert dirt, more dust than anything. That's a large, paved
airport. I can't imagine what it'd be like sitting actually out IN all that
dust.

A cockpit cover would help protect the windows, but a) dust will still find
its way underneath, and b) the rest of the plane will suffer regardless.

Maybe bring a really big roll of plastic, and just wrap up the whole plane
after you've parked? You could probably even make it an art project.

Pete

Ah, I found the info:

http://www.burningman.com/on_the_pla...t/faq_air.html

"Peter Duniho" wrote in message
...
..

Maybe bring a really big roll of plastic, and just wrap up the whole plane
after you've parked? You could probably even make it an art project.

Pete
Except at Burning Man you'd be expected to light it!

Karl

"karl gruber" wrote in message
...
Except at Burning Man you'd be expected to light it!

Nah...they have lots of stuff there that doesn't blow up. It's not
mandatory, just encouraged.

Peter Duniho wrote:

Maybe bring a really big roll of plastic, and just wrap up the whole plane
after you've parked?

Shrink wrap! G

Ben Hallert wrote:
Ah, I found the info:

http://www.burningman.com/on_the_pla...t/faq_air.html

From same:

Q. Is it safe to land my Beechna Pipermman Super-Duper-High-Flyer on
the playa?

A. The playa surface is suitable for anything from a tiny-wheeled
Vari-eze to tail-draggers with tundra tires to brand new turbo-charged
Mooneys to C-130s. This is the surface on which a car went faster than
the speed of sound. The space shuttle could land here.

That seems just a tad optimistic and misleading, IMO.

I've never ventured into that particular area but I know alkalai desert
flats can look quite solid and actually be a crusted over bog that will
swallow a small car up to its axles in very rapid fashion. The Black
Rock Desert would not be an area where I would assume I may land
anywhere without hesitation.

A 7000' landing strip appears to be at 40.73515, -119.2355
-----

- gpsman

gpsman wrote:
http://www.burningman.com/on_the_pla...t/faq_air.html
...
That seems just a tad optimistic and misleading, IMO.

That the thing about the whole web site: it seems a tad
optimistic. For instance, the part about camping out in the
desert, in summer, with a crowd of, shall we say, colorful
characters, being all rosy and neat and nothing to worry
about is one thing that made me a bit suspicious; hence my
request for first hand accounts :-)

--Sylvain

Sylvain wrote:
That the thing about the whole web site: it seems a tad
optimistic.

That was my first thought, but some of the following excerpts offer a
different view:

http://www.burningman.com/on_the_pla...ort/index.html
" This is a warning! Read it!

Flying in mountainous desert regions is dangerous. Don't do it. Stay at
home with a cold drink and watch the event on television. If you choose
to disregard this sensible advice, take all reasonable and unreasonable
safety precautions. Read all of the information and advice in the links
above. Attend a seminar on mountain flying. Practice with an instructor
at a hot and high airport near you.

The desert is treacherous; winds are hellacious, storms are sudden and
violent, density altitude is high, and hospitals far away. The landing
surface is unpaved and safe landing conditions are not guaranteed. You
are entirely responsible for your own safety and that of your
passengers."

There appears to be a mailing list of Burning Man aviators where
answers to all of our questions would probably be available.
https://lists.burningman.com/mailman.../aviators-list

They also have a page on specific flying challenges in the desert:
http://www.burningman.com/on_the_pla...rt/flying.html

This page also discusses the quality of the ground. It appears that
the runway area is carefully inspected and chosen to avoid the "sinking
buick" situation described elsewhere in the thread. With the big crowd
of planes their photos show, it doesn't look like the hacked together
amateur-fest I was expecting. UNICOM advisories, ground crew, NOTAMs,
it looks pretty promising.

I've been wanting to attend, but the 10 hour drive has been a bit of a
barrier. The 1.5 hour flight, on the other hand, suddenly seems pretty
reasonable. Well, I've got a year to get ready.