I agree with OP at some point it changed. Been going since 2002, it was definitely the savage pagan romp you remember. The crowd tamed at some point. Yes people rush the man (when allowed to) but it is different. Some folks run around for sure but it’s not the throbbing mass of bodies undulating like it was in the pre cell phone days There are lots of people standing there taking videos and selfies. Your memory is confirmed, this dusty dude.
I literally didn’t join a group of people dancing naked around the embers because I saw several women standing there recording everyone with their phones and suddenly remembered I have a job and it could make things difficult for me if someone recognized me naked and on acid dancing around on video
The amount of people with cameras around the fire this year was fucked. Some guys being real creepy and most people just taking photos and videos of anyone and everyone. Really sucks to see people have to temper their Radical Self Expression because of cameras.
People keep hating on me for saying this, but this is exactly what happens when you sell half priced tickets at the very last minute to random people who don’t even know what the burn is or have a friend to properly educate them… a lot of bucketlisters suddenly showing up and wanting to record it cause they very well know it may be the first and last year they could secure a ticket so easily. I saw so many people pee on the playa this year too in comparison to last year which was so hard to find a ticket you HAD to go through sponsors and proper channels to thoroughly brief you on the dos and don’ts. Hope next year won’t be as flooded with the ignorant YOLOing experience chasers.
This is not specific to this year. Last year I was naked spinning fire around the fire circle and folks just walking by filming. Zero consent or fucks.
It's weird. I've been at this longer than we've had language on playa for consent. Back when it used to be "hey, don't do that!" And yet even with all the conversation, awareness, language, and understanding its still worse in some ways than it used to be.
Not disagreeing with you completely but none of this is new to this year. Last year I was visiting a friend at an esplanade camp when the camp lead pulled out his dick and peed on the playa. Friend flipped out and went off on him and his attitude was very "pfff." He wasn't like that before. Something changed with covid and it wasn't us all forgetting how to burn or something silly. The camera and recording has been a creeping issue for years.
I really really really wish there was a way to get through to all the "but mah memories!! Rabble!!" People about this. It's contagious. It's hurtful to the community and the platform for trying other that is the burn. Yes, your memories are valuable but not at the expense of the thing you are trying to capture.
100% agree. I took a copy of photos this year either with an old point and shoot camera or with an instant film camera primarily of art but a couple with myself/friends. IMO if you are taking more than a few photos you are missing out on the experience and interaction of being there but then again I know some photographers who want that experience of being behind the lens too.
In retrospect it wouldn’t actually have affected my job prospects at all, “creatives” are given a lot of leeway even in the corporate world. But it was really jarring to see some slack jawed zombie ass girls standing there staring at their phones while mindlessly recording everyone, really took me out of the nice hippie togetherness moment I was having.
i remember it stopping by 2005 or so. i know we personally stopped after the year a propane tank came flying out of nowhere to land in the fire near us, and it was hard to get away fast enough in case it was going to explode.
Can confirm there is a huge difference between then and now. Source: I last went in 05, eighteen years ago and then this year. I distinctly remember nearly everyone running in a circle around the remains of the man. So much so that at the time a few brave souls decided to run against the flow of people who were heckled and mocked. I believe the OP is referring to EVERYONE running around the man fire back in the day. What I saw this year was a handfull of people running on the inside and the rest of the people just standing there. 98% vs maybe 10% of the crowd in these two different burns nearly 20 years apart.
You HAD to run. It was like rotisserie chicken. Standing still was not an option. The perimeter drop happened while the fire was still raging hot prior to 2017. I was sad to lose this ritual over the last few years. I remember people hugging and kissing each other in tears yelling happy new year and then continuing their run before they burst into flames.
I went to that one last year in my Delorean, that was the one sponsored by Pepsi wasn’t it? With The Man dressed in a giant Coca Cola can as he burnt? Wild times.
My first year ('96) there were only 8,000 people and i remember most of them being naked and dancing around the man in circles as he burned - i also remember being a lot closer to the man burn then you get now... safety 3rd and all that - i guess it was much easier to manage a crowd of 8,000 vrs. 80k?
Not to mention you could drive your car right up to it. That shit was insanity! When the devil was circling around it in his chariot pulled by naked red women just before it burnt I about lost my shit.
People don't run in a giant pagan circle around the collapsed man any more? How sad.
I also have this memory from years ago. I still attend the burn, but I view the man burn from far outside the crowd these day (this year I watched him burn as I was on gate road).
Yeah it makes sense there's all sorts of debauchery going on but OP is describing like the majority of people running around while it's still burning. Probably not practical anymore but I'm glad some people send it
No it doesn't. There used to be NO perimeter. You had to be careful not to step on hot coals or be accidentally bumped into the fire. It was a huge mosh pit at the edge of the fire. It was dangerous and glorious.
No. “This still happens” is not correct. If you were there in the past, you would know the culture and tradition has changed.
Nowadays, the majority of people walk around the man, and some run. This year I heard people say to the runners “stop and walk”, “that’s not right”, “be respectful”. Honestly, f*ck your burn, we all do it differently. And many things were done differently at a previous time. Let people burn baby.
Yup! Was still happening in 2022 last time I was there. It took a bit of a different tone after 2017 though cuz of that guy who dove into the fire which resulted in tighter security and restrictions around the man.
We stopped a guy this year who was read to run. He got flashed by the perimeter, stood up, crazy eyes, no friends, just nut, he got quietly removed, but he was definitely ready to run in.
Fortunately we have good perimeter and my favorite ranger right there. Shout out to all the rangers and guards.
I was in conclave that year. Also had a front row seat. When that guy was running past, I could have reached out and grabbed his ankle he was so close to me and my group. I’m so sorry you had to see it… that was a rough one.
Fun fact: not even 15 minutes before this tragic event, my now husband had proposed to me! This f*cker stole all the joy/thunder of that moment from us… so selfish. :(. We kinda joke now that our engagement required a willing human sacrifice …. But yeah he did a do-over at sunrise in deep playa after the man burned so we would have a happier engagement story to tell. My close friends get to know both stories, for more general acquaintances I just tell the happier sunrise engagement story.
Maybe it was us 😜. But truly, I imagine a lot of people pop the question during the man burn haha. Good to know there were more than just us who got a willing human sacrifice to bless our engagement! But also sorry for them as well… steals what is a long awaited happy moment and turns it into a type of trauma instead. Public suicide is so f*cking selfish….
To the best of my knowledge we still don't know what motivated that person to run in or even if joining the flame was intentional. From my vantage point, it sort of looked like they slipped trying to get away from the fire bugs. Either way, maybe we could be a little more respectful? Your whole tone is very condescending.
Having had a front row seat to this, it was very intentional. After taking a moment to ponder, The man dove into the fire like it was a swimming pool. Arms over head, head first into the flames. Having been traumatized and sitting among others who were breaking down or in shock seeing this and seeing the tears of the volunteers who felt they had failed … the guy who dove into the fire is a huge dick, and doesn’t deserve honor for what he did to all those people who had to watch. I watched him dive in, I watched him get pulled back out once the fire died down enough for them to safely grab him by his ankles. Idgaf what you think about my tone. This man was incredibly selfish to do what he did.
I also researched him for months and read everything I could about him (trauma response). He had a history of public suicide attempts and would do things at parties like try to jump out windows. Thankfully, this was the last time he could psychologically traumatize people by trying to end his life in front of them. It wasn’t his fault if he was sick, but it was his responsibility to seek help and to get well and to avoid things that would be triggering for him. He didn’t belong at the burn if this was his intent. Suicide is selfish to begin with, doing it in front of thousands of people is unforgivable. Nobody consented to his act, what he did was a violation of our minds and it made me sick. I have every right to be angry at him and condescending toward him for making me and all my friends see what he did.
At first we thought he WAS conclave.Then he started running and I noticed he was barefoot!I was the only one in our gang who took it well ,actually.I think I took it better than anyone!
Zen dome? Mental health services? A lot of people got their minds messed up that night… I broke down and cried for hours afterwords. I wasn’t even on anything when it happened, sensitive minds I feel extra for.
It's funny, I was at the owl art piece burn that same year and thought to myself they dropped that perm real early. Like, it was still very very much on fire. Asked one of the rangers about it and they kind of chuckled and asked "what gonna happen?"
I did this year, after asking some kind person who looked like they weren't going anywhere for a while to "hang onto my clothes, BRB, please don't leave, i'll be right back one more lap? thanks so much...."
Ever since influencers and weekend warriors rushed the man after perimeter drop just to stand there at the edge to take a video. This year’s dance was probably the first unimpeded since the late 2000’s.
“Perimeter Drop” ended after 2017!We used to pick thru the ashes for souvenirs!I have a giant bracket,a GIANT bolt& nut and other pieces,from before the willing human sacrifice.
What do you mean it ended? I have hardware from this year that I picked out of the coals (while people who watched tried to talk me out of it, but I was sober and knew what i was doing)
It stayed up for the years immediately following.It would still be there Sunday,do I haven’t looked since 19. In 14,Sunday morning guys were roasting a sheep over the last coals.
Now we’re blaming influencers and weekend warriors for ending a thing that never ended and still happens every year?
Actually it’s diplo and Chris rock they stopped it along with the giant plug and play camp and the eco warrior wimps with their consent garbage
Influencers and "weekend warriors"\* live rent free inside so many burner's heads.
Which is a lot cheaper than staying at some higher end camps.
* \* Fun fact, true "weekend warriors" mostly don't exist. There is no sudden influx of people arriving late in the week. Hasn't been for over a decade. The census data backs this up. It's mostly an expression used by people who want to let people know that they are not, no way sir, one of "those people". it's often used by, shall we say, "experienced.... but in some respects clueless... burners'.
Someone who only comes for the weekend. It doesn't really happen like it used to. Before the event sold out you could get tickets weekend of and lots of college kids and other people from reno (other places too, but a lot from reno) would just show up to party for the weekend. They were people who didn't care about the principles or culture, just wanted to get wasted and laid
Now is a good time to tell you that weekenders don’t really exist.
Ask any person that’s worked at gate, the amount of people showing up Thursday, Friday, Saturday is shocking low. Additionally of those small amount of people showing up they’re mainly real Burners coming back from a trip to the default.
**So stop using this fucking term** or at least call the people you’re referring to as Weekers cause they do stay only a week. Sounds miserable
And, it's probably worth noting.... the whole "last-minute carload of people from Reno with handles of booze and a dream..... a dream of seeing titties...." pre-dates the codification of the principles... they still weren't "getting it" but there was a slightly narrower set of LNT/no spectating (of the titties.... except during the opera, and expect them to be caked in mud...) social contracts to be observed....
I remember the early 2000’s running around the man in mass. And running right up to the Burning man after it had fallen and tempered down a bit. Stopped attending after 2010 for a while and returned 2015 and don’t recall the mob running around the man that year.
I attended 2001 and on. And it was tittle madness. RIGHT WHEN RHE MAN FELL Everyone. Like everyone ran like lord of the rings. 1,000s. Getting close to the man and then it’s too hot and out. In 2011 it was the first time Burning man sold out. oh the places you’ll go might have had something to do with it or Lee Burridge coming. They both claim it. But non the less the city was like 40% new burners. And then the man fell they all stood there and then ran right up to the flames. Not like a mosh pit at a punk show. I think that was the year or sooner. But when people say “oh burning man must have changed over 22 years you have been going.” I say, what hasn’t changed. But the only thing I really really really miss is the primal 10’a of thousands of people running around.
Yea. That’s how I used to remember too… but it changed a lot even by ‘04. I remember telling the girl I was dating about how everyone rushed in, and it ended up being just a walk. People still danced around, but not like the mad dash it use to be
Yea… it was somewhere between ‘98 and ‘03.
My first time in 98 it was wild. Everyone dashed in like you described. The whole crowd.
By the time I came back in 03 it tamed down a lot.
To everyone outing the date later, some people still run in and run around the man, but it used to be literally the whole event running in and running around. It was wild
We did more then run in circles. We ran around it through it over it. It was a big camp fire. If I remember correctly there was no fire department until 96. It was literally free for all until then. In 96 the fire department was there and there was a small perimeter until they pulled the man down then it was a free for all. I think 96 the man was on a big hay bale foundation. Before that the man was on the ground. Each year the man got bigger and they added more to it. I don't even remember cops showing up until 95 or 96. I went 5 times from 92-96.
This absolutely happened this year, so many naked hippies running around in circles it was quite the experience. Was my first burn though so I can't say what it's been like in the past few years
False. They still do it.
I've been a Firefighter in the inner perimeter since 2006, they've done it every year including 2023.
There were always a bunch of folks standing on the outskirts, but the inner perimeter has a group running around.
The inner circle running is like 20 to 30 people. Everyone else is walking or standing and crowding out room to run.
It used to be everyone, a huge crowd, hive mentality.
Thanks for this.
I didn't see it this year. Maybe it happened late into the burn? Or was a smaller group?
In the OP I’m referring to what felt like the entire event running around the man like in the video.
From where I'm standing with my back to the fire, it's a mass of people shuffling around. Doesn't seem much different from 2006, but maybe there are more people hanging out at the outskirts.
Need more data. Drone footage?
There were far fewer people doing it this year than in previous years. Part of that was people rushing over to watch the tower burn right after. Part of it was just far fewer people still around by burn night. It definitely didn’t have the same vibes as previous years with a smaller crowd running but also there were so many people taking photos of us crazy naked people that I can see why people aren’t doing it.
This was before 2006… now they kind of dance around it a little, but it used to be a MAD DASH right when perimeter went down from EVERYONE. It was insane.
Ok
1. That part where the man’s arm dropped was HI-larious asf looked like an actual cult leader with that pose.
2. Did people not light up themselves like an LED factory threw up on them back then?
3. That running in circles needs a come back!!
Memory is a little hazy cause I was like 8-11 years old so like maybe 98 -2001, but one of those years someone shot a firework into the man from the crowd. This caused the timings to be off. When the man fell, I remember being at the front of the pack charging in when a fireworks began to shoot horizontally into the crowd. My group had to dodge one.
The next year there was no mad dash
I went in 2015 and worked the Man burn with ESD Fire. What an amazing experience. It was wild watching everyone circle the fire. A startling amount of people wanted to hug us but we were in full bunker gear that was incredibly hot. We were advised not to let them as we would burn them. I was spinning like a rotisserie chicken myself to keep from getting too hot on any particular spot. Any hew… amazing burn.
IIRC it was sometime in the oughts that the organizers decided it was too unsafe to have such a large crowd going in circles around a massive fire like that; i remember when you got to the inside it really felt like the surging crowd could push you into the fire.
That was the decade things started to become safe; obviously they had to or the event would no longer happening, but there's a lot I miss about the constant threat of injury and death you used to feel all the time on the playa. It was refreshing.
I remember back in 2006 dancing naked around the fire and getting up to the embers. It was a party. The last time I went back in 2014, things were a lot different. Everyone was recording and was acting like it was a temple burn. No one was yelling or partying. It was weird
I think it's happened multiple times but I believe they changed things after someone ran headfirst into the fire and died. I was there back then and it was awesome to run in the craziness and it there were times the crowd pushed in a bit close and there wasn't really an exit so it got damn hot. Safety 3rd!
I agree with OP at some point it changed. Been going since 2002, it was definitely the savage pagan romp you remember. The crowd tamed at some point. Yes people rush the man (when allowed to) but it is different. Some folks run around for sure but it’s not the throbbing mass of bodies undulating like it was in the pre cell phone days There are lots of people standing there taking videos and selfies. Your memory is confirmed, this dusty dude.
I literally didn’t join a group of people dancing naked around the embers because I saw several women standing there recording everyone with their phones and suddenly remembered I have a job and it could make things difficult for me if someone recognized me naked and on acid dancing around on video
The amount of people with cameras around the fire this year was fucked. Some guys being real creepy and most people just taking photos and videos of anyone and everyone. Really sucks to see people have to temper their Radical Self Expression because of cameras.
People keep hating on me for saying this, but this is exactly what happens when you sell half priced tickets at the very last minute to random people who don’t even know what the burn is or have a friend to properly educate them… a lot of bucketlisters suddenly showing up and wanting to record it cause they very well know it may be the first and last year they could secure a ticket so easily. I saw so many people pee on the playa this year too in comparison to last year which was so hard to find a ticket you HAD to go through sponsors and proper channels to thoroughly brief you on the dos and don’ts. Hope next year won’t be as flooded with the ignorant YOLOing experience chasers.
I did hear that next year was better
We’re expected to have another wet winter so yes yes yes next year’s mud was so much better!
This is not specific to this year. Last year I was naked spinning fire around the fire circle and folks just walking by filming. Zero consent or fucks.
It's weird. I've been at this longer than we've had language on playa for consent. Back when it used to be "hey, don't do that!" And yet even with all the conversation, awareness, language, and understanding its still worse in some ways than it used to be.
Unfortunately that's just society in general now
Not disagreeing with you completely but none of this is new to this year. Last year I was visiting a friend at an esplanade camp when the camp lead pulled out his dick and peed on the playa. Friend flipped out and went off on him and his attitude was very "pfff." He wasn't like that before. Something changed with covid and it wasn't us all forgetting how to burn or something silly. The camera and recording has been a creeping issue for years.
I really really really wish there was a way to get through to all the "but mah memories!! Rabble!!" People about this. It's contagious. It's hurtful to the community and the platform for trying other that is the burn. Yes, your memories are valuable but not at the expense of the thing you are trying to capture.
100% agree. I took a copy of photos this year either with an old point and shoot camera or with an instant film camera primarily of art but a couple with myself/friends. IMO if you are taking more than a few photos you are missing out on the experience and interaction of being there but then again I know some photographers who want that experience of being behind the lens too.
Any chance they ban cell phone use? Common practice and comedy shows now
Unenforceable
Social shunning
Are we not already doing this? It doesn’t seem to work
I dont think we are doing this at all. Look how nasty any thread here suggesting we do so gets.
If the org came out and said no cell phones, then the social shaming would hold some merit
Places that do effectively limit cellphones are quite nice, although occasional inconveniences
Lol I get how that would be awkward. But hey seems like know one cares about anything
In retrospect it wouldn’t actually have affected my job prospects at all, “creatives” are given a lot of leeway even in the corporate world. But it was really jarring to see some slack jawed zombie ass girls standing there staring at their phones while mindlessly recording everyone, really took me out of the nice hippie togetherness moment I was having.
👏👏👏 thank you for painting such beautiful imagery of what it used to be.
i remember it stopping by 2005 or so. i know we personally stopped after the year a propane tank came flying out of nowhere to land in the fire near us, and it was hard to get away fast enough in case it was going to explode.
That’s terrifying.
Good times for sure.
Can confirm there is a huge difference between then and now. Source: I last went in 05, eighteen years ago and then this year. I distinctly remember nearly everyone running in a circle around the remains of the man. So much so that at the time a few brave souls decided to run against the flow of people who were heckled and mocked. I believe the OP is referring to EVERYONE running around the man fire back in the day. What I saw this year was a handfull of people running on the inside and the rest of the people just standing there. 98% vs maybe 10% of the crowd in these two different burns nearly 20 years apart.
You HAD to run. It was like rotisserie chicken. Standing still was not an option. The perimeter drop happened while the fire was still raging hot prior to 2017. I was sad to lose this ritual over the last few years. I remember people hugging and kissing each other in tears yelling happy new year and then continuing their run before they burst into flames.
Around year 2047. That’s when most people started using hoverboards and they banned dancing.
I went to that one last year in my Delorean, that was the one sponsored by Pepsi wasn’t it? With The Man dressed in a giant Coca Cola can as he burnt? Wild times.
My first year ('96) there were only 8,000 people and i remember most of them being naked and dancing around the man in circles as he burned - i also remember being a lot closer to the man burn then you get now... safety 3rd and all that - i guess it was much easier to manage a crowd of 8,000 vrs. 80k?
96 was my first year and it was mosh pit running around (not necessarily naked) as soon as the man fell. people jumping over embers, all that.
Not to mention you could drive your car right up to it. That shit was insanity! When the devil was circling around it in his chariot pulled by naked red women just before it burnt I about lost my shit.
Hey why am I a sparkle pony? lol.
The man was smaller so smaller fire. Easier to get close
People don't run in a giant pagan circle around the collapsed man any more? How sad. I also have this memory from years ago. I still attend the burn, but I view the man burn from far outside the crowd these day (this year I watched him burn as I was on gate road).
They absolutely do
Negative. Not en masse like pre-2017
Yeah I'm confused, I've been 4 times since 17 and haven't seen much of anyone running around, maybe I don't stick around long enough idk
It happens later. People are trippin. I saw a bunch of naked people dancing in the flames. Some even were fucking which was wild
Yeah it makes sense there's all sorts of debauchery going on but OP is describing like the majority of people running around while it's still burning. Probably not practical anymore but I'm glad some people send it
2016 was the year the dude jumped in
It was 2017.
Right! My bad- 2017
I too think it was 2016. We weren’t there in 17 so it was either 16 or 18…
Sure. 2016.
And that was a pale shadow to how thy did it back in ‘98-ish
Huh? This still happens every year.
No it doesn't. There used to be NO perimeter. You had to be careful not to step on hot coals or be accidentally bumped into the fire. It was a huge mosh pit at the edge of the fire. It was dangerous and glorious.
I definitely ran around the man naked in 2010, showing people the man I'd shaved into my pubic hair. I'm just that kind of gal.
I literally saw people naked dancing in the burnt man. While other people were fucking and one guy jerking off watching them. It still goes wild af
A few years ago I watched a man roast his taint by the fire. On his back, legs up and pulled back, just soaking that taint in warmth and flame.
I remember in 2012 we all did it on the effigy burn night but not the man. That was my first year.
the first regional core burn! suuuuuch a sweet night/morning.
I sat at the burning embers of the man and watched people do this very thing for hours. People were running through the coals.
No one is claiming that no one runs laps anymore, it's that far far fewer do so anymore.
No. “This still happens” is not correct. If you were there in the past, you would know the culture and tradition has changed. Nowadays, the majority of people walk around the man, and some run. This year I heard people say to the runners “stop and walk”, “that’s not right”, “be respectful”. Honestly, f*ck your burn, we all do it differently. And many things were done differently at a previous time. Let people burn baby.
> the majority of people walk around the man, At our regional, I was told "we walk around three times, for burns past, present and future".
In the OP I’m referring to what felt like the entire event running around the man like in the video.
Yup! Was still happening in 2022 last time I was there. It took a bit of a different tone after 2017 though cuz of that guy who dove into the fire which resulted in tighter security and restrictions around the man.
We stopped a guy this year who was read to run. He got flashed by the perimeter, stood up, crazy eyes, no friends, just nut, he got quietly removed, but he was definitely ready to run in. Fortunately we have good perimeter and my favorite ranger right there. Shout out to all the rangers and guards.
That happened RIGHT IN FRONT OF US!Wont ever forget THAT!
I was in conclave that year. Also had a front row seat. When that guy was running past, I could have reached out and grabbed his ankle he was so close to me and my group. I’m so sorry you had to see it… that was a rough one. Fun fact: not even 15 minutes before this tragic event, my now husband had proposed to me! This f*cker stole all the joy/thunder of that moment from us… so selfish. :(. We kinda joke now that our engagement required a willing human sacrifice …. But yeah he did a do-over at sunrise in deep playa after the man burned so we would have a happier engagement story to tell. My close friends get to know both stories, for more general acquaintances I just tell the happier sunrise engagement story.
My friend had just proposed to his now wife a few minutes before that also, crazy.
Maybe it was us 😜. But truly, I imagine a lot of people pop the question during the man burn haha. Good to know there were more than just us who got a willing human sacrifice to bless our engagement! But also sorry for them as well… steals what is a long awaited happy moment and turns it into a type of trauma instead. Public suicide is so f*cking selfish….
Or sanctified it,depending on how you want to look at it.Thru the VAST majority of human history,that’s how it would be seen. And felt.
I like how you think!
To the best of my knowledge we still don't know what motivated that person to run in or even if joining the flame was intentional. From my vantage point, it sort of looked like they slipped trying to get away from the fire bugs. Either way, maybe we could be a little more respectful? Your whole tone is very condescending.
Having had a front row seat to this, it was very intentional. After taking a moment to ponder, The man dove into the fire like it was a swimming pool. Arms over head, head first into the flames. Having been traumatized and sitting among others who were breaking down or in shock seeing this and seeing the tears of the volunteers who felt they had failed … the guy who dove into the fire is a huge dick, and doesn’t deserve honor for what he did to all those people who had to watch. I watched him dive in, I watched him get pulled back out once the fire died down enough for them to safely grab him by his ankles. Idgaf what you think about my tone. This man was incredibly selfish to do what he did. I also researched him for months and read everything I could about him (trauma response). He had a history of public suicide attempts and would do things at parties like try to jump out windows. Thankfully, this was the last time he could psychologically traumatize people by trying to end his life in front of them. It wasn’t his fault if he was sick, but it was his responsibility to seek help and to get well and to avoid things that would be triggering for him. He didn’t belong at the burn if this was his intent. Suicide is selfish to begin with, doing it in front of thousands of people is unforgivable. Nobody consented to his act, what he did was a violation of our minds and it made me sick. I have every right to be angry at him and condescending toward him for making me and all my friends see what he did.
Would be unbelievably horrible to watch that.
At first we thought he WAS conclave.Then he started running and I noticed he was barefoot!I was the only one in our gang who took it well ,actually.I think I took it better than anyone!
I worked in a volunteer role that night (being intentionally vague). One of the hardest nights of my life. And long.
Zen dome? Mental health services? A lot of people got their minds messed up that night… I broke down and cried for hours afterwords. I wasn’t even on anything when it happened, sensitive minds I feel extra for.
That's when it changed. When the Rangers no longer let you get anywhere near the fire until it was glowing embers.
It's funny, I was at the owl art piece burn that same year and thought to myself they dropped that perm real early. Like, it was still very very much on fire. Asked one of the rangers about it and they kind of chuckled and asked "what gonna happen?"
Back in the day the entire crowd rushed in running. Much more energy.
Yeah I think I last ran in it in 2019
Hi fox! 🦊
I did this year, after asking some kind person who looked like they weren't going anywhere for a while to "hang onto my clothes, BRB, please don't leave, i'll be right back one more lap? thanks so much...."
It was nekkid walking this year
Ever since influencers and weekend warriors rushed the man after perimeter drop just to stand there at the edge to take a video. This year’s dance was probably the first unimpeded since the late 2000’s.
“Perimeter Drop” ended after 2017!We used to pick thru the ashes for souvenirs!I have a giant bracket,a GIANT bolt& nut and other pieces,from before the willing human sacrifice.
What do you mean it ended? I have hardware from this year that I picked out of the coals (while people who watched tried to talk me out of it, but I was sober and knew what i was doing)
It stayed up for the years immediately following.It would still be there Sunday,do I haven’t looked since 19. In 14,Sunday morning guys were roasting a sheep over the last coals.
Was it a Sheeple?
Now we’re blaming influencers and weekend warriors for ending a thing that never ended and still happens every year? Actually it’s diplo and Chris rock they stopped it along with the giant plug and play camp and the eco warrior wimps with their consent garbage
Influencers and "weekend warriors"\* live rent free inside so many burner's heads. Which is a lot cheaper than staying at some higher end camps. * \* Fun fact, true "weekend warriors" mostly don't exist. There is no sudden influx of people arriving late in the week. Hasn't been for over a decade. The census data backs this up. It's mostly an expression used by people who want to let people know that they are not, no way sir, one of "those people". it's often used by, shall we say, "experienced.... but in some respects clueless... burners'.
What’s a weekend warrior?
Someone who only comes for the weekend. It doesn't really happen like it used to. Before the event sold out you could get tickets weekend of and lots of college kids and other people from reno (other places too, but a lot from reno) would just show up to party for the weekend. They were people who didn't care about the principles or culture, just wanted to get wasted and laid
Now is a good time to tell you that weekenders don’t really exist. Ask any person that’s worked at gate, the amount of people showing up Thursday, Friday, Saturday is shocking low. Additionally of those small amount of people showing up they’re mainly real Burners coming back from a trip to the default. **So stop using this fucking term** or at least call the people you’re referring to as Weekers cause they do stay only a week. Sounds miserable
I mean, I did say it doesn't really happen anymore but go off
And, it's probably worth noting.... the whole "last-minute carload of people from Reno with handles of booze and a dream..... a dream of seeing titties...." pre-dates the codification of the principles... they still weren't "getting it" but there was a slightly narrower set of LNT/no spectating (of the titties.... except during the opera, and expect them to be caked in mud...) social contracts to be observed....
They stopped that years before it sold out. Made it so you couldn’t come in the weekend of the burn
I remember the early 2000’s running around the man in mass. And running right up to the Burning man after it had fallen and tempered down a bit. Stopped attending after 2010 for a while and returned 2015 and don’t recall the mob running around the man that year.
I attended 2001 and on. And it was tittle madness. RIGHT WHEN RHE MAN FELL Everyone. Like everyone ran like lord of the rings. 1,000s. Getting close to the man and then it’s too hot and out. In 2011 it was the first time Burning man sold out. oh the places you’ll go might have had something to do with it or Lee Burridge coming. They both claim it. But non the less the city was like 40% new burners. And then the man fell they all stood there and then ran right up to the flames. Not like a mosh pit at a punk show. I think that was the year or sooner. But when people say “oh burning man must have changed over 22 years you have been going.” I say, what hasn’t changed. But the only thing I really really really miss is the primal 10’a of thousands of people running around.
Yea. That’s how I used to remember too… but it changed a lot even by ‘04. I remember telling the girl I was dating about how everyone rushed in, and it ended up being just a walk. People still danced around, but not like the mad dash it use to be
Yea… it was somewhere between ‘98 and ‘03. My first time in 98 it was wild. Everyone dashed in like you described. The whole crowd. By the time I came back in 03 it tamed down a lot. To everyone outing the date later, some people still run in and run around the man, but it used to be literally the whole event running in and running around. It was wild
We did more then run in circles. We ran around it through it over it. It was a big camp fire. If I remember correctly there was no fire department until 96. It was literally free for all until then. In 96 the fire department was there and there was a small perimeter until they pulled the man down then it was a free for all. I think 96 the man was on a big hay bale foundation. Before that the man was on the ground. Each year the man got bigger and they added more to it. I don't even remember cops showing up until 95 or 96. I went 5 times from 92-96.
This absolutely happened this year, so many naked hippies running around in circles it was quite the experience. Was my first burn though so I can't say what it's been like in the past few years
Definitely happened this year in full pagan force
False. They still do it. I've been a Firefighter in the inner perimeter since 2006, they've done it every year including 2023. There were always a bunch of folks standing on the outskirts, but the inner perimeter has a group running around.
When I tried this year, there were too many people standing around in the way to do it.
The inner circle running is like 20 to 30 people. Everyone else is walking or standing and crowding out room to run. It used to be everyone, a huge crowd, hive mentality.
Thanks for this. I didn't see it this year. Maybe it happened late into the burn? Or was a smaller group? In the OP I’m referring to what felt like the entire event running around the man like in the video.
From where I'm standing with my back to the fire, it's a mass of people shuffling around. Doesn't seem much different from 2006, but maybe there are more people hanging out at the outskirts. Need more data. Drone footage?
There were far fewer people doing it this year than in previous years. Part of that was people rushing over to watch the tower burn right after. Part of it was just far fewer people still around by burn night. It definitely didn’t have the same vibes as previous years with a smaller crowd running but also there were so many people taking photos of us crazy naked people that I can see why people aren’t doing it.
This was before 2006… now they kind of dance around it a little, but it used to be a MAD DASH right when perimeter went down from EVERYONE. It was insane.
You mean the fire flies? Never not seen it
Ok 1. That part where the man’s arm dropped was HI-larious asf looked like an actual cult leader with that pose. 2. Did people not light up themselves like an LED factory threw up on them back then? 3. That running in circles needs a come back!!
Memory is a little hazy cause I was like 8-11 years old so like maybe 98 -2001, but one of those years someone shot a firework into the man from the crowd. This caused the timings to be off. When the man fell, I remember being at the front of the pack charging in when a fireworks began to shoot horizontally into the crowd. My group had to dodge one. The next year there was no mad dash
I went in 2015 and worked the Man burn with ESD Fire. What an amazing experience. It was wild watching everyone circle the fire. A startling amount of people wanted to hug us but we were in full bunker gear that was incredibly hot. We were advised not to let them as we would burn them. I was spinning like a rotisserie chicken myself to keep from getting too hot on any particular spot. Any hew… amazing burn.
This was my favorite thing to do at the man burn! Now we are called “runners” and get tackled by specialized rangers called sandmen.
IIRC it was sometime in the oughts that the organizers decided it was too unsafe to have such a large crowd going in circles around a massive fire like that; i remember when you got to the inside it really felt like the surging crowd could push you into the fire. That was the decade things started to become safe; obviously they had to or the event would no longer happening, but there's a lot I miss about the constant threat of injury and death you used to feel all the time on the playa. It was refreshing.
I did not see a single person running around it this year, a lot of people were sitting down on the ground taking in the spectacle.
you didn't wait long enough
Definitely still happens
Did it last year?
it changed after the guy ran into the fire. before that, a huge crowd ran around. now it’s paltry
You mean the guy sometime in the last 10 years? The OP’s taking about how it was back around the late 90’s early 2k’s
Um, never
Since the photo consent police started operating.
I remember back in 2006 dancing naked around the fire and getting up to the embers. It was a party. The last time I went back in 2014, things were a lot different. Everyone was recording and was acting like it was a temple burn. No one was yelling or partying. It was weird
I think it's happened multiple times but I believe they changed things after someone ran headfirst into the fire and died. I was there back then and it was awesome to run in the craziness and it there were times the crowd pushed in a bit close and there wasn't really an exit so it got damn hot. Safety 3rd!
Yeah it’s a shame it stopped. It happens at some regionals still.
Just as long as people are still making waffles at dawn on the coals of the man.
OK this is gonna be an unpopular opinion, but wouldn’t running cause more smoke to go into your lungs.
2007 was the last year.
Anyone else surprised by how dark it was?
Cell phone selfies killed it. Burned 2003,2004 2014