Interstellar Cargo Hauling Service
In an attempt to simultaneously save some money on the incredible amount of fossil-fuel required to transport the I.P.B. to Burning Man and assist my many wonderful friends and acquaintances in transporting their bikes, art projects, camping gear (&c.) to same I am trying an experiment this year: The Interstellar Cargo Hauling Service.

Here's how I think it will work:

  • YOU are a Burning Man attendee who has a big shade structure or a couple bikes or an unwieldy art project or a lot of camping gear and a very small amount of space in which to transport all these things to the playa (maybe you're carpooling in a minivan with three other people? maybe you're driving your Nissan Stanza with your girlfriend or boyfriend? maybe you're flying?).
  • I am a Burning Man attendee with a big cargo van / mutant vehicle capable of pulling several hundred pounds of stuff that guzzles unleaded gasoline like an alcoholic elephant at the fabled River of Whiskey.
So let's pool our resources, yes? I am willing to haul your stuff to the playa (and back again) for a nominal fee. Right now, I'm thinking $1 Per Pound. (For your reference, my Schwinn Cruiser weighs about 40 pounds.) If I can haul half a ton of your stuff then I can cover about half of my fuel expenditure. Yes, it really is that expensive.

The details will go something like this (these may change as the departure date approaches):

Front Side
  • Your stuff should be well packed and tagged with your name (and camp location if known). It might get rained on or have other things stacked on it.
  • It should be delivered to my house sometime on or before Wednesday, August 20th. Payment up-front! I know I won't be able to chase down debtors after the festival.
  • I'll probably leave Thursday or Friday and try to be on the playa Monday morning.
  • Hopefully, as the date approaches, I'll have a good as to where I'll be camping. In any case, I'll register at Playa Info as soon as I arrive on Monday.
  • I can't be driving all over Black Rock City looking for y'all so you'll have to come pick up your belongs from me.
Back Side
  • I'll be leaving the playa sometime during the evening of Monday, Sep 1st. You should get your cargo back to me anytime before then.
  • It may take me several days to get back to the Twin Cities but once I do you can collect your belongings at your convenience.
This offer is open to anyone who can abide by my terms. I expect the most popular items that I'll be transporting are bikes, art projects of various size and materials for shade structures (10' long PVC or EMT pipes, for instance?).

If you'd like to take me up on my offer or if you have any questions or special circumstances please .Sooner is always better than later.

Comments:

Tuesday, June 24, 2008 4:58 PM from
I haven't gotten my transport situation squared away yet and I may want to take you up on this. I was offered rides by both Paulski (who it now looks like may be flying) and Zed (who's family situation...). Even if I catch a ride with them I may need some space for my gear. Oh and I'm not exactly sure how much stuff I'll have. Just to be difficult.

Tuesday, June 24, 2008 5:41 PM from jarrin
It is, in any case, far too early to worry about it all just yet. We've still got a couple months to work all these things out - but I wanted everyone to know that my offer is on the table and that I'm committed to offering this service.

(Caveat: if TOO MANY people want to use my service I might have to turn some away - there is a limit to how much cargo I can haul, after-all. But I'd be surprised if that happened this year.)

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