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Green Tortoise Adventure Travel
494 Broadway
San Francisco, CA
94133 USA
U.S. and Canada:
1.800.TORTOISE
(1.800.867.8647)
San Francisco and Worldwide: 001.415.956.7500
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Burning Man Update #2
All About Bikes!
DID YOU RECEIVE BURNING MAN EMAIL UPDATE #1 from us? If not, let us know!
Due to limited loading zone space, we we highly encourage you to board in El Cerrito if you are bringing a bike. There is nowhere to easily load and unload a bike from a car or cab at our departure location in San Francisco. If you still wish to board in San Francisco, you must be able to remove your own front tire prior to loading. Please read this important information about bringing your bike on the Green Tortoise. BIKES CAN BE BROUGHT TO ALL DEPARTURE LOCATIONS ON AUGUST 28TH, BUT WE PREFER THAT YOU DEPART FROM EL CERRITO IF YOU ARE GOING TO BE BRINGING A BIKE. THE TRANSPORTATION FEE IS $40.
 We are accepting deliveries for bikes from now until Friday, August 24 M-F from 10-6 at our bus yard, located in Oakland. Please call the travel office for details and to make arrangements.
Please remove your front wheel. If necessary, please bring tools to make these adjustments. We will not have enough tools on hand for everyone. Remove all fenders and leave them at home; we don't have space to transport them.
We recommend writing your name directly on your bike in permanent marker to identify it as yours.
All bikes will be arriving on the playa Wednesday morning, August 29th, and leaving on Sunday evening, September 2nd. Therefore, if you are on one of our AM departures, your bike will not be available on the Playa Tuesday or Sunday night.
ALL BIKES MUST BE LOADED FOR DEPARTURE FROM BURNING MAN BY 8PM (load time will be between 6:30 pm and 8 pm) ON SEPTEMBER 2ND FOR THE RETURN TRIP TO THE BAY AREA. Those passengers leaving Burning Man on the morning of September 3 will need to drop their bikes at the bike trailer the night before their departure.
All bikes will return from the playa to the Bay Area on Monday, September 3. IF YOU DO NOT CLAIM YOUR BIKE AT YOUR ARRIVAL POINT ON MONDAY, WE WILL CONSIDER IT DONATED.
Green Tortoise cannot be responsible for damages to bikes during loading or unloading (or on the Playa), so please do not bring your precious, expensive, antique bike or fragile art bicycle. ALL BIKES MUST BE TAGGED WITH NAME, PHONE NUMBER AND/OR EMAIL ADDRESS.
Arrival times in San Francisco and El Cerrito are subject to vary, depending on the time it takes to exit the Playa after the event and traffic conditions. Green Tortoise does not guarantee arrival times.
Here is the scoop from Burning Man on bikes:
"Burning Man is very much a bike culture... in fact, Black Rock City has more bikes per capita than any city in the world. Cool, huh? OK, you get the point. Bikes!"
Thinking about bringing your bike? We only have 20 bike spots left, so contact us today! |
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What Kind Of Bike Should You Bring To Burning Man?
 For the easiest cycling on the playa surface, the ideal bicycle is a beach cruiser with fat tires, or a mountain bike. Thin 10-speed type tires can make for some tough travel.
It should be in good shape enough to survive and ride smoothly
The best information about bikes at Burning Man -- including what kind of bike is recommended to bring, how to maintain it, how to be safe and keep it from being stolen -- can be found in your Survival Guide (which you've read, right?), and also online at the Burning Man website. |
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Light Your Bike... or Die!
It's super freakin' dangerous to ride around on an unlit bike at night. Dangerous for you, and for those around you. So get some lights and put them on your bike. And we're not talking about weak-kneed pansy lights either... get good ones that you can see from afar. A headlight and a taillight are key, too.
There's a lot of people running around on playa at night, and guess what? If your bike isn't lit, THEY CAN'T SEE YOU. Riding an unlit bike is just asking to get whacked, and nursing a broken collarbone is a less-than-ideal way to spend your Burn. Without a headlight, you might not see that dude sleeping (read: speed bump) on the open playa. At the very least, it's a lot easier to find your bike amongst the acres of other bikes if you light it uniquely.
So please, if you take just *one* thing away from this email, it's this: light your bike. Or die. (Cue the doom-like music.) |
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Burning Man's Community Bikes Program
Once again, Burning Man is running the Community Bike program, offering a fleet of community bicycles available for anyone who needs a one-way ride. Community Bikes are easy to spot because they are painted BRIGHT GREEN, with no visible brand and/or the words "YELLOW BIKE" painted on the frame.
Here are a few things to keep in mind when using a Community Bike:
- Community Bikes are for temporary use by anyone without immediate access to their own bike. This is not YOUR loaner bike for the week. Bike rides are only a one-way, temporary guarantee.
- Bikes can be hard to find - especially when you have somewhere to go at a certain time. Don't want to miss your tutu-making class? Bring your own bike to the playa!
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Don't Want Your Bike To Get Stolen? Ok Then ...
If you don't want your bike stolen on the playa, then always lock it up wherever you leave it. Rocket science, right? The unfortunate reality is that bicycles get stolen (or "recklessly borrowed") because they're unlocked. This has been the case for years and years. The only bikes that should never be locked are GREEN Community Bikes.
Here's a handy tip: you can always sharpie your name and camp address on the frame of your bike, and maybe some kind soul will find your bike and have the presence of mind to return it to you ("stealing" tends to be of a spontaneous and ultimately temporary nature more often than not). We'd guess the odds of that happening are actually pretty good: the great majority of Burners are good peeps.
Burning Man is not responsible if your bike gets stolen. We're supposed to say that, I think. Either way, we're not. |
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Bike Repair On Playa
The key concept when it comes to bike repair on playa is? Self-reliance. You should bring everything you need to service your own bike, including basic tools, a bike pump and extra innertubes or a patch kit.
There is at least one bike repair camp on playa, but (and maybe this is petty), the folks at Burning Man aren't going to tell you where they are, lest they become your first resort and get swamped. They should be your *last* resort. Anyway, they provide NO parts, ONLY tools. If you really need 'em, you can find 'em.
So, but again: self-reliance. Key concept. |
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Disposing of Your Bike at the End of the Event
The absolute least cool thing you can do with your bike at the end of the event is to abandon it on the playa. Way, Way, Uncool. Hardworking crews are forced to round up all the abandoned bikes at the end of the event and dispose of them. Lots of bikes. And that sucks.
If you really don't want that bike anymore, that's cool, but please don't leave it on the playa.
Thanks for helping us!
Please feel free to be in touch if you have questions.
The Gang at Green Tortoise |
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Copyright 2012 Green Tortoise Adventure Travel
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