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Boat of the Week: This Sleek 184-Foot Superyacht Is an Otherworldly Homage to Burning Man

"galaxy" has a wild, alternate-universe interior that rewrites the design rules for superyachts. part psychedelic, part disney, all fun., rachel ingram, rachel ingram's most recent stories.

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The worlds of the desert festival, Burning Man, and superyachting may not seem like a natural fit, but the owners and designers of 184-foot Galaxy successfully made those worlds collide—and, in the process, showed how yacht design can be a lot more creative, and fast.

The five-month refit of Galaxy —a 2005 Benetti —was not only unusually speedy for a superyacht, but signals the emergence of a new kind of yachting, a clean-slate design that gave the owners the fantasyland interior that they wanted. Typically, most interior refits involve only cosmetic changes, and from the exterior, Galaxy looks almost painfully cookie-cutter. But inside, the bold, bespoke look may inspire others to follow their wildest dreams, rather than staying safe with a conventional design.

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Njord by Bergman Design House created the eclectic interior. The refit was done by Monaco Marine and GM Group at the La Ciotat yard in France. “ Galaxy isn’t just another white superyacht on the French Riviera,” says Sarah Colbon, co-founder of the London-based design firm. “The yacht is its own out-of-world destination that touches all your senses and excites and embraces you with its energy.”

The main salon is a moody fantasyland that can double as a nightclub, art gallery and social hall.  Courtesy Njord by Bergman

Burning Man is an annual gathering that takes place in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert. It’s a mix of art, music and free expression that embraces individual creativity, no matter what that looks like. And it can look pretty wild. At the end of the festival is the ritual burning of “The Man,” a tall effigy made of wood. Galaxy ‘s owners, a leading American video-games developer and his partner, are frequent attendees. They were inspired by the festival and a love of entertaining, says Colbon, to create an “alternate universe.”

The expansive main deck has been transformed into a giant “floating private member’s club,” with bespoke décor and alternatively moody and brightly colored artwork. “The Thinker” by contemporary artist Joseph Klibansky reimagines Rodin’s classic sculpture as an astronaut, and there are also paintings by Camille Hannah and wall coverings by digital artist Dylan Cole, known for Disney’s Avatar and Maleficent .

The wallpaper is Cole’s first static project. “He’s never done this before, but he appreciated the concept of Galaxy and loved the sound of the owners,” says Colbon. “So he agreed to create the owners’ own Avatar world onboard.” If you look closely, you’ll spot secret creatures and “ET” aliens hidden in the otherworldly scenes that Cole created.

The upper deck is all about calmness and serenity. Even the floors are designed to stimulate feel-good endorphins.  Courtesy Njord by Bergman

While the main deck is a nightclub that would look right at home on some alien world, the upper deck is designed for the opposite effect. It features a lounge and dining space for 12 guests which is “super calm,” according to the designer.

“What’s wonderful about Galaxy is you can switch it on and off,” says Colbon. “You can go from the ultimate club space with RGB lighting, party vibes and a DJ stand, to the serene upper deck where you can connect with your senses.”

When they’re done for the day, guests can retire to suites which have been named and styled after other planets. “We’ve designed Venus and Saturn with beautiful light pearls and golds, while Mars has these striking earthy red tones,” says Colbon. “Rather than being gimmicky, we’ve respected the colors and sensibilities of the planets.”

The digital-art ceiling and mural behind the bed by Dylan Cole (one of the artists on the Disney movie “Avatar”) re-create the owners’ star signs and their favorite constellation.  Courtesy Njord by Bergman

The master suite is even more bespoke: The bed’s headboard is designed with a metal bronze effect with tiny LED lights that create a star-gazing platform. The owners’ star signs also come through as the brighter lights, while their friends’ star signs are dimmer lights. On the ceiling is the owners’ favorite constellation.

The centerpieces of the yacht are the stairwell and elevator areas, hand-painted with an ombre, galaxy-toned effect.

Galaxy is filled with special features, including adjustable RGB lighting and smart materials like a specially engineered flooring. Colbon says that’s a world first for a superyacht. “The tight ripple effect stimulates the nerve endings on your feet when you walk on it and triggers endorphins to make you super relaxed,” she says. “It also looks like the ocean with tiny waves crashing on top of each other.”

Bespoke lounges, tables and sculptures are part of Galaxy ‘s unique vibe.  Courtesy Njord by Bergman

The crew thought it was crazy to use this surface as flooring, says Colbon. “But they understand now.”

The five-month turnaround also seemed like a stretch, especially since it included a full exterior paint job, new name plates and a spa. And then there was the fantastical interior.

“This yacht shows how design can be done differently in every way,” says Colbon. “It ranges from a new type of owner to the ways that collaborations between the designers and yard can actually change the whole refit process. I think Galaxy is going to really shine.”

“The Thinker,” a modern homage to Rodin’s classic sculpture, is one of many bespoke pieces aboard Galaxy.   Courtesy Njord by Bergman

Galaxy will be delivered to its owners in mid-March.

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Superyacht Spotlight: Burning Man-Inspired Superyacht Proves Anything Is Possible

The njord bergman design house team helped first-time yacht owners turn a 184-foot-long 2005 benetti into an ultra-luxe, burning man-inspired, superyacht spaceship..

Video game designer and entrepreneur Dave Hagewood only had a rough idea of just how cool exploring the world on a large yacht could be when he started chartering in the Mediterranean and Caribbean with Danielle Hill and a tight group of their friends. But once they got a taste of the freedom and luxury that large yachts provide, they soon realized that chartering would never be enough. In fact, they started looking for a yacht to buy that they would be able to design according to their unique tastes and desires, even before their first charter was over.

Lucky for them, they met design experts Marie Soliman-Berglund, Albin Berglund, and Sarah Colbon of Njord by Bergman Design House, who helped them find a yacht they could make their own. And the Njord Bergman Design House team did way more than just “refresh” the interior of the 184-foot-long 2005 Benetti they found. In fact, Hagewood’s newly relaunched GALAXY is the ultra-luxe, Burning Man-inspired, superyacht spaceship the young, first-time superyacht owner always knew he wanted.

Sarah Colbon describes how she and the husband-and-wife team of Marie Soliman-Berglund and Albin Berglund were able to exceed Hagewood’s expectations. “The design concept was always about Dave and Danielle’s love of life, passion for creating their own community like they find at Burning Man, and gifting everyone who steps onboard an energy that’s pure and unforgettable. GALAXY is their very own spaceship.”

“We want Galaxy be the creative focal point where everyone can be free to do what they want and just have a ton of fun and bring their own talents and energies to the boat and see what happens,” Hagewood adds. 

Hagewood also brings some fresh perspective to superyacht ownership as well. “There are lot of yachts out there that are very private, very closed. And there are lots of people that are kind of just retired and sailing off into the sunset,” he says. “But there are a few that are really looking for our kind of energy. And we love meeting new people.”

“Their passion for outer space and that feeling of being in another world meant so much, GALAXY became this, but it’s also their home on the water,” Colbon adds. “It touches the senses from head to toe, especially in the main salon, which can be their very own private members club, a super comfortable space to chill in the afternoon, a movie theater, and then transform into a nightclub where Dave can play his latest music track.”

Other unique design features include the master suite that has a music studio and unique snuggle space in their private apartment in the bow. And the cosmic-inspired accents, including the illuminated headboard with their own star signs, is off-the-hook. The upper saloon features one-of-a-kind artwork by Hannah Camille, and a cool a space for playing the piano and dining.

As one of a lucky few who get to learn about all the amazing advancements in yachting from manufacturers, brokers, and owners on a regular basis, I’m thrilled to see owners and designers teaming up to create something so fresh and new.

And as one of the lucky ones who joined Hagewood and his tight-knit group of friends at GALAXY’s re-launch in Miami earlier this year, I know there’s a whole new generation of potential yacht owners who would love to do exactly what Hagewood and Njord by Bergman Design have done.

And I can also say from first-hand experience…you can! 

When it comes to superyachts anything is possible when you have the right team.

Interested in purchasing a yacht of your own? Contact a Denison yacht broker to answer your questions and start your journey to owning a yacht.

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Inside the secret masquerade yacht party that brings the wildest techies and Wall Streeters together for a night of debauchery

By 10:30 p.m.,  I was ready to collapse on the dance floor. Everyone else was heading to an afterparty at a far-off warehouse. That's the kind of party New York's Burlesquerade is.

Now in its 7th year, the annual costumed gala has grown from a birthday party in a tiny apartment to an extravaganza on a 30,000 square-foot "super yacht" featuring an eye-popping lineup of DJs, aerialists, burlesque dancers, and performance artists.

The Burning Man-esque party attracts 1,200 partygoers ranging from bigwigs at Goldman Sachs and Facebook to Brooklyn's DIY fashion designers and filmmakers. Timothy Phillips, the man whose birthday started it all, says he hopes the event is "inspiring."

"The idea is really just to set this expectation that everyone should be surrounded by people who inspire and motivate them all the time," Phillips told Business Insider.  "We try to create events that facilitate that."

Phillips recently invited me to attend this year's Burlesquerade. Here's what it was like.

At Phillips' insistence, I showed up at Pier 40 early so he could show me around the boat, the Hornblower Infinity. I was dressed in my costume gala finest, but in true New York form, no one batted an eye.

As I made my way through the security line, where guards studiously checked the videographers and volunteers' bags, Phillips spotted me.

He was dressed in a black glistening jacket that evoked a raven's feathers and was flying back and forth a bit like a mad bird, talking to security or the caterer or picking up a cellphone for a harried call to an unknown person. 

Phillips said that the Burlesquerade started because he had friends from so many different scenes that were often “intimidated by each other” or “stuck in their preconceptions about who the others were.”

By creating a massive party and forcing everyone to costume themselves, he thought he might be able to “break down those barriers.”

Phillips soon handed me off to Joe Che, his business partner and the man most often tasked with turning Phillips' high-flying ideas into, in Che's words, "practical realities."

Dressed in a kind of antique captain's jacket festooned with ornaments, Che gave me a tour around the boat so I knew where all the performances and activities would be. But as he warned me, there's too much to do for any one person to see everything.

Challenge accepted.

Che explained that he and Phillips formed  Lightning Society three years ago to expand what they had created with the Burlesquerade and to find new  ways to “bring people together for meaningful connections.”

So far, that has resulted in the current version of the Burlesquerade and a co-living space in Bushwick.

The co-living space, which houses 16 people ranging from a teacher to tech developer to an astrophysicist, hosts weekly programming, including yoga and dance classes and an ongoing speaker series.

They started boarding the boat early because the security line takes so long.

The event recruits more than 150 volunteers to put on the party, who do everything from set up to production and photography. Volunteering is a way for many who can’t afford the $75 ticket price to join the festivities. 

It takes Che, Phillips, and the team of volunteers seven hours to set up the boat.

I headed out to the line to meet my dance partner for the night, Annie Zheng, and check out the scene. Che told me that one of his and Phillips' goals is to make the line, usually the worst part of any party, the best part.

When I met Zheng in line, she was already talking to another partygoer by the name of Sharif.

Sharif had, like me, heard about the party through a friend of a friend who "swore that it was the best party in New York." He had friends that were going, but he told us he planned to spend the night meeting new people. 

Since the Burlesquerade started as Phillips' birthday party, the vast majority of the attendees know either Che or Phillips personally — they have a vast network — or are friends with someone who does. 

Volunteers were draping the white parachute over partygoers and asking them to do one of several activities, like learning a dance routine, harmonizing a song, or gazing into each other's eyes.

"We wanted to make  every step of the process interesting, fun, and connecting," said Che.

The parachute didn't look like a bad way to break the ice with new friends.

Other volunteers were walking up and down the line offering to perform "party marriages." The tongue-in-cheek vows included "Do you promise to share whatever drugs you smuggle onto the boat with your partner?"

Not everyone was game for the marriages, but if you were, you got a quick Polaroid.

Circus performers provided some mesmerizing entertainment on the line. It was necessary. The line stretched deep into the parking garage and moved at a crawl.

If you wanted to add glitter to your visage, as Zheng did, a Burlesquerader was happy to oblige. The theme and activities for the Burlesquerade change every year.

This year, the theme was "The Dream." Past themes have included "Royal" and "Celestial."

Once I got through the security line, we headed for the boat. I quickly learned the partygoers were not a camera-shy bunch.

“Costuming is critical for our events because it requires everyone to be a participant,” said Phillips. “You’re an actor in everyone’s shared experience.”

As attendees walked on the gangplank, volunteers Erika Brown and Daniel Michael cleared away negative energy with smudging sage sticks. Brown kept telling partygoers to "slow down" so she could brush more of the smoke their way.

Michael is a shamanic healer who offers personal energy clearings, life coaching, and shamanic wedding ceremonies with his wife, photographer Dina Divine,  through their organization Love Ripple .

Brown is the founder of upcycling fashion brand Berkshire Bohemian .

Once on the boat, every attendee was asked to choose a character: The Lover, The Healer, The Explorer, and The Artist. They got corresponding bracelets and a scroll with instructions.

Zheng chose "lover" (red). I chose "explorer" (green). The bracelets grant you entry to the corresponding characters' "sanctuary."

If you want to go to a different "sanctuary," you have to "gift" something to someone else. The goal, according to Phillips, is to encourage partygoers to "connect beyond the group you came with."

Wendy Escobar kicked off the afternoon with a mix of house and techno beats. Che said that they like to confine partygoers to the boat's solarium to get people mingling until the party hits critical mass.

Check out Escobar's music here»

We found the artists' sanctuary behind coat check. There, Parisian pop singer and performance artist Cocovan had set up her interactive project, "The World Letter," where she encourages participants to write love letters to the world.

Cocovan said the project, which she has taken across the US, Canada, and Europe, will be complete when at least one person from every country in the world has written on it. Currently, it has more than 3,000 love letters from people representing 70 different countries.  

In a Facebook video , Cocovan explained that the goal is to "create a big symbol of peace and unity and bring hope into the world."

Once it's complete, she said she plans to make a digital copy of the entire letter and "send it into space."

There was a GIF photo-booth for everyone to capture their snazzy outfits. Here Marleena Ortiz, the founder of nonprofit Beating Cancer in Heels, and Cheni Yerushalmi, a startup advisor and founder of a business incubator, pose for a photo.

Read more about Ortiz, who started  her nonprofit Beating Cancer in Heels after being diagnosed in 2009, here»

We snuck into the grand ballroom before it opened to get a glimpse. Insiders were already getting their dance on while many of the performers, like Aryn Shelander, warmed up. Shelander is the co-founder of iOS app maker Logical Animal.

Che, who is a fixture in New York’s underground arts and performance scenes, handles the performance booking. After more than a decade of being someone who knows just about everybody, he’s close to many of the top performers in the area.

Even so, some of the most in-demand performers aren’t booked until weeks before the party due to their crazy schedules.

One of the biggest name acts of the night was Katherine Crockett, an actress and a principal dancer for the Martha Graham Dance Company.

The yacht captain loved taking photos with the partiers. Those intricate headpieces were designed by fashion designer Saida Mouradova, who is at the bottom of the photo next to Che.

Mouradova and Amy  Vaninetti, a director at nonprofit Mama Hope, founded Object & Dawn  earlier this year.

The company, which came out of Mouradova's experiences making costumes for Burning Man, sells elaborate headdresses made of metal alloys, shells, and other materials. The handmade pieces are created from materials "sourced ethically and globally," she told EcoCult. 

Things started to heat up when the grand ballroom opened. People were getting down to the music booming from the Funktion One speaker system, which is considered top-of-the-line in the electronic music community.

Purple Sound provided the three Funktion One sound systems on the boat. Read more about the iconic sound system here»

Actress Emily Shephard kicked off the night's performances with a steamy burlesque dance in front of the stage. This was the start of the performance. My editors will not allow me to publish the end of it.

Venezuelan DJ Ilich Mujica , who has played at top New York clubs like Output and Le Bain, kicked off the grand ballroom DJ sets.

None of the performers were announced beforehand, according to Phillips, because they couldn't afford the promotional cost. That made every artist a surprise to the usually in-the-know crowd.

Check out more of Emily Shepard's work here»

Philips said that in the first iterations of the Burlesquerade, many found the idea of costuming to be intimidating, but each year partygoers’ costumes have become more elaborate.

The theme is broad enough, he said, that those less enthused by costuming can simply come in formal wear and a mask.   Phillips said his only goal was to get people to dress “as the best versions of themselves.”

People got creative with their costumes. Product manager Yair Cohen was rocking these customized light-up shoulder-pads.

Cohen was not the first, nor the last person in the tech scene that I would meet.

Over the course of the night I met tech founder after tech founder, as well as people that worked at Facebook, Yelp, and a number of other major tech companies. 

In addition, I met a number of attendees working in medicine, as well as people from advertising, media, fashion, and finance. 

“I honestly can't think of a single part of the New York City community that isn't represented somehow,” said Phillips.

We headed upstairs to find the "Lover's Sanctuary." Zheng and I traded wristbands so I could go in, not that anyone was checking.

The Lover's Sanctuary, according to Che, is a giant "cuddle puddle." It was set up with lots of couches, bean bags, and pillows to take a break from the music.

Heart-On's Rachel Santos had set up the space to engage all of the partygoers' senses with tantric massages, cacao ceremonies, Moroccan tea, whispers in the ear, and other activities to encourage intimacy.

Check out more of Santos's work here»

We made fast friends with Dani Klein, who volunteered to serve Moroccan tea in the Lover's Sanctuary. The guy on the left told me his name was Tommy Walmart. I still have no idea if he was joking.

For the first time, Phillips and Che added private tables to the party, which were arranged around the second-floor balcony.

Che said that they usually avoid table service, but this year they partnered with party organizer  Vox Noctem  to bring it to the Burlesquerade thanks to partygoer requests.

Che says that most of the tables went to highly-engaged members of the Lightning Society community who would still be open and “participate” in the night’s events.

That held true in my own experience. Zheng and I made friends with a couple  outside the artists’ sanctuary and were invited to join the festivities at their table.

We headed back down to the dance floor where Hils Hinrix, a textile designer who moonlights as a DJ, was spinning a mix of House, Disco, and Funk.

Multiple times, when people heard I was a journalist, they gave me a knowing smile and said some variation of: “The thing you need to understand about this party is that it’s like the 1% of Burning Man.”

When I asked Che about this characterization after the party, he was hesitant. “I don’t know if I agree with that or not. The people that are there are the ones we’ve invested time with,” he said, adding that attendees range from people with “a shit ton of money” to people “who struggle to pay their rent.”

Coincidentally or not, I met far more of the people whose careers blew me away than those scraping by.

From 5 p.m. to the end of the party, there were nearly nonstop performances on the dance floor. Aerialists Marcus Anthony and Françoise Voranger impressed us on an aerial silk rig strung from the boat ceiling.

David Haws and Jenna Marierd put their acrobatic skills on display for the crowd. Haws is a computer science researcher at IBM, while Marierd is a nutritionist. Both moonlight as acrobats.

French electro duo FDVM was one of the biggest names on the lineup. The group has performed at Coachella, Outside Lands, and a handful of other big festivals.

The ethereal dream catcher set at the main dance floor was designed by artists  Jaymie Dahan and Dan Krauss.  The scenery hanging from the ceiling was  designed by artist Julia Sinelnikova , who creates light installations and holograms, among other mediums.  

Check out FDVM's music here»

Phillips said that many partygoers have told him they met their spouse or business partner at the event. “You get a bunch of really smart, interesting, engaged people together and you introduce this idea of being a performer,” he said, “it brings people out of their shell.”

“This type of event attracts really smart, free thinking people from any kind of walk of life. It's the fifth estate -- the artist, the thinkers, the entrepreneurs,” said Phillips. 

People were breaking it down on the dance floor. I have to say, this crowd knew how to dance. Far better than my two left feet.

The Explorer's Sanctuary was hidden behind the grand ballroom stage. Artist Gene Harrison designed the light installation so that 'explorers' could manipulate the lights' colors. This reflective costume really shined in the sanctuary.

Energy drinks and water seemed to be a popular combination for partygoers.

One of the goals of the event, Phillips told me beforehand, is to surround partygoers with “people who are doing amazing, interesting things,” giving each other access to a “new world of collaborators and inspiration.”

I thought of that when I met a man named whose face was obscured simply by a mask of flames. He told me that he had quit his high-paying job in information technology to help run a health clinic for responders of the 9/11 attacks. 

"I've never been happier," he said.

The Acroyoga team put on a number of different performances. Two of the performers are full-time acroyoga instructors, while the others just do it for fun.

The performers wowed the crowd with gravity-defying body contortions.

Blaine Petrovia is a self-taught pole dancer who won the Pole Sport Organization National Championships earlier this year.

Check out more of Petrovia's dancing here»

Underground Brooklyn DJ David Hohme capped off the night with his brand of feel-good house music.

Check out Hohme's music here»

The night started winding down around 10 p.m. with some people partied out.

Zheng and I headed outside to find the Healer's Sanctuary, where we'd heard there were sound meditations offered by an instructor from Manhattan's Woom Center. When we got there, a woman told us that they had just started the final session of the night. Bummer.

Hopefully,  the Woom Center comes back next year, because I'll be first in line.

When we came back inside the boat, I spotted a harried Phillips flying down a staircase. It was the first time I'd seen him since the party started. 

"Great timing, Harrison!" he said, telling me to follow him to the grand ballroom for the night's finale.

Phillips and Che ended the night by gathering everyone to the center of the dance floor for a speech. "Are you all feeling good?" Phillips asked. The crowd answered with a roar.

"Now who's ready to take that energy and give it back to the world?" Phillips asked as the crowd pushed closer together and cheered. 

The night ended with a group singalong of 'Stand by Me.' It sounds a little dorky, but it was a warm way to cap the night.

Daisy Press, the principal singer at Brooklyn's House of Yes , led the tune by teaching the a capella instrumentation and percussion parts to members of the crowd.

We stuck around to help clean up. It's hard not to feel like you want to help out after seeing all the work that goes into making the party.

Che sent us on a scavenger hunt around the boat to find missing candles and projectors in the various sanctuaries and dance floors. 

While most had long-since jetted to the after-party, a core group of Lightning Society members and friends helped load up this truck, which had been lent by a friend, to send everything back to the group's co-living space in Bushwick.

As we walked toward our Uber with Che and the rest of the Lightning Society hangers-on still around, Che turned to me with a mischievous smile that I was beginning to see was his trademark.

"So tell it to us straight, Harrison, have you ever been to a party like this?" he asked.

"Well I stole the gold jacket, pants, and shoes I'm wearing from my brother, so what do you think?" I said.

When we got home, we decided to check how we did on the bracelet game.

Zhenge, true to form, had acquired every color of bracelet by the end of the night. I, on the other hand, had apparently given away two bracelets and gotten nothing in return.

Not that it stopped me from talking to anyone I could find, or making it into most of the "sanctuaries."

Special thanks to Lightning Society,  Studio VMP,  Jonsar Studios,  Daniel Montuoro,  Sasha Charoensub , and Claire Buffie for providing many of the photos of the party.

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Disruptions

A Line Is Drawn in the Desert

By Nick Bilton

• Aug. 20, 2014

There are two disciplines in which Silicon Valley entrepreneurs excel above almost everyone else. The first is making exorbitant amounts of money. The second is pretending they don’t care about that money.

To understand this, let’s enter into evidence Exhibit A: the annual Burning Man festival in Black Rock City, Nev.

If you have never been to Burning Man , your perception is likely this: a white-hot desert filled with 50,000 stoned, half-naked hippies doing sun salutations while techno music thumps through the air.

A few years ago, this assumption would have been mostly correct. But now things are a little different. Over the last two years, Burning Man, which this year runs from Aug. 25 to Sept. 1, has been the annual getaway for a new crop of millionaire and billionaire technology moguls, many of whom are one-upping one another in a secret game of I-can-spend-more-money-than-you-can and, some say, ruining it for everyone else.

Some of the biggest names in technology have been making the pilgrimage to the desert for years, happily blending in unnoticed. These include Larry Page and Sergey Brin, the Google founders, and Jeff Bezos, chief executive of Amazon. But now a new set of younger rich techies are heading east, including Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook, employees from Twitter, Zynga and Uber, and a slew of khaki-wearing venture capitalists.

Before I explain just how ridiculous the spending habits of these baby billionaires have become, let’s go over the rules of Burning Man: You bring your own place to sleep (often a tent), food to eat (often ramen noodles) and the strangest clothing possible for the week (often not much). There is no Internet or cell reception. While drugs are technically illegal, they are easier to find than candy on Halloween. And as for money, with the exception of coffee and ice, you cannot buy anything at the festival. Selling things to people is also a strict no-no. Instead, Burners (as they are called) simply give things away. What’s yours is mine. And that often means everything from a meal to saliva.

In recent years, the competition for who in the tech world could outdo who evolved from a need for more luxurious sleeping quarters. People went from spending the night in tents, to renting R.V.s, to building actual structures.

“We used to have R.V.s and precooked meals,” said a man who attends Burning Man with a group of Silicon Valley entrepreneurs. (He asked not to be named so as not to jeopardize those relationships.) “Now, we have the craziest chefs in the world and people who build yurts for us that have beds and air-conditioning.” He added with a sense of amazement, “Yes, air-conditioning in the middle of the desert!”

His camp includes about 100 people from the Valley and Hollywood start-ups, as well as several venture capital firms. And while dues for most non-tech camps run about $300 a person, he said his camp’s fees this year were $25,000 a person. A few people, mostly female models flown in from New York, get to go free, but when all is told, the weekend accommodations will collectively cost the partygoers over $2 million.

This is drastically different from the way most people experience the event. When I attended Burning Man a few years ago, we slept in tents and a U-Haul moving van. We lived on cereal and beef jerky for a week. And while Burning Man was one of the best experiences of my life, using the public Porta-Potty toilets was certainly one of the most revolting experiences thus far. But that’s what makes Burning Man so great: at least you’re all experiencing those gross toilets together.

That is, until recently. Now the rich are spending thousands of dollars to get their own luxury restroom trailers, just like those used on movie sets.

“Anyone who has been going to Burning Man for the last five years is now seeing things on a level of expense or flash that didn’t exist before,” said Brian Doherty, author of the book “ This Is Burning Man .” “It does have this feeling that, ‘Oh, look, the rich people have moved into my neighborhood.’ It’s gentrifying.”

For those with even more money to squander, there are camps that come with “Sherpas,” who are essentially paid help.

Tyler Hanson, who started going to Burning Man in 1995, decided a couple of years ago to try working as a paid Sherpa at one of these luxury camps. He described the experience this way: Lavish R.V.s are driven in and connected together to create a private forted area, ensuring that no outsiders can get in. The rich are flown in on private planes, then picked up at the Burning Man airport, driven to their camp and served like kings and queens for a week. (Their meals are prepared by teams of chefs, which can include sushi, lobster boils and steak tartare — yes, in the middle of 110-degree heat.)

“Your food, your drugs, your costumes are all handled for you, so all you have to do is show up,” Mr. Hanson said. “In the camp where I was working, there were about 30 Sherpas for 12 attendees.”

Mr. Hanson said he won’t be going back to Burning Man anytime soon. The Sherpas, the money, the blockaded camps and the tech elite were too much for him. “The tech start-ups now go to Burning Man and eat drugs in search of the next greatest app,” he said. “Burning Man is no longer a counterculture revolution. It’s now become a mirror of society.”

Strangely, the tech elite won’t disagree with Mr. Hanson about it being a reflection of society. This year at the premiere of the HBO show “Silicon Valley,” Elon Musk, an entrepreneur who was a founder of PayPal, complained that Mike Judge, the show’s creator, didn’t get the tech world because — wait for it — he had not attended the annual party in the desert.

“I really feel like Mike Judge has never been to Burning Man, which is Silicon Valley,” Mr. Musk said to a Re/Code reporter, while using a number of expletives to describe the festival. “If you haven’t been, you just don’t get it.”

Non-tech Burners who have been may “get it” but don’t like all this excess, and are starting to push back. This month, the Key Group, a Swiss luxury concierge service, announced that it would be offering a Burning Man Concierge Service that seemed more like a cruise liner vacation than a week in the dusty desert. (The company did not respond to a request for comment.)

Among the dozens of options offered by the Key , there is the “establishment of a camp with electricity, water and satellite Internet Wi-Fi connection,” “cooks and fresh buffets for every meal” and — not a small task by any means given the distance from the real world — the “possibility of ordering goods and products from outside Black Rock City every day.”

When the website Burners.me , which blogs about the festival, posted a link to the Key’s site, the Burning Man community seemed generally confused as to whether such extravagance was actually real or if someone was playing a joke. When it turned out to be quite real, people railed against the service, and the Key removed the Burning Man concierge option from its site.

Of course, you won’t likely see pictures on Instagram or Facebook of the $2 million camps, chef-cooked meals, the Sherpa helpers and concierge services, or private and pristine toilets. That would mean that the tech elite actually cared about money — which would just go against the entire Burning Man spirit.

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We partied at the 'Burning Man on a yacht' party attended by the wildest part of New York's tech scene

When we got home, we decided to check how we did on the bracelet game..

Zhenge, true to form, had acquired every color of bracelet by the end of the night. I, on the other hand, had apparently given away two bracelets and gotten nothing in return.

Not that it stopped me from talking to anyone I could find, or making it into most of the "sanctuaries."

Not that it stopped me from talking to anyone I could find, or making it into most of the sanctuaries.

While most had long-since jetted to the after-party, a core group of Lightning Society members and friends helped load up this truck, which had been lent by a friend, to send everything back to the group's co-living space in Bushwick.

As we walked toward our Uber with Che, Phillips, and the rest of the Lightning Society hangers-on still around, Che turned to me with a mischievous smile that I was beginning to see was his trademark.

"So tell it to us straight, Harrison, have you ever been to a party like this?" he asked.

"Well I stole the gold jacket, pants, and shoes I'm wearing from my brother, so what do you think?" I said.

So tell it to us straight, Harrison, have you ever been to a party like this? he asked.

Well I stole the gold jacket, pants, and shoes I'm wearing from my brother, so what do you think? I said.

We stuck around to help clean up. It's hard not to feel like you want to help out after seeing all the work that goes into making the party.

Che sent us on a scavenger hunt around the boat to find missing candles and projectors in the various sanctuaries and dance floors.

The night ended with a group singalong of 'Stand by Me.' It sounds a little dorky, but it was a warm way to cap the night.

Daisy Press, the principal singer at Brooklyn's House of Yes, led the tune by teaching the a capella instrumentation and percussion parts to members of the crowd.

Phillips and Che ended the night by gathering everyone to the center of the dance floor for a speech. "Are you all feeling good?" Phillips asked. The crowd answered with a roar.

"Now who's ready to take that energy and give it back to the world?" Phillips asked as the crowd pushed closer together and cheered.

Now who's ready to take that energy and give it back to the world? Phillips asked as the crowd pushed closer together and cheered.

Zheng and I headed outside to find the Healer's Sanctuary, where we'd heard there were sound meditations offered by an instructor from Manhattan's Woom Center. When we got there, a woman told us that they had just started the final session of the night. Bummer.

Hopefully, the Woom Center comes back next year, because I'll be first in line.

When we came back inside the boat, I spotted a harried Phillips flying down a staircase. It was the first time I'd seen him since the party started.

"Great timing, Harrison!" he said, telling me to follow him to the grand ballroom for the night's finale.

Great timing, Harrison! he said, telling me to follow him to the grand ballroom for the night's finale.

The night started winding down around 10 p.m. with some people partied out. I'm right with you there, homey.

Underground Brooklyn DJ David Hohme capped off the night with his brand of feel-good house music.

Check out Hohme's music here»

Blaine Petrovia is a self-taught pole dancer who won the Pole Sport Organization National Championships earlier this year.

Check out more of Petrovia's dancing here»

The performers wowed the crowd with gravity-defying body contortions.

The Acroyoga team put on a number of different performances. Two of the performers are full-time acroyoga instructors, while the others just do it for fun.

Energy drinks and water seemed to be a popular combination for partygoers.

One of the goals of the event, Phillips told me beforehand, is to surround partygoers with “people who are doing amazing, interesting things,” giving each other access to a “new world of collaborators and inspiration.”

I thought of that when I met a man named whose face was obscured simply by a mask of flames. He told me that he had quit his high-paying job in information technology to help run a health clinic for responders of the 9/11 attacks.

"I've never been happier," he said.

I've never been happier, he said.

The Explorer's Sanctuary was hidden behind the grand ballroom stage. Artist Gene Harrison designed the light installation so that 'explorers' could manipulate the lights' colors. This reflective costume really shined in the sanctuary.

People were breaking it down on the dance floor. I have to say, this crowd knew how to dance. Far better than my two left feet.

Phillips said that many partygoers have told him they met their spouse or business partner at the event. “You get a bunch of really smart, interesting, engaged people together and you introduce this idea of being a performer,” he said, “it brings people out of their shell.”

“This type of event attracts really smart, free thinking people from any kind of walk of life. It's the fifth estate -- the artist, the thinkers, the entrepreneurs,” said Phillips.

French electro duo FDVM was one of the biggest names on the lineup. The group has performed at Coachella, Outside Lands, and a handful of other big festivals.

The ethereal dream catcher set at the main dance floor was d esigned by artist Julia Sinelnikova , who creates light installations and holograms, among other mediums. She also designed the scenery hanging from the ceiling.

Check out FDVM's music here»

David Haws and Jenna Marierd put their acrobatic skills on display for the crowd. Haws is an AI researcher at IBM, while Marierd is a nutritionist. Both moonlight as acrobats.

From 5 p.m. to the end of the party, there were nearly nonstop performances on the dance floor. Aerialists Marcus Anthony and Françoise Voranger impressed us on an aerial silk rig strung from the boat ceiling.

We headed back down to the dance floor where Hils Hinrix, a textile designer who moonlights as a DJ, was spinning a mix of House, Disco, and Funk.

Multiple times, when people heard I was a journalist, they gave me a knowing smile and said some variation of: “The thing you need to understand about this party is that it’s the 1% of Burning Man.”

When I asked Che about this characterization after the party, he was hesitant. “I don’t know if I agree with that or not. The people that are there are the ones we’ve invested time with,” he said, adding that attendees range from people with “a shit ton of money” to people “who struggle to pay their rent.”

Coincidentally or not, I met far more of the people whose careers blew me away than those scraping by.

For the first time, Phillips and Che added private tables to the party, which were arranged around the second-floor balcony.

Che said that they usually avoid table service, but this year they partnered with party organizer Vox Noctem to bring it to the Burlesquerade thanks to partygoer requests.

Che says that most of the tables went to highly-engaged members of the Lightning Society community who would still be open and “participate” in the night’s events.

That held true in my own experience. Zheng and I made friends with Goldman Sachs managing director Sachin Devand and his wife, Shauna Mei, the founder of e-commerce company AHALife, outside the artists’ sanctuary, and were invited to join the festivities at their table.

We made fast friends with Dani Klein, a manager at a carpeting manufacturer, who volunteered to serve Moroccan tea in the Lover's Sanctuary. The guy on the left told me his name was Tommy Walmart. I still have no idea if he was joking.

Heart-On's Rachel Santos had set up the space to engage all of the partygoers' senses with tantric massages, cacao ceremonies, Moroccan tea, whispers in the ear, and other activities to encourage intimacy.

Check out more of Santos's work here»

The Lover's Sanctuary, according to Che, is a giant "cuddle puddle." It was set up with lots of couches, bean bags, and pillows to take a break from the music.

We headed upstairs to find the "Lover's Sanctuary." Zheng and I traded wristbands so I could go in, not that anyone was checking.

People got creative with their costumes. Product manager Yair Cohen was rocking these customized light-up shoulder-pads.

Cohen was not the first, nor the last person in the tech scene that I would meet.

Over the course of the night I met tech founder after tech founder, as well as people that worked both mid-level and high up at Facebook, Yelp, and a number of other major tech companies.

In addition, I met a number of attendees working in medicine, as people from advertising, media, fashion, and finance.

“I honestly can't think of a single part of the New York City community that isn't represented somehow,” said Phillips.

Philips said that in the first iterations of the Burlesquerade, many found the idea of costuming to be intimidating, but each year partygoers’ costumes have become more elaborate.

The theme is broad enough, he said, that those less enthused by costuming can simply come in formal wear and a mask. Phillips said his only goal was to get people to dress “as the best versions of themselves.”

Actress Emily Shephard kicked off the night's performances with a steamy burlesque dance in front of the stage. This was the start of the performance. My editors will not allow me to publish the end of it.

Venezuelan DJ Ilich Mujica , who has played at top New York clubs like Output and Le Bain, kicked off the grand ballroom DJ sets.

None of the performers were announced beforehand, according to Phillips, because they couldn't afford the promotional cost. That made every artist a surprise to the usually in-the-know crowd.

Check out more of Emily Shepard's work here»

Things started to heat up when the grand ballroom opened. People were getting down to the music booming from the Funktion One speaker system, which is considered top-of-the-line in the electronic music community.

Purple Sound provided the three Funktion One sound systems on the boat. Read more about the iconic sound system here»

The yacht captain loved taking photos with the partiers. Those intricate headpieces were designed by fashion designer Saida Mouradova, who is at the bottom of the photo next to Che.

Mouradova and Amy Vaninetti, a director at nonprofit Mama Hope, founded Object & Dawn earlier this year.

The company, which came out of Mouradova's experiences making costumes for Burning Man, sells elaborate headdresses made of metal alloys, shells, and other materials. The handmade pieces are created from materials "sourced ethically and globally," she told EcoCult.

The company, which came out of Mouradova's experiences making costumes for Burning Man, sells elaborate headdresses made of metal alloys, shells, and other materials. The handmade pieces are created from materials sourced ethically and globally, she told EcoCult.

One of the biggest name acts of the night was Katherine Crockett, an actress and a principal dancer for the Martha Graham Dance Company.

We snuck into the grand ballroom before it opened to get a glimpse. Insiders were already getting their dance on while many of the performers, like Aryn Shelander, warmed up. Shelander is the co-founder of iOS app maker Logical Animal.

Che, who is a fixture in New York’s underground arts and performance scenes, handles the performance booking. After more than a decade of being someone who knows just about everybody, he’s close to many of the top performers in the area.

Even so, some of the most in-demand performers aren’t booked until weeks before the party due to their crazy schedules.

There was a GIF photo-booth for everyone to capture their snazzy outfits. Here Marleena Ortiz, the founder of nonprofit Beating Cancer in Heels, and Cheni Yerushalmi, a startup advisor and founder of a business incubator, pose for a photo.

Read more about Ortiz, who started her nonprofit Beating Cancer in Heels after being diagnosed in 2009, here»

We found the artists' sanctuary behind coat check. There, Parisian pop singer and performance artist Cocovan de Bancalis had set up her interactive project, "The World Letter," where she encourages participants to write love letters to the world.

De Bancalis said the project, which she has taken across the US, Canada, and Europe, will be complete when at least one person from every country in the world has written on it. Currently, it has more than 3,000 love letters from people representing 70 different countries.

In a Facebook video , De Bancalis explained that the goal is to "create a big symbol of peace and unity and bring hope into the world."

Once it's complete, she said she plans to make a digital copy of the entire letter and "send it into space."

In a Facebook video , De Bancalis explained that the goal is to create a big symbol of peace and unity and bring hope into the world.

Once it's complete, she said she plans to make a digital copy of the entire letter and send it into space.

Wendy Escobar kicked off the afternoon with a mix of house and techno beats. Che said that they like to confine partygoers to the boat's solarium to get people mingling until the party hits critical mass.

Check out Escobar's music here»

Once on the boat, every attendee was asked to choose a character: The Lover, The Healer, The Explorer, and The Artist. They got corresponding bracelets and a scroll with instructions.

Zheng chose "lover" (red). I chose "explorer" (green). The bracelets grant you entry to the corresponding characters' "sanctuary."

If you want to go to a different "sanctuary," you have to "gift" something to someone else. The goal, according to Phillips, is to encourage partygoers to "connect beyond the group you came with."

Zheng chose lover (red). I chose explorer (green). The bracelets grant you entry to the corresponding characters' sanctuary.

If you want to go to a different sanctuary, you have to gift something to someone else. The goal, according to Phillips, is to encourage partygoers to connect beyond the group you came with.

As attendees walked on the gangplank, volunteers Erika Brown and Daniel Michael cleared away negative energy with smudging sage sticks. Brown kept telling partygoers to "slow down" so she could brush more of the smoke their way.

Michael is a shamanic healer who offers personal energy clearings, life coaching, and shamanic wedding ceremonies through his organization Love Ripple .

Brown is the founder of upcycling fashion brand Berkshire Bohemian .

Once I got through the security line, we headed for the boat. I quickly learned the partygoers were not a camera-shy bunch.

“Costuming is critical for our events because it requires everyone to be a participant,” said Phillips. “You’re an actor in everyone’s shared experience.”

If you wanted to add glitter to your visage, as Zheng did, a Burlesquerader was happy to oblige. The theme and activities for the Burlesquerade change every year.

This year, the theme was "The Dream." Past themes have included "Royal" and "Celestial."

This year, the theme was The Dream. Past themes have included Royal and Celestial.

Not everyone was game for the marriages, but if you were, you got a quick Polaroid.

Circus performers provided some mesmerizing entertainment on the line. It was necessary. The line stretched deep into the parking garage and moved at a crawl.

Other volunteers were walking up and down the line offering to perform "party marriages." The tongue-in-cheek vows included "Do you promise to share whatever drugs you smuggle onto the boat with your partner?"

Volunteers were draping the white parachute over partygoers and asking them to do one of several activities, like learning a dance routine, harmonizing a song, or gazing into each other's eyes.

"We wanted to make every step of the process interesting, fun, and connecting," said Che.

The parachute didn't look like a bad way to break the ice with new friends.

We wanted to make every step of the process interesting, fun, and connecting, said Che.

I headed out to the line to meet my dance partner for the night, Annie Zheng, and check out the scene. Che told me that one of his and Phillips' goals is to make the line, usually the worst part of any party, the best part.

When I met Zheng in line, she was already talking to another partygoer by the name of Sharif.

Sharif had, like me, heard about the party through a friend of a friend who "swore that it was the best party in New York." He had friends that were going, but he told us he planned to spend the night meeting new people.

Since the Burlesquerade started as Phillips' birthday party, the vast majority of the attendees know either Che or Phillips personally — they have a vast network — or are friends with someone who does.

Sharif had, like me, heard about the party through a friend of a friend who swore that it was the best party in New York. He had friends that were going, but he told us he planned to spend the night meeting new people.

Engineer Liam Tyler Griffiths and Lauren Sagador, a connectivity specialist for a booking platform GetYourGuide, were a couple of the first on board.

The event recruits more than 150 volunteers to put on the party, who do everything from set up to production and photography. Volunteering is a way for many who can’t afford the $75 ticket price to join the festivities.

It takes Che, Phillips, and the team of volunteers seven hours to set up the boat.

Phillips soon handed me off to Joe Che, his business partner and the man most often tasked with turning Phillips' high-flying ideas into, in Che's words, "practical realities."

Dressed in a kind of antique captain's jacket festooned with ornaments, Che gave me a tour around the boat so I knew where all the performances and activities would be. But as he warned me, there's too much to do for any one person to see everything.

Challenge accepted.

Che explained that he and Phillips formed Lightning Society three years ago to expand what they had created with the Burlesquerade and to find new ways to “bring people together for meaningful connections.”

So far, that has resulted in the current version of the Burlesquerade and a co-living space in Bushwick.

The co-living space, which houses 16 people ranging from a teacher to tech developer to an astrophysicist, hosts weekly programming, including yoga and dance classes and an ongoing speaker series.

At Phillips' insistence, I showed up at Pier 40 early so he could show me around the boat, the Hornblower Infinity. I was dressed in my costume gala finest, but in true New York form, no one batted an eye.

As I made my way through the security line, where guards studiously checked the videographers and volunteers' bags, I spotted Phillips waiting for me.

He was dressed in a black glistening jacket that evoked a raven's feathers and was flying back and forth a bit like a mad bird, talking to security or the caterer or picking up a cellphone for a harried call to an unknown person.

Phillips said that the Burlesquerade started because he had friends from so many different scenes that were often “intimidated by each other” or “stuck in their preconceptions about who the others were.”

By creating a massive party and forcing everyone to costume themselves, he thought he might be able to “break down those barriers.”

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Looking to join Black Rock Yacht Club

Campers4camps GraceIA 7 months

• State/Province: Utah
• Country: United States (US)
• Zip/Postal Code: 84121
• Listed: September 9, 2023 3:15 am
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Hello! I’ve been looking for a way to convince my partner to accompany me to Burning Man 2024 (if indeed it is in the stars for me, or for us) and I have stumbled upon knowledge of your camp. This is the way!

I am very interested in learning how we may be of assistance to your camp in 2024. I am very new to everything involved in Burning Man and am starting on my educational journey. The app shows me I have about 345 days to figure it out.

I thank you for any help or guidance you may provide and am hopeful I will be able to provide your camp with assistance in some way.

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Tahoe yacht turned Burning Man art car hits the playa for eighth voyage

News News | Aug 28, 2018

A 65-foot yacht that once cruised the waters of Lake Tahoe is making its eighth voyage across a much different landscape — the Black Rock Desert at Burning Man.

South Lake Tahoe excavation contractor Flipper Manchester turned a yacht that was dry docked at the Tahoe Keys Marina for years — and he was in fact hired to demolish — into an art car that is well-known in Black Rock City for its great views and even better parties.

“The marina asked me to come down and take a look at this thing to find out how long it would take to smash it and haul it off to the landfill,” said Manchester. “But when I climbed up on it and could see so far in all directions, it all came together and I thought, ‘I want to take this to Burning Man.’”

Manchester split the boat — which is 25-feet tall and weighs 35,000 pounds — into three pieces and hired three semitrucks and a Nevada Highway Patrol escort to get the boat over Kingsbury Grade and out of the basin.

With the help of donated labor and roughly $20,000 of his own funds, Manchester put the boat on the chassis of a cement mixer, painted turquoise waves around the hull of the boat, and outfitted it with a sound system and lights. It was ready to hit the playa.

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“It carries 100 – 150 people on it,” said Manchester. “And when you stop, you get swarmed with everyone trying to get on it.”

The vessel, which kept the name Christina from its Tahoe days, won Art Car of the Year at its Burning Man debut.

Every year Manchester uses roughly $15,000 of his own money and donations to make improvements to the boat, which stays at a ranch near the Black Rock Desert along with many other art cars.

“We tore out all the bedrooms down below and made a huge ultra lounge,” said Manchester. “We have had famous DJs from around the world play on this boat.”

Manchester also hires a crew of Marines to drive and work security on the boat during Burning Man.

“We have cameras all over it. Spotters on the ground. Everyone is radioed up,” explained Manchester. “The boat moves along at less than 5 miles an hour.”

Ask most Burners why they keep coming back to the festival year after year, and the answer is often along the lines of “it’s hard to explain.” Manchester is no different: “You have to experience it in person to understand how incredibly cool it is out there.”

Justin Curtis, a Truckee resident and the regional Burning Man contact for Tahoe, agrees.

“It’s almost hard to describe, but it’s like going to another planet for a week,” said Curtis, who is responsible for connecting Burners in the region during the rest of the year through events.

“(Christina) is quite an impressive art car. It’s a great representation of Tahoe,” added Curtis. “That connection between Tahoe and the ancient Lake Lahontan that was once encompassing this whole region. You can see it from a long distance. It’s part of this trend of bigger and bigger art cars there on the playa. They’ve been so solid for many years now and that helps build the legacy.”

Curtis said it’s hard to estimate how many Burning Man attendees come from Tahoe, but his Facebook group Tahoe Burners has more than 1,500 members.

“I think Tahoe has always had an impact on the Burning Man event and Burner culture,” said Curtis. “I think a lot of that has to do with the proximity, but also the same things that draw people to Tahoe also draw people to Burning Man — a sense of adventure and that outdoor extreme environment.”

Burning Man started Aug. 26 and runs through Sept. 3.

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Cherie Sogsti: Burning Man Yacht Club sets sail…

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Cherie Sogsti: Burning Man Yacht Club sets sail in desert

Local sailors created their own yacht club in the middle of nowhere last week. Longtime Corona del Mar residents Rennie and Anne Waxlax , along with a dozen other sailors, founded the Burning Man Yacht Club (BMYC) in the Black Rock Desert. The desert-loving sailors joined more than 38,000 other “burners” in an annual festival called Burning Man. From Aug. 28 to Sept. 4, land-yachts floated across Nevada’s mirage dusted horizon like prehistoric ships. The BMYC founders wore traditional blue blazers while handing out sailor hats and yacht club membership cards to new members. Dustin Fox , a marine electrician in Newport Beach, gave members glow-in-the-dark temporary tattoos that read BMYC (Burning Man Yacht Club.) “I made sure every sailor had a tattoo and a cup of grog,” said Fox, who handed out 1,000 tattoos. The captain is always right “The best thing about being on the playa is that the captain is always right,” said Fox. Every year silly sailors navigate their strange ships across the “playa,” which means “beach” in Spanish. The “USS Hope” was one of the many sailboats to hoist her canvass and glide across the watery mirage of the desert. Sadly, the yachts never leave Burning Man in the same condition that they arrive in. Weary sailors truck their boats home with broken masts and tattered sails. It takes some sailors a year to make their boats ship-shape again — just in time for Burning Man next year. “The sailors never leave in the condition that they arrive in either,” added Rennie Waxlax. “But that may be due to the effects of the parties rather than the effects of the playa.” Organized chaos Often misunderstood, Burning Man is not a festival full of freaks, hippies and liberals. Waxlax, a 747 captain and life-long registered Republican, has been to Burning Man seven times. While Burning Man may appear to be a chaotic fantasyland coated with a layer of alkaline-dust, the participants know the truth. The chaos, like the apparent water near the horizon, is a mirage. Burning Man is an extremely organized event. Every boat (or motorized vehicle) must be approved and registered at Black Rock City’s DMV (Department of Mutant Vehicles.) Black Rock City has its own café, streets, post office, hospital, recycling center, municipal airport, police force and fire department. The “city” even has its own daily newspaper and radio station. Of course, no city would be complete without a yacht club! BMYC founders hope that local Newport Beach yacht clubs will consider giving them reciprocals in exchange for access to BMYC’s outdoor sun-showers and all yacht club amenities on the playa. “At Burning Man safety really is first,” said Fox. “Our yacht club would like to report that there were no drownings at Burning Man this year.” “We like boating in the desert because there’s no danger of sinking,” added Waxlax. Wild winds The weather at sea is as unpredictable as the climate in the desert. Searing temperatures scorched the sailors in the day, while wild winds ripped their sails in the afternoon. “Just like in sailing, the time to reef down your desert shade-structure is when you first think of it,” said Waxlax, who made sure that BMYC was secured with plenty of rebar. On the cracked crust of the impoverished earth, participants let their imaginations run as wild as the wind. The event celebrates extreme self-expression and creativity. When participants come to the Burning Man Festival, they don’t feel like they’ve entered another state, they feel like they’ve entered another dimension. “I keep reminding myself that that these crazy boats are not a figment of my imagination,” said sailor Karem Bass , who brought her mock-yacht named ‘Hauling Bass.’ During the Burning Man Festival, Black Rock City springs up in the middle of the desert to become one of Nevada’s largest cities for a week. The boaters of BRC are only there for a week, but they return from the desert with a lifetime of memories. For more information about the festival click on www.burningman.com .

Contact the writer: Cherie Sogsti writes about the local yachting and sailing scene. To find out more about her or to contact her, visit her Web site at www.wherescherie.com.

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PHOTOS: Last year's muddy Burning Man put the hot in "hot mess"

B urning Man often evokes aspects of distinct narratives, from the post-apocalyptic aesthetic of Mad Max to the sculpture-laden desert landscapes of Salvador Dali’s Destino. But last year’s Burn was more like the tale of Noah’s Ark.

Embracing the theme of Animalia, various Glamcocks, Pink Ponies, Mudskippers, and the rest of the Burner bestiary frolicked in the garden of earthly delight that is Black Rock City. Then, suddenly, their dust-stained debauchery was washed out by a flood of biblical proportions, forcing the beasts of BRC to seek refuge. After several days of the deluge, they emerged to find a sunny (albeit muddy) Playa, complete with a double rainbow.

For those who missed Burning Man 2023, we’ve compiled the hottest and soggiest photos from the affectionately nicknamed “Drowning Man.”

All photos by Mike Ciriaco

Of the many structures populating the Playa of Black Rock City, the most iconic is The Man. The tradition of burning this eponymous effigy harkens back to the inaugural Burning Man of 1986, then hosted at San Francisco’s Baker Beach . As a nod to the year’s theme of Animalia, the Man’s design incorporated honeycombs, which served as both seating for visitors and sanctuary during duststorms.

Another relevant Playa structure was Nosotres, a tribute to Mictlan, the Aztec underworld. Visitors were encouraged to scale up the wooden planks comprising the building, an analogy of transcending the nine levels of this ancient culture’s afterlife. The inclusion of non-binary faces on its facade is a reminder that queer people have always existed.

Animalia was also reflected by the identities of several queer tribes, such as Camp Fur, an oasis for the Burn’s furry, anthro, and pup communities. Fur’s paw-shaped logo could be seen from deep Playa, acting as a beacon for lost Burners trying to get back to BRC’s gayborhood.

Another queer camp that embodied Animalia is The Glamcocks. This prominent gayborhood glamily serves as a quasi-LGBTQ+ Center for Black Rock City, offering cold brews and workshops during the day, and thematic parties at night. This year’s festivities included ‘Catpocalypse Meow,’ ‘Ei Ei Glow,’ and ‘It’s Britney, Beach.’

Some Burners embody the theme of Animalia in their personal identities. Dustin “Dusty” Schur has long been associated with sloths, tracing back to his work on a nature documentary he did years ago. He’s often accompanied by sloth stuffed animals, such as Rescue, a motorized sloth gifted to him this year by a campmate.

Dusty infused a dollop of Animalia at this year’s Tighty Whities Tuesday party. Hosted by the homocentric Camp FruitPOP, this annual tradition encourages Burners to strip down to their skivvies and tear up the dance floor.

Fashion intersected with Animalia at Camp Conception for their loincloth-making workshop. Participants dug through animal-print fabrics and assembled them into skimpy primal garments. This workshop proved less is more.

The Burn was most notable for the intense storm that flooded the Playa over the weekend. While some camps canceled their events, others adapted. For example, the Glamcocks relocated their annual Friday beach party into a shipping container refurbished as a speakeasy.

By Monday, the storm clouds dispersed, but Burners still had to contend with a very muddy Playa.

Once the mud hardened and the air dried, the beasts of BRC resumed their annual rituals. Two days behind schedule, the Man finally burned. The fact that it occurred on Labor Day was an inadvertent reminder that Burning Man isn’t just a week of sex, drugs, and EDM. It’s a principled labor of love.

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Ukraine war briefing: two ships and base hit in Russian-occupied Crimea

Outcry after Russian missile breaches Polish airspace; Ukraine grapples with attacks on gas and electricity networks. What we know on day 761

• See all our Russia-Ukraine war coverage

Ukraine hit two Russian military ships stationed at the illegally occupied peninsula of Crimea, the Ukrainian military said on Sunday. The targets were the landing ships Yamal and Azov, a communications centre and other Black Sea fleet infrastructure . “It was the most massive attack in recent times,” said the Russian-appointed governor of Sevastopol, Mikhail Razvozhayev. He said a 65-year-old man was killed and four people injured. Footage shared on social media showed a large blast in the city, sending a fireball and black smoke into the air.

Poland said it would demand an explanation from Moscow after a Russian missile breached Polish airspace during a missile attack on Ukraine , Ashifa Kassam writes . Nato member Poland put its forces on heightened alert as a consequence. “Above all, we call on the Russian Federation to stop the terrorist air attacks on the inhabitants and territory of Ukraine, end the war and address the country’s internal problems,” said a Polish foreign ministry statement.

After the Polish airspace breach, the US ambassador to Ukraine, Bridget Brink, said Russia “continues to indiscriminately launch drones and missiles with no regard for millions of civilians, violating international law” .

An underground gas storage site in Ukraine was attacked on Sunday as Russian missile strikes on power facilities continued and rolling blackouts were occurring. Ukraine’s state-run Naftogaz energy firm reported the attack on the gas storage site, but added that gas supplies to consumers had not been affected. Most of Ukraine ’s gas storage capacity is in the western part of the country and it is able to store around 30bn cubic metres of gas.

Ukraine’s energy ministry and distributors said Ukraine had ramped up imports of electricity and halted exports after the recent Russian attacks in which the biggest energy producer, DTEK, lost 50% of its capacity . Russia attacked Ukrainian generating and transmission facilities on Friday, causing significant blackouts in many regions, and energy facilities in three Ukrainian regions were also attacked early on Sunday.

Volodymy Zelenskiy, in his nightly video address on Sunday, said more than 200,000 residents of Kharkiv, a frequent target of Russian attacks, were without reliable power . The network had been restored elsewhere, the Ukrainian president said. “Strict schedules” for power use were in force in Kharkiv, he said. DTEK said rolling blackouts had been imposed in the port of Odesa.

Serhiy Kovalenko, the head of distribution firm Yasno, said Russia had attacked two parts of the energy system – generation and distribution – hitting both thermal and hydropower plants . “The enemy hit hard at grid nodes and transformers,” he said. The energy ministry said Russia attempted on Sunday to destroy a critical energy infrastructure facility in the Lviv region in western Ukraine. Equipment caught fire and the facility lost power. Power lines in the Kyiv region were damaged and 1,400 households in two settlements lost power.

Russia on Sunday said air defences responded to 22 Vampire missiles launched by Ukraine at Russia’s Belgorod region .

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