Fall 2015 Afterburn Reports

[reverend_dave]

Death, taxes, and afterburn reports, folks. Putting in the placeholder in hopes of inspiring people to post reports before the PC coordinator starts reminding folks.

Reminder: Anyone (even non-participants) can add a report. Coordinators and regular PC members are encouraged to add a report. Every department with a budget and/or reserved tickets needs to put in an afterburn report.

[reverend_dave]

I'll kick this off.
Burning Art:
The good: We had some pretty impressive art. The weather mostly cooperated. Splitting the wood order so that the art burn wood got delivered on Saturday seemed to work very well (gold star for Jill for figuring that option out!). The main stack lasted until Sunday morning (it was, admittedly, pretty picked over at that point), and there was available wood on the art stack Sunday night. Theme camp wood orders seemed to go well; F**k A Duck and Barrel Of Fun both seemed pretty happy with their orders (another gold star for Jill for being the contact person for that). Mad props to the artists of "Seahorses Forever" for being willing to burn on Saturday night; it simplified Sunday scheduling tremendously (and it was awesome to have a second pony!).

The bad: We had a number of artists who had art grants for burning art who, as far as I can tell, no-showed (didn't respond to multiple emails, didn't show up at center camp on Saturday afternoon, didn't attend the artist meet-and-greet, didn't show up at center camp on Sunday afternoon). Not sure what happened there, but that's a matter for them and whoever is handling reimbursement at this point. (I'm not saying anything about their art beyond that I didn't see it. May well have been there, may well have been tossed on the fire at some point, but I didn't see it.)
Someone apparently walked off with PDF's shiny new fire rake sometime Sunday morning (between about 3AM when the road fires got put down and 8AM when cleanup started).

The ugly: Nothing really rises to the level of "ugly".

(And I need to put in some numbers at some point...)

As someone who was working directly with the departments involved, I'll put in a stub for fire safety, perimeter, and the pony wrangler, just in the interest of having those boxes checked as "reported". If Lizard, Thudd, or Devin want to expand on how things went, I accept their version in place of mine.
Fire safety:
Had 3 fire fighters for the pony burn, had 2 fire fighters for the art burn, had no incidents in which fire fighters were called upon to protect life or property, so all good.

Perimeter:
Thudd took over perimeter coordinator duties; nobody got through the perimeter, so complete success there.

Pony wrangler:
Found a team of experienced artists who delivered a spectacular pony that burned beautifully.

[EricaV]

What Where When Afterburn report
The Good
We had the requisite amount of WWWs on site, eventually. We also got the final theme camp map into the printed WWW. Plus, a crossword puzzle! So far as I know, no names were misspelled, although one person complained online about a misplaced comma. Also, the printer was paid before the booklets were picked up, thanks to Patty.

The Bad
Some people said to me "I submitted my event online but it didn't make it into the WWW. Likely they didn't get it in on time, but at least one person got their theme camp in, but not their event or vice versa. I'm not sure if it is because people are flaky or if there is a problem with the online submission system. I suspect the former rather than the latter. Also, I need to do a better job of publicizing the submission deadline. "4 weeks before the event" is not sufficient. I'm sure if I asked nicely, somebody on the web team would add something to the site. Also, I'll put it on the book of faces.

The Ugly
The WWWs didn't show up until Friday afternoon. There was a miscommunication, emails bounced, maybe it was because mercury was in retrograde. But they did arrive, eventually. Going forward, Fidget, Whiplash, and I are discussing using a different printer. We had been using the printer in Alexandria because Claire Liston had a business account there, but she wants to take a step back. For this burn, we were successful in getting the printer paid before the booklets were picked up, therefore it is likely we could develop a good relationship with a printer in the Philly area, which would be more convenient for Miss Fidget or Whiplash or myself to pick them up on the way to the burn.

[plucky]

Prepare for a Wall of Text

Sound Afterburn Report
• Executive summary: Mostly positive with a few blips to iron out.

The Good (some copy/paste from last time, with embellishment)
• Zero neighbor complaints or police reports again, this makes at least 4 consecutive years with no external sound issues.
• Nearly everyone remained well within levels the entire weekend. DJs were happy to do whatever was necessary to get in levels when asked.
• Few complaints made it to my radio, and all were resolved amicably. Always remember, you can always ask (nicely) too, it's the neighborly thing to do!
• On Saturday and Sunday, all camps had subs off before even starting up again after the burns. Awesome.
• Some awesome volunteers, and MANY on some nights. Word of mouth even brought in a few!
• Found an individual interested in taking one Co-Coordinator position whom I am in contact with.
• The vets were given a radio to be able to contact Sound Patrol directly. This was very useful throughout the weekend, and wasn't needed too often.
• No issues from the front or back fields. Camps with sound in the back only took a friendly reminder and things became nearly silent.

The Meh
• This weekend was a productive experiment. We approved all applicant sound camps (7) and found what I believe goes just past the saturation point of what the site can handle with the current sound policy. At this number, proper placement of camps to eliminate cross noise becomes difficult, there become zones of 'very loud noise' which are difficult to sleep in, and the overall footprint, even within levels, pushes the bounds of the property, leaving little room for mistakes. Optimally in the future, 5-6 camps (possibly INCLUDING Stage) should be approved. This WILL unfortunately lead to camps, even ones who behave, being denied in the future (something which I would prefer more community involvement deciding).
• Some levels crept up over the evenings, necessitating more constant monitoring than we like late night / early morning.
• Multiple series of loud pops late one night. The sound was not from inside our event or by any of our participants. Sweet.
• Scheduling volunteers for the start of Sound Turn down at 10PM is difficult for Saturday/Sunday nights, as the burns take precedence. Will need to find an alternate method for staffing these shifts (earlier training, repeat volunteers, etc.) This is one of the more crucial times for volunteers, as we can assist sound camps as they start back up after the burns finish (subs, levels, etc.) and have things smooth from the start.
• The radio we gave the vets was turned back in to Front Gate. As its one of the only fully functional ancient Dakotas sound currently has, will need to remember to require.

The Bad
• Late night / Early morning one camp switched systems and their levels jumped (on a smaller system) because of this. It was called in on radio from the front, handled quickly and graciously, but something everyone should keep in mind when switching decks/amps/speakers/etc.
• Due in part to the difficulty of placing the large number of sound camps, a three way intersection was created. This causes some sound competition and overriding each other (even inadvertently), as well as neighboring areas that are extremely loud. Reducing the total number of camps to 5-6 and an awareness of this for placement purposes should help keep that from happening again.
• Life happened and I was super late getting approvals out to Sound Camps. Sorry!

The Ugly
• A repeat issue from last year, partially caused by my unwillingness to interrupt a live performance. The stage was extraordinarily loud Friday night from 10PM-Midnight, which likely affected the entire front field. I need to talk with the Stage Coordinator so we can agree on expectations for both when it comes to the stage. I have a few different ideas on how to do this, so I think we can find a solution.

Thank Yous!
• Pretty much every DJ out there for working with us, and for getting me to dance more than I have in many a burn.
• Hatter for having everything run smooth on the PDF Website for me without even a reminder.
• Whiplash for the awesome laminates that magically appear for us.
• Volunteers that got it! Thanks a bunch, soon I'll be able to sit back and let things run themselves some nights!
• The camp who picked up and moved on their own when they found they were in quiet camping, but didn't want to be quiet. That's dedication!
• The entire quiet camping back field for being so peaceful and quiet. I actually stopped to talk more because of that too. And no, the 'Quiet Camping' sign wasn't a prank
• Everyone else who helps make this happen


Budget
• Budgeted / Actual : $31 / $27.35

[Pirate]

This is Thudd, hereafter known as Pirate. Brand spankin' new Perimeter Coordinator.

The Good:
Nobody died, no damage to life, limb, or property. My team (mostly) did what they were supposed to do. (And I will remember the ones that didn't.) They communicated well with eachother and myself, regarding people acting squirrelly. A few were actually stoked to be on the perimeter crew, and will be jumping back in, come this Spring.

The Bad:
Devon thinks he's funny.

The Ugly:
Nothing to report.

[Starboy]

Lamplighters Afterburn Report (Fall 2015 PDF)

What went well:

1. My co-coordinator, Violet, and I were both able to arrive early to the site, and with some help from some volunteers, got ~15 spires erected by late afternoon on Thursday. The new rebar made this process much easier than in the past.

2. Our second dedicated sledgehammer (which I donated in the Fall of last year), which had disappeared last year, reappeared at the end of this burn.

3. We had ample volunteers for the lamplighter procession each night. We also had ample volunteers to take down the lamps each morning, including prior to the exodus. I also had volunteers to put up the spires on Thursday as well (see above).

4. Violet stenciled the five robes that did not get done in spring due to running out of paint. She and I also were able to paint the sashes, adding more color to the procession.

5. We came in well under budget (though there was one complication, see below).

What could go better:

1. About half of our new rebar, purchased in the spring, was found to be missing. Fortunately, I had budgeted for and purchased some extra rebar for the Fall burn (which coordinator emeritus Liz K bent into candycane shapes). So while we were able to put up all the fully-functional spires, it is only because I happened to buy the backup rebar. For Spring I will budget for more rebar (it’s pretty cheap), anticipating losses and building a backup supply.

2. Three spires have gone unused the last couple of burns due to having only one hook on them, the second hook having broken off). It would be nice if we could have those repaired, and/or have some new ones made. This would allow us to resume lighting the lower field again, as well as the other side of the back field.

3. We have a great many lamps in a state of disrepair; the fact is, the lamps are pretty cheap and break easily in various ways. I’d like to be able to try to salvage some of these if at all possible, so as to avoid buying replacements.

4. We could use more shepherd’s hooks; on Sunday night’s procession, we had so many volunteers, the lifters had to share the four hooks between them.

5. I vastly underestimated the amount of lamp fuel we’d need; a result that line item went way over budget; however, other areas were significantly under-budget, so overall we came in under.

Respectfully submitted,
Starboy
Lamplighters Coordinator

[Mythic]

Fall 2015
Post-burn Ranger Report

The Good
We had a total of 48 Rangers, 14 of them brand new Rangers, attend Ranger Training on Friday night. Training has been expanded to include small group break-out sessions where newer Rangers work with veterans in role playing exercises that cover the most common situations our Rangers encounter in the field.

We debuted our Ranger Field Guide in response to prior requests that we trim down the Ranger Manual to a more manageable, pocket size that covers Field essentials. Overall response was very positive. The full length Ranger Manual was available at all times in Ranger HQ.

Some shifts were more eventful than others but we encountered nothing extraordinary. The Co-ordinators made good use of the cart before official opening of the site for set-up, during the burn for expediting communication / responding quickly where situations warranted it, and during tear down.

The new location for Ranger Station worked out well in terms of being more centrally located and having greater visibility in the community. In addition, the quieter location worked out very well in many ways including easier communication during training as well as throughout the burn.

In previous years, there had been some troubling reports of incidents of inappropriate behavior and/or touching, and people feeling uncomfortable but unable or unaware of what to do about it. These reports usually surfaced after the burn on social media. After doing some post-hoc finding out, it seemed to us that this was a combination of people not knowing that a Ranger could help them in this situation, how to find a Ranger when they needed one, and participants not recognizing when they needed help. In response, for the last two burns we have posted “Consent” education posters in porta-potties and other visible locations, in an effort to empower and educate our community about this core idea as well as how Rangers can help and where to find us.

The Bad/Ugly
There really wasn’t much in this category. There remains concern that there should be more locations to call for a Ranger if needed or ways to make Rangers on duty more visible. It seems we can do more to educate and empower the community on what their rights are, and how a Ranger can help them without changing the nature of who the Rangers are. The Ranger Coordination Team will continue to discuss ways of addressing these issues.

Budget
We came in $85 under budget. The loss of our entire inventory of t-shirts due to a rodent infestation was mitigated somewhat by the partial replenishment of our inventory (we had 50 t-shirts printed and 12 hats; 12 shirts remain).

Respectfully submitted,
Mythic, Off-site Ranger Co-ordinator

[Radar]

MASH
Fall 2015 Afterburn Report

The Good
Volunteer signups were well, quite a few brand new people YAY!!!! although we had sever last minute dropouts that caused some shifts needing claiming. With one exception there were only minor cuts and a several severely dehydrated persons. One really bad bump to the head, but patient refused further treatment. No one had to sent away for medical reasons. DOUBLE YAY!!!!

The Bad
Still lacking complete shifts, will be looking for more reserves in the Spring to help fill in shifts. Having to wait for the last minute ticket exchanges doesn't help get qualified medical folks there.

The Ugly
There were really none. TRIPLE YAY!!!!

Budget
Budgeted $ 60.00 spent $78.63, just a minor overrun on supplies

Respectfully Submitted,

Radar
--off site coordinator

[DiverseElements]

MOOP Department Fall 2015 Afterburn Report

The GOOD

• High volunteer turnout for Saturday morning 9am shift- so many that I ran out of MOOP bags
• Lower turnout turnout for Sunday morning 9am shift

The BAD

[*]Usual high volume of MOOP outside portapotties most mornings
[*]High volume of MOOP around burn field Sunday morning
[*]2 of the 6 MOOP bags didn't make it back (1 has been accounted for and will be returned at spring burn)
[*]Boxes of disposable gloves and hand sanitizer disappeared before first scheduled sweep on Saturday
[/list]

The UGLY

• Second-hand report of MOOP sweep volunteer stepping in feces along back field fence
• Tampon applicators,plastic bags, cups and other inappropriate items seen in portapotties

[Owsla]

Planning Committee After Burn Report - Fall 2015

The Good:
Meetings progressed apace, usually running just over one hour each. The stacking protocol has continued to work well to keep discussions organized.

The few confusions/disagreements about proper procedure that came up this cycle were able to be resolved on-call, keeping the system working and all departments supported by the PC (especially in terms of budget approval issues).


The Bad:
The minutes for August's PC meeting were posted only in a summary form, not following the more extensive form that's regularly used. This caused a bit of confusion with the BOD Treasurer, who later needed to verify approved budgets from August with the PC Coordinator in separate emails. Moving forward the plan is to adhere to the longer form of minutes for clarity.

There was/is some confusion over the protocol for budget submissions from a department. Though officially a single department, two separate budgets were submitted with the expectation that they would be reviewed and voted on as separate entities. The current PC Coordinator (Owsla) would like to keep to the standard of departments submitting a single, coherent budget.

We have not had a BOD member on a PC call since March 2015. (Note: There's no requirement for BOD members to be on PC calls, but it is desirable for communication and helps to keep these sections of the PDF organization informed and working in concert.)


The Ugly:
Nothing ugly to speak of.

[Princess]

Volunteer/Participation Station

The Good: What worked?
VOLUNTEERS!We had a great crew, and very few shortages, most of which were quelled in a timely manner. I had my Leads checking on Front and Back Gate Statuses periodically, and they kept it moving. Got most other posts filled to the brink-which was amazing, and I hope led to smoother operations of other depts.
Organization systems:
Laminates:
having the beautiful laminates displayed, created an almost self-serve system, and folks were actually deciding which volunteer shifts to sign up for based on the laminates, because you could see them- there was little confusion and much regale.
Information access:
Having directions for new PS Leads to follow was helpful- having Leads is good- taking note of information they need to know, and preparing further training.
Notifying PS Volunteers of the Volunteer Guide- and having it hanging up/easy to see was awesome- got to see some really awesome recruiting techniques from PS volunteers. Might start hanging the individual descriptions below the sign-ups for ease of accessibility.
Having start of shift run-downs of where everything could be found, and how to answer FAQs worked very well- Assembling a LIST OF FAQs for PS.
Roving Recruiters:
This was my Beta Project and it was a SMASH HIT! I had a few really excellent Roving Recruiters-Jes & Mandy- who just walked around to camps and asked folks if they’d volunteered yet, in a non-confrontational manner without misdirection or barking commands, in an hour they had 18 sign-ups! They enjoyed their volunteer experience, and the folks that they recruited reported positive feedback. I hope to work with Devin to get custom laminate reels, and work with WhipLash to have the laminate holes wide enough to accommodate the reels- so the Roving Recruiters can bring laminates with them while they are recruiting and the reels will be reusable for future burns
PS Events:
BALLOON BUTT HUMP was short sweet and tons of fun!
LOCATION:
We Had Power- We Had Centrality- We Could Hear Ourselves Think -We Had Space for Balloon Butt Hump and The More You Know, and will have space for future workshops and fun events! We had a good flow of foot-traffic which helped in getting shifts covered.
We definitely had more of a backfield presence!
The Fire Pit was Amazing- HUGE Props to JillNado!
LOCK BOX:
We had one- the Leads had the code- valuables were placed in the Lockbox.
The Bad:
Someone tried to break into the LockBox, but they failed.
Not having the WWW’s On-Site on time meant folks didn’t know where Part Station/ Ranger HQ was at first- despite my efforts to advertise the move on FB. I had brought signage, but with the grasses being so high- it was repurposed to smoosh grass down.
I’m hoping to work with Whiplash on better signage for PS
PS Events: Epic missed or wasn’t prepared for a majority of his events that were held on sight at PS. The More You Know- some folks showed up- some folks didn’t- will work with Epic to have All PS Events more publicized ahead of time, and a planning timeline. Roving Recruiter Training- didn’t have many show up- but those who did, rocked it- the system works!
Having my Asst.Coordinator bail out on Monday and not having my cart when it was needed resulted in some serious burn-out on my part. This is being addressed.

The Ugly:
The weather really rocked our horses- it set the PS RHQ structure on it’s last legs- held together with rebar and duct tape now, and the center supports continued to fall until morning- potentially severe head wound in the waiting. It forced us to close down shop for a bit- possible solutions- whatever structure we have, shall have sidewalls.
The schedule boards while beautiful and easy to set-up and follow were unable to weather the weather. More coroplast is in the future, and possibly a new structure.

There should be a protocol for what happens when a dept leaves their cart light on overnight and the battery dies- without another dept. suffering without a cart.
Having the PS cart absconded twice during the course of the burn seriously impacted how burnt out I got- I didn’t have it when it was most needed to recruit for gate reliefs due to no-shows, and when it was needed to inform people where L&F was located so they would come and collect their belongings..

Lost and Found was out of hand- there were two large bins full of Lost and Found delivered to the new PS location, and it only grows. I’m not sure if MOOP sweepers were bringing gross items to L&F or if they were dropped off by passerbys- but there needs to be standards of what is acceptable at L&F. There were dirty panties and a robe with human fecal matter… this is unacceptable.
That being said- I have no intention of keeping items (or expecting my Asst. to) for more than 60 days- you claim it in 30- collect or send money to mail it within 60 or it gets trashed.
That is the new policy.
I do not consent to be a storage facility for irresponsible burners.

If someone disagrees, you are welcome to take over L&F responsibilities.

As the new Volunteer Coordinator I’m not even sure why Lost Items, which are MOOP, are under the coordination duties of the Volunteer Coordinator, as it has zero to do with recruiting volunteers. Managing L&F takes up most of Sunday yelling at people to get their belongings- precious time that could be used to recruit and train new Exodus volunteers.

Things to Look Forward to:
Roving Recruiters in Full Swing!
OVEN (Official Virgin Education Network)
Flashy Sexy Volunteer Signage
It may be time for a new structure- as the poles in the current structure kept falling down.
(Not sure how to move forward with this.)
New schedule boards!


Budget $1415- pretty close- unsure of final costs on Amazon orders- but around $1400.

[Katherine]

Theme Camp Placement Afterburn Report - Fall 2015

GOOD: Yes, it was good!

-Grounds and weather were good for setup Thursday (11am to 3pm -ish). There was a long muddy gash in the ground running diagonally through Field 3, which was taped/blocked off when we arrived, but the tape came down soon after we got onsite and the mud dried out significantly over the course of the day.

-We arrived to find Rangers and Participation Station structures set up in their new location. We were able to successfully work out placement details via emails among the involved coordinators. I'm under the impression everyone was happy with the result coming into the Fall 2015 Burn. However, we continue to remain flexible with placement in case of future changes/needs/concerns/ideas. Every burn, every mix, every map, is unique.

BAD: Not really bad even, more like "could be improved"

-I had to leave the Burn after Thursday setup. Bummer, as this was my first time in the Co-Coordinator role and I wanted to see it through the weekend and handle any necessary follow-up or questions. But Heidi held it down and reported no issues, thanks Heidi!

-We had a few instances of crew members driving over road markings during setup, dragging away our hard work! We ask all fellow participants onsite Thursday to please be mindful of our setup process and watch the tape, it rips and trails easily, as you may have noticed!

-We had a few last minute applicants cutting it really close with the deadline, which appeared to have been extended a day due to some confusion with which midnight it should have cut off on. I will clarify and communicate more prominently for next Burn.

-We were passed along some information just a few days before the Burn about Art Grant recipients who wanted placement but didn't submit the application. That's unfortunate, as we try to put a priority on placing Art and having it listed in the printed maps. But we can only place your fabulous Art if you reach out to us! So please get your applications in. If any questions arise, whether before or after the placement deadline, please reach out to themecamps@playadelfuego.org.

UGLY: I hope no one thought so! But if you did, please reach out to themecamps@playadelfuego.org to start a dialogue.

-Please keep in mind, we get a lot of requests for specific spots, many for the same spot even. We do our best with the unique set of inputs for the Burn at hand. The more information you provide in your Theme Camp or Art Placement application, the better equipped we will be to place you and your neighbors too!

EXPENSES: Budget $75.00 / Actual $51.81 / Variance $23.19 (didn't need to buy skewers because we found some left over from previous Burn)

NEXT TIME:

-We'd like to work on beefing up a few signs around the grounds, like the one at the foot bridge that says "No Cars," possibly attaching them to wooden signposts that could be driven into the ground to make them more visible and secure.

-I will gain clarification from Hatter on the application deadline from the systems side of things. Ideally we can firm up the exact cutoff of the live online application, which I will then work on blasting via all outlets!

Thanks everyone!

Respectfully submitted,
Katherine, Theme Camp Placement Co-Coordinator

[Jendub]

Hi guys, this is Jen Dublin writing the report for Sanctuary.

The good:
1.There was a sanctuary space! That alone is good news because it was definitley needed and used. I think it was helpful and comforting to many people, for a variety of reasons.

2.Location next to MASH. I think this gives participants and volunteers peace of mind knowing that we have that support close by. MASH volunteers were very helpful, attentive, and supportive.

3. Infrastructure. The area stayed dry, the cots were nice, and there was blankets and pillows.

The bad:
1. Many people didn't know where we were, what purpose sanctuary served, or that there even was a sanctuary. Several participants told me that they couldn't find it when they needed it. My suggestion is to create larger and more prominent signage in front of the area, nearer to MASH's sign.

2. The position next to the stage was quite loud, sometimes making it hard to have conversations with the individuals who needed sanctuary. One suggestion is to place it on the further side of MASH.

3. The provided lighting was very dim, only two lights which rotates through colors. With the darkness, low overhead, and color changing lights it was not a great environment. My suggestion is to have brighter yellowish/white lights.

4. Seating: there was no seating for volunteers or friends of the person in sanctuary. It would be nice to have some chairs for outside of the space (so volunteers can be out greeting people) as well as some little stools for people to sit next to the cots.

The ugly:
1. Flaky volunteers. On Sunday night only one of four (I believe) volunteer shifts showed up.

Reflections:
All things considered, I think the basics are covered but there is room for improvement. I think volunteers could benefit from "sanctuary" training as well.

[diana-smiles]

Parking After Burn Report by stealth ninja non-co-coordinator Diana-Smiles (with consult from Toohey)

The Good

Generally, this was a very smooth burn for parking. The best news was that the parking lot was mowed this time, so we didn't have any problems with ticks or not being able to see the flagging in the parking lot. The new thin fiberglass stakes worked really well, although we needed more. While they worked great, the stakes won't work well if the ground is dry and hard (like it was in Spring), so it's not a permanent solution to the dwindling supply of quality stakes. There is a thicker and sturdier version available that may meet our needs. The nice thing about these fiberglass stakes is that they are tall enough to be seen over grass and over the cars. They also have a reflective bit that helps them be seen at night.

The flood lights were onsite and worked with no issues, once the vets came and turned them on. Parking would like to give a great shout out to DPW for being rock stars with set up and break down the back gate area.

The RVs and onsite parking passes went fairly smoothly this burn; however people were still submitting onsite parking pass requests on the Tuesday night before the burn. Going forward Parking wants set up a (well publicized) cut off date of two weeks before the burn.

Parking was well prepared for the storm Friday night, and was able to use the golf cart to warn all the folks in the back field that it was coming. The site was then closed to cars for the evening. Carts were then used the rest of the night to haul people in. Volunteers were encouraged to come in if they did not want to stand in the field while it was lightening.

On the whole, the volunteers shifts were covered and a huge shout out to Barrel of Fun for running the parking lot on Saturday afternoon. They really have it down and have a good time with it! But the real shout out goes to Greeters!!! The only reason parking shifts were mostly covered was because Greeters really stepped it up and rocked it out by handing out the temporary parking passes and collecting the driver's licenses. This seemed to be very popular with the Greeters, and going forward Parking would like to have discussions with whoever takes over Greeting as possibly to making this a permanent part of their duties. The Greeter volunteers were very happy to help as long as they didn't have to go stand in the field and flag. Turning this over the to greeters makes sense, since this is a major point of contact for education and Greeter interaction and allows Parking to focus on handling the flaggers on shift change. Juggling the volunteers for the onsite parking pass portion of the job and the volunteers for flagging at shift change was difficult, causing someone to stay late after their shift while sorting the two jobs out. Turning this over to Greeting will smooth all that out and create a better volunteer experience for all involved.



The Bad

The Big Bad for this burn was volunteer coverage for the late night shifts. The Participation Station closed at 10pm and we were unable to get the late night shifts covered Thursday and Friday night. This closure time was a complete surprise, as the PS has always been open until midnight previously. For the closing shifts both nights we only had one volunteer, when we needed three (minimum). Going forward, Parking kindly requests that the Participation Station stay open until the closing shift is verified as being staffed.

The other no-so-great thing that happened was that someone wrote on many of the temporary parking passes with a permanent marker and they now need replacing. In addition, the sleeves that hold the driver's licenses is also getting a bit worn in, and also needs replacing (they were not vandalized, just worn out). Also, we did not have any copies of the pages we use to track the driver's licenses. More of those will need to be made up for Spring burn.


The Ugly

Parking is very happy to report that we didn't have any ugly this burn!

[St. Greg]

PDF FALL 2015 - ART GRANTS AFTERBURN REPORT

*** Summary ***

Overview:
* 24 projects submitted, 16 grants awarded for a total of $7521.15 (out of a budget of $11,000), with 2 declining (unable to attend PDF or unable to complete project) and 2 that were no-shows. After removing those 4, we granted a total of $5799.15.

* List of granted projects:
# --- Project Name --- Granted amount --- Notes
1 --- Talk to God --- $285.00 --- No show
2 --- Dick Poertry --- $150.00
3 --- Connies Cantina --- $694.00
4 --- Soap Box/AntiBox --- $91.15
5 --- CHURCH --- $1,465.00
6 --- Patchwork Painting --- $205.00
7 --- Dear Future Me --- $43.00
8 --- Alyse Firefly Art's PDF portrait project --- $135.00
9 --- Art Inside: The Big Box --- $750.00 --- Declined grant
10 --- The Confessional --- $540.00
11 --- Cock Cannon --- $645.00
12 --- Knick Knacks, Paddle Whacks, Give Our Dog Your Bone --- $500.00 --- Declined grant
13 --- Nemma: the lantern project --- $131.00
14 --- Seahorses Forever --- $1,400.00
15 --- Ark of the Covenant --- $187.00 --- No show
16 --- Tapestries with Dharma Dye --- $300.00

TOTAL GRANTED
$7521.15

TOTAL GRANTED - MINUS NO SHOWS AND DECLINES
$5799.15

* We also hosted an artist reception and an art tour on Saturday afternoon, that was advertised in the What Where When.


*** What went well ***
* Process
-- We usually see around 25 applications these days, so we had plenty to evaluate, and with a good mix between fire art and non-fire art.
-- Posting in the P.O.N.Y., BPE, regional BM lists and regional FB groups seems to work pretty well for us in terms of getting the word out on applying for a grant.
-- Our process of discussing applications initially via email, then focusing the conference calls on decisionmaking seems to work well. We’ve so far been able to keep our voting process to one meeting that takes a couple of hours.

* Reception
-- Organized by Jill Nado. Plenty of snacks and drinks to share. Might have even had too much.
-- The new banner came out very well. Thanks to Jill for advocating for this and getting it done! We hope to use this for many years to come.
-- Good attendance from coordinators and fire team.
-- We did a round of introductions prior to wrapping up the reception. This was a good idea and we will likely make sure we do this as part of future receptions.

* Tour
-- Organized and run by St. Greg. Most people from the reception joined the tour at the beginning.
-- Art Grant Archivist, Sara Muskulus, took photos as the tour progressed. Thanks, Sara!
-- We hit all art grant projects in less than an hour, and about half of the artists were present to speak on behalf of their projects.


*** What could go better ***
* Process
-- We need more people in the Art Grants Committee. We will send out a blast to the community, but typically only have a core group that stays involved consistently.
-- We’ve been getting more applications recently that ask for funding for durable goods. Maybe we need to clear up the guide document on the application process and more strongly encourage applicants to review it prior to submitting an application.

* Reception
-- Attendance from artists and art grant committee members was a bit lower than previous receptions. We may want to consider measures to encourage greater attendance.
-- This event has yet to generate much participation from the general community. We always welcome them, we need to find ways to draw them in.

* Tour
-- Many people dropped out as the tour went on. Had a handful of people by the end. It would be great if we could find a way to maintain attendees and even attract additional attendees. We will likely look to shorten the reception and tour to 45 minutes each, in order to help maintain attendance and interest.

*** Other noteworthy items ***
* Reception budget - $35 for vinyl banner, $100 for drinks, snacks and tableware
* Art Grant Coordinators are working with Hatter and Art Grant Archivist, Sara Muskulus, to create an online space to share art grant photos. Project not yet complete, but we now have 2 PDF’s worth of photos to post.
* St. Greg will be taking over organizing the reception going forward.
* We are searching for a new co-coordinator to take O Man’s place.
* We expect to integrate the PONY application process into the Art Grant process starting with the upcoming Spring 2016 burn.

[Owsla]

(Posting for Jim)


Purchasing Burn Report:

Golf Carts: Ordered six (6) passenger carts. Pricing was fine but had delivery issues as noted in Hatter's Incident Report (below).

Had a brief maintenance issue with one cart and will address parameters on how to deal with down carts for future burns. Will investigate what to do if a cart becomes inoperative during the weekend.

Hatter's Incident report follows: Carts usually show up around 9-10am on Thursday so they can be used throughout the day for setup. When they weren't there by noon I had called Jon and asked about it. He said the paperwork was picked up and they should be on the way. 3 came and still nothing and I think that is when you called? Or someone called and they said they were an hour out.

Around 4 they showed up and the guy delivering them said he wasn't coming back with the second load tonight. When confronted about it he basically left mid sentence and got in his truck to leave. I was able to get the spare keys from him before he left, but he damn near hit several people in front of the ticketing booth while pulling out and then sped away like a total asshat. I went to each of the departments and worked out the best way to distribute the carts, ticketing agreed to share their cart with parking so parking could have a second one, and part station gave up their cart for the night. All departments were understanding and worked together to resolve the issue which was AWESOME!

I called Jon again and he basically said there was nothing he could do about it. But he would talk to the owner and get back to me. We basically pay to have the carts from Friday - Monday. They have been delivering them on Thursday morning and not charging us for years now, so I kind of understand why they would be hesitant to offer additional discounts.

The next morning the owner showed up with the additional carts and apologized for the drivers behavior, who happened to be his nephew, but didn't offer any sort of discount or anything. Honestly at that point, I was just happy we had the carts.

So that's basically the gist of what happened. If you decide to continue with easy lift, it might be worth having a conversation with Jon and seeing what can be done to guarantee delivery on Thursday. It might mean paying a few extra bucks per cart, but having all the carts delivered Thursday morning is kind of essential so it might just be what we have to do.

Let me know if you have any other questions/concerns and thanks again for taking this on.
___ End of Hatter's Incident Report.

Future Purchasing: as the new Purchasing Coordinator I will work with Dave and Patty to put a process in place where I can facilitate purchases for coordinators with approved budgeted purchases.

This process will take shape and be communicated to all coordinators by early 2016.

Cheers....Jim Barker, Purchasing Coordinator

(posted for Jim by Owsla)

[smartie martie]

Once I receive my reimbursement check for items purchased for PDF, I will submit my afterburn report.

[MooseAlmighty]

The Good: Had a decent core of drummers to keep the rhythm. Kept the burn time to about a couple hours which is reasonable for how long I can play straight and let others take shifts in and out. Nobody came up to me while drumming and told me I had to move, and all the musicians stayed together. Side circles make it harder for everyone.

The Bad: Didn't think about teaching classes. Gonna do that this year. See if I can't get us all synced up on 3 or 4 specific rhythms to keep everyone together.

Changes requested: Can I get a co-coordinator to help me manage the base rhythm at the burn and set up the classes? I am great at making lots of noise you wanna dance too, but I suck at logistics. I was thinking Rod Gnarley aka Hippee since he has both dedicated himself to this community and to that drum circle a many a times through the years, and he has proven himself a good hippee wrangler.

[smartie martie]

Ticketing/Gate 2016 Afterburn Report

The Good

~The weather for setup and breakdown was fabulous
~DPW crew was awesome for having trucks available for hauling all the Gate gear up to the Gate on Wednesday afternoon
~The Front Gate structure was setup by Wednesday evening
~I had lots of help from the early arrival volunteers and DPW for Gate
~All the volunteers who showed up rock it out and worked hard
~The charging station at Front Gate was successful with the volunteers
~One of the GOD’s created a new wristband log sheet, for the volunteers to fill out at the end of the shift. The wristband log was easier and understandable for the volunteers to fill out
~The bacon deliveries was successful on Saturday morning
~The volunteers seemed to enjoy the snacks and coffee stuff
~All of the GOD shifts were finally all filled, I did not have to work 3 GOD shifts this burn
~Participants were not parking overnight in the temporary parking lot, the extra signage help inform participants
~The Gate has a new onsite Assistant Coordinator Senorita Loaf
~The Gate FAQ and Volunteer shift books continue to be useful for all the volunteers at the Gates
~Extra signage about consent and LNT was helpful communicating PDF's message on those topics.
~We had some string lights donated to the Front Gate to light up the front Ticketing Booth area and Front Lots and will have more for Spring PDF 2016
~Extra wristband charts were for other departments and The Vets for clarification of all the different wristbands
~Early Entry did not have any problems, except volunteers who signed up showed up late

The Bad

~A medical burner WITHOUT a ticket was let in against Ticketing Volunteers say by another medical coordinator(?). She stated that this unbanded person had important medical supplies and had to get inside. Since the waiver team was very thorough, they filed the waiver that person said she filled out. She stated that her ticket was inside and no one was able to find the person who was holding it. And they didn't want to wait. Sorry about your luck, No one is allowed to go inside the event without signing a waiver, presenting a ticket and ID at Ticketing.
~The next day the same Coordinator(?) came up with a ticket number written down on a piece of paper and had the scanner person key it in. Stating it was a valid ticket, then behind Ticketing volunteer’s back and took a band off the roll while, he was applying a band to a burner. The person who ticket that was, was not present. She took the band back through the gate. Sorry about your luck, No one is allowed to go inside the event without signing a waiver, presenting a ticket and ID at Ticketing.
~That same day, a ranger didn't have a ticket at the gate. Again another ranger insisted that he could come in. While Ticketing Volunteers insisting he couldn't, a Parking Coordinator rode up and said it was ok. They then DROVE in the front gate with his car and not through the back gate. We have no knowledge if that ranger ever filled out a waiver or even came back up to the gate with a ticket later Sorry about your luck, No one is allowed to go inside the event without signing a waiver, presenting a ticket and ID at Ticketing.
~Greeter Coordinator deciding to close the back Gate on Sunday, and removing volunteer online sign ups. The back Gate needs to have volunteers at the entrance point checking wristbands and Greeting participants as they come and go from the event. It is a liability issue if no one is at the back entrance. If a person sneaks in and has an unfortunate situation happen, it's not good for PDF. I don’t think we want a bunch of people sneaking in the back gate on Sunday, it creates problems for participants, Rangers, Medics, BOD and The Vets. We had this problem before when no one was placed at the back gate entrance, which is why Greeters was placed at the back gate entrance
~The back lot was closed on Friday evening, due to a bad thunderstorm, which created a carry in only situation
~Participants confused with tickets transferred due to no name change on the transferred tickets, caused some problems for Ticketing volunteers
~Participants misinformed about how spotty the internet/cell phone service. Participants being mad about not being able to download their ticket from his or her cell phone and have to drive back into town to download their ticket
~On Thursday afternoon, Golf cart delivery driver almost hit the Ticketing structure and participants waiting in line to check in
~Very late delivery of the golf carts on Thursday afternoon
~Bacon deliveries were a late start on Sunday morning, and were made in the early afternoon, due to GOD passed out and unresponsive on the radio
~On Saturday evening from 11:00 PM to about 1:00 AM, the drunk neighbors of the property, were having target practice with their very loud guns, which was cause for some concern. Pineapple talked to the neighbors several times and the cops even went to this property. Eventually, the shooting stopped and the neighbors joined the The Vets around the fire drinking some beers
~The Vets did not send me a copy of the Vets guest wristbands ahead of time. Previously, The Vets sent me a copy of their wristband, so we can incorporate their wristband in the community wristband chart for all the different types of wristbands at PDF.
~A continuing trend NO SHOW volunteers, late night on Thursday, Friday and all day Sunday.
~Waited a really long time for my reimbursement check for items purchased for PDF, I did play a prank on Patty though this time...

The Ugly
I don’t like the ugly…….

Improvements

~Adding extra sign up shifts on Thursday.
~The Back Gate will have Greeter volunteers sign ups for Sunday.
~Handmade pony pendants for volunteers.
~Banners for Greeters Tent, and Ticketing Tent
~Two banners, one at the front Gate entrance and one at the back Gate entrance to Welcome Community Members to Playa del Fuego
~Decorate drinking containers with vinyl lettering for volunteers
~Give the clipboards a face-lift, they look kinda sloppy
~Have garlynn for inside of the Ticketing tent for a more festive feel
~More communication with other Departments about gate topics
~Wristband Guides for Theme Camps with bars, if Theme Camp requests one.
~The majority of items being purchased will be online orders.
~Onsite Ticketing computer should be updated with name changes of transferred tickets. When the ticket is entered to the computer to be able to input the wristband type of each participant, so we would have a better wristband number count.


Final Thoughts

The Gate is always looking for some awesome volunteers to take on more responsibility. We are currently looking for an additional Coordinator (training my replacement), Assistant Coordinator, GOD’s, and Shift Leads.
If anyone is interested please send an email to: gate-lead@playadelfuego.org

Thank you everybody in the community who volunteers, brings art, and sets up a Theme Camp, to help bring PDF together every Fall and Spring

Overall every burn is different and poses new challenges, which I learn and grow from each one.I love each and every burn in its own special way

See ya’ll at Spring PDF 2016

Hugs and Love
~~~Smartie Martie~~~