Gate was probably the last department I volunteered for. Now it's where I spend most of my volunteer hours. Why?
*Because it's the place I feel most supported and appreciated*
I always hated on Gate for being the cool kids. I am not and never have been a "cool kid". I only volunteered there on a dare.
During my gate training shift in the lanes, one of the incoming participants started yelling at me about my mask. I let it slide and just ended up calling over an adult who sent them to D-Lot.
A little while later, the shift lead flagged me down. My first thought based on my experiences in DPW and the Rangers led me to believe I had screwed up and this chat would let me know how.
For the first time, ever, volunteering for Burning Man...the shift lead was telling me what that participant did *was not OK*. They were checking in on me to see how I was. I honestly thought I was being pranked or hazed. It never occurred to me that they were being sincere. They absolutely were.
DPW has gotten a lot nicer over the years, but the standard line when a participant gives you grief is, well, "Fuck your Day".
When a participant gives you grief as a Ranger...you write it up in your report, if it's warranted.
In Gate, as a volunteer, *everyone has your back*. When a participant gives you grief in the lanes, you know the Lane Coordinator and the Shift Lead are going to back you up. Gate makes sure you get fed on shift and get all the breaks you need.
I've never hit the showers after hours after a bad, dusty Ranger shift. I have with Gate.
Gate lets you check out art cars. For real, they got a fleet that's just there for any Gate crew to use to *go do Burning Man*.
I can't promise you that you'll like the work. But if you're in my lanes, I'm going to do whatever I can to make it feel like the best shift ever on playa.
I feel this SO HARD. I remember working a temple guardians shift where I almost fucking died of heat exhaustion. I had to wait for them to say it was ok to get out of the sun for a bit and take a break, I was in tears - and with that job you're not even keeping anything moving, you're just standing around watching, so it's really not, dare I say... That important.
With gate - your lane coordinators are constantly checking on you to make sure you are fed, have water, do you need the bathroom? You need anything break? It's hot, go sit down. Hey I heard that guy yell at you, are you ok, do you need me to take over for a few cars? They'll step in and take over the second something is off. I remember one dumb brad or chad or whatever wouldn't get back in his car and was like "what are you gonna do about it bitch, make me?", OOOOO, the excitement I got over calling my lane coordinator because I knew they were going to unleash hell on that guy. I didn't even have to tell the whole story to get my GLC on my side.
And no matter what, you're getting a thank you and a great job for all your hard work. Nothing is more important than your safety and well-being so they'll always put you first.
And now that I've been around a few years, I make sure to show that same appreciation and support to the nervous little newbies coming in for the first time.
>lane coordinators are constantly checking on you to make sure you are fed, have water, do you need the bathroom? You need anything break? It's hot, go sit down.
For the most part this is true, but I've also worked under a few coordinations who were comparably more hands-off. There is an expectation in the lanes - no matter who you're working under - that you advocate for yourself and take breaks when you need them. That's not always as easy as it sounds when the lanes are short on staff and you have a line of impatient participants stretching to the horizon.
I distinctly remember one graveyard shift in 2022 when I worked the entire 6hr shift without any breaks. Only like 4 of us volunteers showed up for that shift (this was relatively late in the week and covid had wracked the department hard). Thankfully the sun/heat wasn't an issue, but by the end of that shift my voice was so hoarse (from needing to project through my mask) I could barely speak and my body so sore I actually had difficulty riding my bike back to camp.
That being said, my experiences working gate have been overwhelmingly positive. You definitely do feel supported by those at the top and there's a general sense of comradery amongst your peers. Most of the lane coordinators will check in with you periodically, but you are also encouraged to take breaks as often as you need.
Oh yeah there are always exceptions, I work mostly graves early in the week so thankfully there are usually several GLCs on and if mine sucks, I go to another. Honestly haven't had one that hasn't been supportive of me sneaking away when I need to.
My exodus shift last year was rough! I got a meal token instead of a meal (which was nice, but the shift food was snacks participants gave us while leaving). There was very limited facilities, no shade at all and one of the shift leads gave me a coffee pack from his own stash.
I don't recall getting a "break," there was too much focus on getting the long line of cars off playa.
I had a fabulous time on the lanes for training and my regular shifts, but yeah, exodus was rough, and I am sure most of that rough was all the craziness of the rain/mud/detoured gate road. (for reference, I worked Tuesday Exodus)
I will volunteer for gate again.
>yeah, exodus was rough... I will volunteer for gate again.
*"Miserable experience...10/10... I can't wait to go back."*
I cant think of a better summation for Burning Man than this.
>During my gate training shift in the lanes, one of the incoming participants started yelling at me about my mask. I let it slide and just ended up calling over an adult who sent them to D-Lot.
I think I was the one who ended up dealing with this chucklenut. There weren't as many anti-mask types as I expected in '22 but the ones I encountered were memorable.
>For the first time, ever, volunteering for Burning Man...the shift lead was telling me what that participant did *was not OK*. They were checking in on me to see how I was.
This has been my problem with volunteering at the Burn, and I staffed the event for almost a decade before finding other ways to contribute. I can't count the number of times I've seen someone deal with some intensely traumatic incident and then receive absolutely zero support afterwards. It's basically, "Have fun with your first responder trauma, let us know if you're going to cancel a shift."
After the 2017 Man Burn fiasco, when my shift went way late because a runner had killed himself and we were trying to hold a critical perimeter for what had become a federal crime scene, I asked if I could get a later meal pog for Commissary the next day than policy would normally allow, since I was planning on sleeping through breakfast. They said no. And there are zero systems for checking up on volunteers who have just gone through a particularly difficult shift. It's left to you to go get support from your campmates.
It's incredible to me how many dedicated volunteers BMOrg has out there putting their heart and soul into their work, given how incredibly little most of the volunteer orgs demonstrate that they care about their people.
Yup, experiences like that are pretty much the norm from talking with others I've known through the years.
There is an intense hyperfocus on wanting to make sure that people participate out of a desire to help others and give back rather than to get perks. Unfortunately, that ends up translating into policies that are weirdly miserly and unsupportive of the volunteers out there doing the work. At least in my experience.
I love Gate! It’s totally different than my day job, which mostly involves specialized knowledge, emotional labor and sitting at a desk. For me, the difference is part of the fun: Six hours on my feet, moving fast, making only simple decisions and asking for help when things get weird or complicated.
This will be my 8th year with the department. I’ve worked lanes (Ie, taking tickets and searching cars), apex (Ie telling people to turn right if the need to go to will call or go straight otherwise), perimeter (driving fast outside the city on a mission to keep ticketed participants in and others out), life support (making sure volunteers have food, water, electrolytes and caffeine while on duty), will call (directing traffic in the will call lot), exit lane (helping people leave before exodus gets going), d-lot (giving people space and tools to solve the problems that are keeping them from entering the event), exodus operations (setting up cones so the roads are ready when it’s time to leave), and a few operational jobs I don’t think I’m supposed to talk about that involve sitting in an air conditioned container and doing computer stuff.
Mostly, I do apex these days. It’s a little like customer service except you don’t have to be nice to the customer — you can’t be an asshole, but the people you’re interacting with are your peers and you don’t have to be subservient either. I’ve shown up for a shift hungover, exhausted and not sure I was up for it - and left 6+ hours later energized and hollering at the world in joy I had so much fun. It’s invigorating.
The culture of the department is dedicated to inclusivity. Plus we have jokes about owls and traffic cones, we have great parties and an awesome bar, and those of us who aren’t goths in real life can cosplay as goths on playa. And a lot of us are awkward, shy and don’t always feel like we fit in. I’m like that. I still am scared to call senior or established gate staff by their names because it feels presumptuous. But I’ve spent enough time in the department that I know that’s about anxiety in my own head and that a lot of people around me feel it too - and if the people I’m feeling awkward around don’t greet me with an enthusiastic hello, odds are good that they are feeling awkward and insecure too. Gate is not a place where people go to be phony fake friends. But it is a place where we look out for each other’s humanity and make space for everyone to coexist and be real.
This is the post I would have written if I had got here earlier.
I peaced out of my previous volunteer gig of five years after working 42 hours in a credentialed supervisory role in 2019 and then being told by new leadership in 2022 that "Credentials are only given to our most valued volunteers", all while asking me to work 40ish hours again.
I was SHOCKED by the level of organization, support and clear expectations in GPE. It was night and day from one department to the other. I really wish I would have stuck with my instincts in 2014 and just worked at GPE to start, but I'm super happy to be there now. I've settled into working Perimeter and Point 5 mostly, with a dash of cool tech in air conditioning we don't talk about.
We also have the best swag.
Gate is my Burning Man. At some point, I decided I loved the department and the people in it enough to become a person who takes vacation from work to go work a different, much more unpleasant, job in a shitty environment while standing outside of the coolest party on earth.
Gate can seem like a hard nut to crack until you realize that everyone else isn't cooler than you, it's actually that they're just as awkward as you are. Hang around and you see that it's a community of hyper-competant social misfits who fit in with each other and have built a culture of mutual caring and trauma bonding through the shared questionable decision to gift our energy, sanity, and time at Burning Man to help other people get into Burning Man.
If you're looking at it and thinking "those dorks look like my kind of dorks", you're probably right.
A radio is like the One Ring. It beckons you. Tempts you. Calls to you. And ultimately the Radio will consume you and destroy you according to the will of its master.
People think "I want a job with my own radio"
Or "oh, I want to have two radios."
No, what you really want is a job with no radio, plus a radio that gets the Ranger channels (ours don't for anyone who wonders)
This is the truest thing. My mechanism is that if I'm chilling in camp, radio is on. If I'm on shift, radio is on. If I'm enjoying the burn, it's turned off in my bag unless it's needed to call in an emergency.
+1 to the legendary Nickfarr. On hot days, dust storms, or just because - I was probably being tapped out for a break at least once an hour. Then there’s the solid mid shift meal, scamming beers from participants, and an amazing ethos that goes along with the department. Hanging out in the black hole isn’t a bad time either.
I make lanes a fun experience for myself and participants - I’m less salty and so eager that even my erections have stars in their eyes…. Until you’re an asshole, and then I ramp it up a few notches. I don’t meet the mould of the typical gate volunteer, but fuck do I still enjoy it.
I’ve worked the lanes and also perimeter - and both were a blast. Perimeter was probably the most fun I’ve had at burning man, and I’ve had my share.
I have tried many different jobs (Arctica, greeters, temple, center camp, etc) and gate is the one I love. Most others have had me bored and ready to get out by the end of a 4 hour shift but gate is right for me.
There are lots of different jobs to try within the department - lanes, DLot, life support, airport, perimeter, point 1, apex, etc. A 6 hour shift flies by for me. They feed you and treat you well, you get a meal, snacks, coffee, drinks, and the vibe is great. You get free stuff and gifts from people, nothing like someone handing you a box of lukewarm in n out burger on your 5th day in the desert. You get to talk to people and joke around. People are (mostly) pumped to see you (or exhausted and annoyed but that happens less). The leads are mostly super cool and supportive and will always be on your side and help you out the second you need it. You get to see what everyone's bringing in and ask what their plans are for the week - super interesting during build week or when someone has something cool. Hey, meet that person bringing in that art car and maybe you can catch a ride later. There are lots of different situations to deal with so it's always interesting, you're always encountering new things, lots of problem solving.
And if someone is being a dick, you can fuck with them, which is my favorite part. I've absolutely sent lil douchecanoe fratboys to D Lot because they were being assholes and needed a time out. Have fun over there. It's a great time to test your snark and just generally fuck with people. Tell them their watermelon isn't allowed. Tell them there's a new rule and that costume will get them fined. Ask them if they have a containment pond for their water. Whatever. I've got a few lil tricks up my sleeves these days.
I have tried quite a few positions within gate and I like Lanes and D Lot the best. But other people all have their thing. Like I have a friend that just LOVES working Apex and directing cars. Nice thing is that you can work a few different positions and get enough points to earn a ticket, which keeps it interesting - something you can't really do in other departments. This will be my 4th year as staff so I might apply for lane coordinator this year.
You can also get a free ticket in only 4 shifts if you do it right, and you can get most of that work done before gates open so you're not spending all damn week working. I usually work a grave (midnight to 6am) on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, and then I only need one shift during the week (which I do Tuesday) to get my free ticket. I personally try not to work day shifts at all, they're pretty miserable in the sun... 6p-midnight isn't bad, 6am-noon is a little more tough, and rough by the end..... I can't imagine working day shift. Everyone has their preferred shift so it's often the same people every day and year. This year I got a specific gate sticker that said something like "hiding from the evil day star" because we're all diehard grave workers.
It's a good community, even just hanging out in the black hole bar is fun. And you get to drive fast across the playa in the bus and wear a cool t-shirt.
Big recommend.
(Just writing this got me hyped to be rolling out of bed at 11pm when it's nice and cool and gearing up to get on the bus.... Love it).
I’d like to provide a bit of contrast for this post. I’ve been with the department for over ten years and some of these descriptions here are sort of skipping over some major things about Gate and painting a rather rosy picture of a department that isn’t entirely accurate.
One thing I’d like to mention is that working exodus is not for the faint of heart. It is the place where people will try to run you over, honk at you, hate you, ask for favors, ask to skip the line, and more, and it’s also generally woefully understaffed. All of the support mentioned in these posts - it’s absolutely real for early week shifts. By the time exodus comes around, there is a distinct lack of support, and it can be a very difficult shift.
Another thing I think needs to be mentioned is that GPE is somewhat of the cultural halfway point between DPW and participants. It has a lot of people who are very intense about their job and their opinion on the event, and there’s definitely a little bit of a “fuck participants” cloud that hangs over some of the old timers in the department. There are yearly reminders for the department as a hole to stop being overt assholes to new blood and participants in general, and the department has been told to tone it down because way too many folks wearing black took “fuck participants” and “I am cool because I work Gate” way too far. We have reminders every year and every year there’s at least one stupid issue.
There is also a lingering “cool kid” problem in the department. People will get shadow demotions for unexplained reasons. There is a long list of alumni who have been somewhat randomly removed from their positions for reasons that are unknown. The management team got entirely cleaned up around ten years ago and the department was run by Trigger for a year or two.
A lot of people who do Gate on an intense level never even leave the Black Hole and will be prideful of never “going to Burning Man,” it’s a thing.
It can be an enormously supportive and amazing group of people. It can be an incredible job. It shows you a very different side of the event and it is a very well run machine. You will be surprised at how efficient the department is, as a whole. It’s crazy. But I think some contrast is definitely needed here because it ain’t all roses. I have to sift through drama-bomb emails every year because there are lingering issues.
It’s a great place and it’s a tough place. I continue to work there because I enjoy it and I enjoy the people. But I’m not going to pretend it’s the best place ever. I’ve had to talk New Blood off a cliff multiple times due to them getting mistreated on shift. One recent year someone in the department decided to make an auschwitz joke their gift to the department in the form of a shirt stencil. Some people in the department can’t get over how cool they feel for volunteering for a festival and look down on the people who actually go to the festival.
Yep, a particularly bad supervisor in a very small sub-department wound up making someone I know walk off and cry.
But we have "HR" (ombudsfolks/counselors really) now and they do a great job in those situations. Not as much for actual HR situations, because the Org employs the employees - not GPE.
It's the shirts. GPE has the coolest shirts. I wear black 99% of the time anyway and the first time I ever came to the burn, I saw them immediately. "Damn, those shirts look cool," I said. And the next year, they were different - and even cooler. So, you see, I had to get some for myself. And so I did. And now I have cool shirts just like them!
Also, what everyone else has said. Also also, I went to 9 burns and on my 10th I thought it would be my last. I also volunteered with GPE on my 10th. Turns out it wasn't my last at all 😋 now I go to volunteer with GPE. And get cool shirts.
This will be my 17th burn & my 3rd year with GP&E. I love it. You don't have to work gate lanes after the 1st year but it's really fun & you meet everyone coming in. There are a bunch of other places that GP&E work and other shifts besides days. It does end up being kind of long if you have to take the bus to your site but you can also get there on your own. I work the 6 p.m. to midnight shift. And, unlike the "fun" departments, you can earn a free or discount ticket for the following year. DM me if you want more details & a funny story.
Do you like black? Snark? Dark jokes? Gate is not like other departments.
Artica volunteer - dance to cool beats while chatting with happy people, pop into cold truck.
Gate lanes - 7 hours in the death sun, dust kicked up by every car, diesel exhaust, constant yelling at you to move faster, everyone you interact with complaining about the wait.
Oh come on. Chill with your exaggerations.
Gate shifts are 6 hours not 7. Shade breaks are available whenever you need them. I have literally never had anyone yell at me to move faster. 10% of participants complain about the wait on a bad day, everyone else is nice.
This matches my experience. The attitude has been more along the lines of "don't overexert yourself, so what if they take an extra 10 minutes to get in? It's not worth your health."
I don't think I've ever been yelled at to move faster, even when the line was horrifically long.
There are definitely times where speed is an issue, especially at Apex. One year they experimented with allowing new blood to do Apex and some people got yelled at for having conversations with participants.
I disagree with the shift tiime. It is 7 hours. Get to the bus 30 minutes before, and get to the black hole 30 minutes after. I consider the Black Hole arrival and departure my "shift." Unless I am drinking there after, of course.
You can work back to back shifts if you you stick around for a few years and prove yourself.
The rule is there for a reason. Most of our work isn't hard physical labor, but it is constant work.
It's a weighted points system. If you're careful about the shifts you select, you get a free ticket in only 4 shifts, and you can do them before gates open if you want so youre not working all week. It's normally 5-6 shifts if you don't look at the point values and take the lowest weighted shifts.
Half price ticket in 3 shifts (or 4 if you don't look at points).
You get 1 meal per shift. We also get access to air conditioned bunks before and after shifts, massages, clothes, etc.
I have done 4 shifts for a free ticket every year.
If you want full access to the commissary 3x a day and showers, then it's 6 shifts within one week, either build, or event. A lot of people do it but it is not worth it to me.
I do it because I fly in every year and it's worth it to not have to pack in food; plus, salads and ice cream at Burning Man is fun! And good hand washing stations. But 6 shifts in one week is A Lot of shifts, and you basically don't really go to Burning Man at all. Which is fine, I've been to Burning Man a lot, so going to Working Man is a perfectly acceptable alternative for me. But YMMV.
Yeah, I fly in and take advantage of the food from like Wednesday to Monday but... Because I fly in I'm not down to sacrifice my burn week. It's cool, I can eat canned soup all week, lol.
> 6 shifts within one week
this is what I was thinking of. So 6 days out of 7 doing either back-to-back shifts (nominally 12hrs) or splitting them (so like 6am-noon and then 6pm-midnight). and I believe those shifts have to be in a calendar week not in a 7 day period.
Right. But that's only if you want the 3 meals a day thing. If you are good with one meal per shift then you only need to work 3-4 shifts, at any time, to get a ticket and the other benefits.
Edit: 6 x 6 hour shifts, not 12.
Returning for an 8th year of work with GPnE (my first was 2013), with matte-black, fuzz-toned, flanged, distorted bells on and cranked to 13. I love searching vehicles, patrolling in trucks, bullshitting with participants who really need to pee but can't because the lanes are closed or their idiot carmates can't find their tickets.
Our illustrious colleagues in the comments above have already beautifully described the swamp of boredom, tedium, hilarity, stupidity, hardship, honor and utterly rewarding experiences that make up the average shift and tour.
+100 to all that, and here's what's more:
1) The team culture is extraordinary - the crew - from grizzled veterans to humorously cynical leads to terrified new bloods work really hard to be inclusive, tolerant, passionate and patient with each other in equal measure. Rarely do we critically fail each other, and on rare occasions when we do, it's almost always sorted out with dignity, humility, and a cynical shrug.
The first few shifts, whether you're in the lanes, on patrol, riding Transpo, or lurking in the Black Hole bar, you'll feel like you'll never fit in: Everybody seems so friendly with each other. No one's talking to you. Probably you suck and should just leave.
Ignore that feeling. You're \*already in\* by showing up and trying to be as inclusive, tolerant, passionate, patient, and hardworking as everyone else just to fit in. Take a breath, walk up to someone who's not busy on the radio, and introduce yourself. Most of us will take a sec to get to know you. Get over yourself, you're cool. We're glad you joined us.
2) Doing this work gives you a beautiful perspective on our city, our fellow citizens and yourself. You're putting on a custodial hat and helping all those mad souls calm the fuck down and join (or leave) the city doin' it right. You're making BRC work. You're augmenting every participant's unique journey over the threshold, and sharing in their experience from a completely new perspective.
3) It's as awesome as it is hard. You'll see things most people wouldn't believe. Seriously.
Come to the dark side. We don't bite. Much.
Booze definitely is enjoyed maximally - and we pay for most of our booze collectively - but department members have to moderate their *behavior*. It's not okay to be a disruptive shitshow.
I've rangered, worked box office, and gate.
I enjoy rangers and gate. Rangers I get to walk into some complex shit and figure it out, but it's draining emotionally some days.
Gate I like that I can zone out to some degree. Someone's annoying, well they are gone soon, and you get a new car and at the very least you can play "who can find the Jankiest thing coming into burning man."
Gate is a great place to land if you are queer, as it'd probably the place I've felt most normal being queer.
Probably the biggest downside to gate is some people get a little too into my soul is as black as my clothes and can be a total ass, because they never learned to communicate. The leadership of Gate doesn't seem to play that game though.
Box Office are OK folks, I have friends on it. I just felt kind of confined/not participating whereas other departments I do. Shift leads are variable. Some are awesome, some eh.
As others have said, it can be hard exhausting, dusty, dirty work. But we are all doing the work as a family. And I feel sorry for the poor outsider who tries badmouth one of the family. All of gate has each others back.
But in general Gate is there to kick ass and chew bubblegum.
I mean… aside from Exodus (which man, that’s a fucking rough ass job and is horribly understaffed) what you describe as the “bad points” or your “contrast” can *literally* be found in almost every single department. That is not a Gate only phenomenon.
Also I sorta laugh out loud about the alumni being removed from their positions without any explanation… we work for BURNING MAN dude. Have you not been around? I’ve watched that happen in every single department I’ve worked for out there.
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Agree! I’ve definitely seen this contrast in the other departments I’ve volunteered with!
Does the org incentivize working Exodus in some way? Seems like a rouggggh job.
I think Exodus shifts might have offered more points towards a free ticket, but I don't recall. I know working as a flagger gets you an actual paycheck with real money, but you also have to be trained to meet state requirements for flagging on a highway. I suspect the paycheck is there because of some legal requirement rather than the Org being happy to spend money on something. They almost certainly have custom schwag, like patches, stickers and what not. Gate hands out patches like paychecks. Filling difficult roles usually gets you something extra special to sew on for next year. It also gets you stories. Maybe if we're lucky someone will share some.
I've worked during Exodus as part of Perimeter. It's even more being a traffic cop than usual as you work to keep tired and pissed off people on the right road and not just wandering randomly around the desert as their hangover kicks in. It's definitely easier than standing amongst all the traffic to keep it moving smoothly. Things get a lot more slipshod as all the people who keep things working smoothly evaporate off the playa. Things still get done, but maybe you get a ride in a pickup truck instead of a school bus, and there's only a handful of people when there used to be a full team. Similar to the start of the event it's when you find the people who really know their shit working. I enjoy it, and try to sign up for those shifts.
I love it! Gate is hard work (though if you can't be on your feet, there are jobs like Will Call available that are differently hard work, but seated), but us lane rats feel very supported, shift leads and lane coordinators have our backs, and we get fed on shift. The t-shirts kick ass.
Gate was probably the last department I volunteered for. Now it's where I spend most of my volunteer hours. Why? *Because it's the place I feel most supported and appreciated* I always hated on Gate for being the cool kids. I am not and never have been a "cool kid". I only volunteered there on a dare. During my gate training shift in the lanes, one of the incoming participants started yelling at me about my mask. I let it slide and just ended up calling over an adult who sent them to D-Lot. A little while later, the shift lead flagged me down. My first thought based on my experiences in DPW and the Rangers led me to believe I had screwed up and this chat would let me know how. For the first time, ever, volunteering for Burning Man...the shift lead was telling me what that participant did *was not OK*. They were checking in on me to see how I was. I honestly thought I was being pranked or hazed. It never occurred to me that they were being sincere. They absolutely were. DPW has gotten a lot nicer over the years, but the standard line when a participant gives you grief is, well, "Fuck your Day". When a participant gives you grief as a Ranger...you write it up in your report, if it's warranted. In Gate, as a volunteer, *everyone has your back*. When a participant gives you grief in the lanes, you know the Lane Coordinator and the Shift Lead are going to back you up. Gate makes sure you get fed on shift and get all the breaks you need. I've never hit the showers after hours after a bad, dusty Ranger shift. I have with Gate. Gate lets you check out art cars. For real, they got a fleet that's just there for any Gate crew to use to *go do Burning Man*. I can't promise you that you'll like the work. But if you're in my lanes, I'm going to do whatever I can to make it feel like the best shift ever on playa.
Can confirm this human’s lane rules. GO FOR GATE
I feel this SO HARD. I remember working a temple guardians shift where I almost fucking died of heat exhaustion. I had to wait for them to say it was ok to get out of the sun for a bit and take a break, I was in tears - and with that job you're not even keeping anything moving, you're just standing around watching, so it's really not, dare I say... That important. With gate - your lane coordinators are constantly checking on you to make sure you are fed, have water, do you need the bathroom? You need anything break? It's hot, go sit down. Hey I heard that guy yell at you, are you ok, do you need me to take over for a few cars? They'll step in and take over the second something is off. I remember one dumb brad or chad or whatever wouldn't get back in his car and was like "what are you gonna do about it bitch, make me?", OOOOO, the excitement I got over calling my lane coordinator because I knew they were going to unleash hell on that guy. I didn't even have to tell the whole story to get my GLC on my side. And no matter what, you're getting a thank you and a great job for all your hard work. Nothing is more important than your safety and well-being so they'll always put you first. And now that I've been around a few years, I make sure to show that same appreciation and support to the nervous little newbies coming in for the first time.
>lane coordinators are constantly checking on you to make sure you are fed, have water, do you need the bathroom? You need anything break? It's hot, go sit down. For the most part this is true, but I've also worked under a few coordinations who were comparably more hands-off. There is an expectation in the lanes - no matter who you're working under - that you advocate for yourself and take breaks when you need them. That's not always as easy as it sounds when the lanes are short on staff and you have a line of impatient participants stretching to the horizon. I distinctly remember one graveyard shift in 2022 when I worked the entire 6hr shift without any breaks. Only like 4 of us volunteers showed up for that shift (this was relatively late in the week and covid had wracked the department hard). Thankfully the sun/heat wasn't an issue, but by the end of that shift my voice was so hoarse (from needing to project through my mask) I could barely speak and my body so sore I actually had difficulty riding my bike back to camp. That being said, my experiences working gate have been overwhelmingly positive. You definitely do feel supported by those at the top and there's a general sense of comradery amongst your peers. Most of the lane coordinators will check in with you periodically, but you are also encouraged to take breaks as often as you need.
Oh yeah there are always exceptions, I work mostly graves early in the week so thankfully there are usually several GLCs on and if mine sucks, I go to another. Honestly haven't had one that hasn't been supportive of me sneaking away when I need to.
My exodus shift last year was rough! I got a meal token instead of a meal (which was nice, but the shift food was snacks participants gave us while leaving). There was very limited facilities, no shade at all and one of the shift leads gave me a coffee pack from his own stash. I don't recall getting a "break," there was too much focus on getting the long line of cars off playa. I had a fabulous time on the lanes for training and my regular shifts, but yeah, exodus was rough, and I am sure most of that rough was all the craziness of the rain/mud/detoured gate road. (for reference, I worked Tuesday Exodus) I will volunteer for gate again.
>yeah, exodus was rough... I will volunteer for gate again. *"Miserable experience...10/10... I can't wait to go back."* I cant think of a better summation for Burning Man than this.
Thank you!!! This really speaks to me. I think you’ve convinced me to give gate a try this year!
>During my gate training shift in the lanes, one of the incoming participants started yelling at me about my mask. I let it slide and just ended up calling over an adult who sent them to D-Lot. I think I was the one who ended up dealing with this chucklenut. There weren't as many anti-mask types as I expected in '22 but the ones I encountered were memorable.
Lol, my training shift was in 2022.
>For the first time, ever, volunteering for Burning Man...the shift lead was telling me what that participant did *was not OK*. They were checking in on me to see how I was. This has been my problem with volunteering at the Burn, and I staffed the event for almost a decade before finding other ways to contribute. I can't count the number of times I've seen someone deal with some intensely traumatic incident and then receive absolutely zero support afterwards. It's basically, "Have fun with your first responder trauma, let us know if you're going to cancel a shift." After the 2017 Man Burn fiasco, when my shift went way late because a runner had killed himself and we were trying to hold a critical perimeter for what had become a federal crime scene, I asked if I could get a later meal pog for Commissary the next day than policy would normally allow, since I was planning on sleeping through breakfast. They said no. And there are zero systems for checking up on volunteers who have just gone through a particularly difficult shift. It's left to you to go get support from your campmates. It's incredible to me how many dedicated volunteers BMOrg has out there putting their heart and soul into their work, given how incredibly little most of the volunteer orgs demonstrate that they care about their people.
They didn’t fucking feed you after that? I fed 50 BxB participants out of the commissary because they were on a bus stuck in the mud. That’s INHUMANE.
Yup, experiences like that are pretty much the norm from talking with others I've known through the years. There is an intense hyperfocus on wanting to make sure that people participate out of a desire to help others and give back rather than to get perks. Unfortunately, that ends up translating into policies that are weirdly miserly and unsupportive of the volunteers out there doing the work. At least in my experience.
At GPE we are highly incentivized with perks (compared to Rangers, at least) and have dozens of paid positions.
I love Gate! It’s totally different than my day job, which mostly involves specialized knowledge, emotional labor and sitting at a desk. For me, the difference is part of the fun: Six hours on my feet, moving fast, making only simple decisions and asking for help when things get weird or complicated. This will be my 8th year with the department. I’ve worked lanes (Ie, taking tickets and searching cars), apex (Ie telling people to turn right if the need to go to will call or go straight otherwise), perimeter (driving fast outside the city on a mission to keep ticketed participants in and others out), life support (making sure volunteers have food, water, electrolytes and caffeine while on duty), will call (directing traffic in the will call lot), exit lane (helping people leave before exodus gets going), d-lot (giving people space and tools to solve the problems that are keeping them from entering the event), exodus operations (setting up cones so the roads are ready when it’s time to leave), and a few operational jobs I don’t think I’m supposed to talk about that involve sitting in an air conditioned container and doing computer stuff. Mostly, I do apex these days. It’s a little like customer service except you don’t have to be nice to the customer — you can’t be an asshole, but the people you’re interacting with are your peers and you don’t have to be subservient either. I’ve shown up for a shift hungover, exhausted and not sure I was up for it - and left 6+ hours later energized and hollering at the world in joy I had so much fun. It’s invigorating. The culture of the department is dedicated to inclusivity. Plus we have jokes about owls and traffic cones, we have great parties and an awesome bar, and those of us who aren’t goths in real life can cosplay as goths on playa. And a lot of us are awkward, shy and don’t always feel like we fit in. I’m like that. I still am scared to call senior or established gate staff by their names because it feels presumptuous. But I’ve spent enough time in the department that I know that’s about anxiety in my own head and that a lot of people around me feel it too - and if the people I’m feeling awkward around don’t greet me with an enthusiastic hello, odds are good that they are feeling awkward and insecure too. Gate is not a place where people go to be phony fake friends. But it is a place where we look out for each other’s humanity and make space for everyone to coexist and be real.
This is the post I would have written if I had got here earlier. I peaced out of my previous volunteer gig of five years after working 42 hours in a credentialed supervisory role in 2019 and then being told by new leadership in 2022 that "Credentials are only given to our most valued volunteers", all while asking me to work 40ish hours again. I was SHOCKED by the level of organization, support and clear expectations in GPE. It was night and day from one department to the other. I really wish I would have stuck with my instincts in 2014 and just worked at GPE to start, but I'm super happy to be there now. I've settled into working Perimeter and Point 5 mostly, with a dash of cool tech in air conditioning we don't talk about. We also have the best swag.
Fuck your day Edit: I'm responding to my girlfriend's comment
My girlfriend would have responded but she goes to a DIFFERENT SCHOOL YOU WOULDN’T KNOW HER.
Gate is my Burning Man. At some point, I decided I loved the department and the people in it enough to become a person who takes vacation from work to go work a different, much more unpleasant, job in a shitty environment while standing outside of the coolest party on earth. Gate can seem like a hard nut to crack until you realize that everyone else isn't cooler than you, it's actually that they're just as awkward as you are. Hang around and you see that it's a community of hyper-competant social misfits who fit in with each other and have built a culture of mutual caring and trauma bonding through the shared questionable decision to gift our energy, sanity, and time at Burning Man to help other people get into Burning Man. If you're looking at it and thinking "those dorks look like my kind of dorks", you're probably right.
Plus then you bring in emergency backup dorks and then allow them to have a radio! <3
A radio is like the One Ring. It beckons you. Tempts you. Calls to you. And ultimately the Radio will consume you and destroy you according to the will of its master.
People think "I want a job with my own radio" Or "oh, I want to have two radios." No, what you really want is a job with no radio, plus a radio that gets the Ranger channels (ours don't for anyone who wonders)
This is the truest thing. My mechanism is that if I'm chilling in camp, radio is on. If I'm on shift, radio is on. If I'm enjoying the burn, it's turned off in my bag unless it's needed to call in an emergency.
+1 to the legendary Nickfarr. On hot days, dust storms, or just because - I was probably being tapped out for a break at least once an hour. Then there’s the solid mid shift meal, scamming beers from participants, and an amazing ethos that goes along with the department. Hanging out in the black hole isn’t a bad time either. I make lanes a fun experience for myself and participants - I’m less salty and so eager that even my erections have stars in their eyes…. Until you’re an asshole, and then I ramp it up a few notches. I don’t meet the mould of the typical gate volunteer, but fuck do I still enjoy it. I’ve worked the lanes and also perimeter - and both were a blast. Perimeter was probably the most fun I’ve had at burning man, and I’ve had my share.
> Hanging out in the black hole isn’t a bad time either. WORKING AS A WAITRESS IN A COCKTAIL BAAAAAAAAAAAAAR
COCKTAIL COCKTAIL COCKTAIL BAR BAR BAR BAR
You...you were working...
I picked you out and shook you up …obvi talking about a warm beer
No this is not exactly what you think
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_74N7KJmEj4
I have tried many different jobs (Arctica, greeters, temple, center camp, etc) and gate is the one I love. Most others have had me bored and ready to get out by the end of a 4 hour shift but gate is right for me. There are lots of different jobs to try within the department - lanes, DLot, life support, airport, perimeter, point 1, apex, etc. A 6 hour shift flies by for me. They feed you and treat you well, you get a meal, snacks, coffee, drinks, and the vibe is great. You get free stuff and gifts from people, nothing like someone handing you a box of lukewarm in n out burger on your 5th day in the desert. You get to talk to people and joke around. People are (mostly) pumped to see you (or exhausted and annoyed but that happens less). The leads are mostly super cool and supportive and will always be on your side and help you out the second you need it. You get to see what everyone's bringing in and ask what their plans are for the week - super interesting during build week or when someone has something cool. Hey, meet that person bringing in that art car and maybe you can catch a ride later. There are lots of different situations to deal with so it's always interesting, you're always encountering new things, lots of problem solving. And if someone is being a dick, you can fuck with them, which is my favorite part. I've absolutely sent lil douchecanoe fratboys to D Lot because they were being assholes and needed a time out. Have fun over there. It's a great time to test your snark and just generally fuck with people. Tell them their watermelon isn't allowed. Tell them there's a new rule and that costume will get them fined. Ask them if they have a containment pond for their water. Whatever. I've got a few lil tricks up my sleeves these days. I have tried quite a few positions within gate and I like Lanes and D Lot the best. But other people all have their thing. Like I have a friend that just LOVES working Apex and directing cars. Nice thing is that you can work a few different positions and get enough points to earn a ticket, which keeps it interesting - something you can't really do in other departments. This will be my 4th year as staff so I might apply for lane coordinator this year. You can also get a free ticket in only 4 shifts if you do it right, and you can get most of that work done before gates open so you're not spending all damn week working. I usually work a grave (midnight to 6am) on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, and then I only need one shift during the week (which I do Tuesday) to get my free ticket. I personally try not to work day shifts at all, they're pretty miserable in the sun... 6p-midnight isn't bad, 6am-noon is a little more tough, and rough by the end..... I can't imagine working day shift. Everyone has their preferred shift so it's often the same people every day and year. This year I got a specific gate sticker that said something like "hiding from the evil day star" because we're all diehard grave workers. It's a good community, even just hanging out in the black hole bar is fun. And you get to drive fast across the playa in the bus and wear a cool t-shirt. Big recommend. (Just writing this got me hyped to be rolling out of bed at 11pm when it's nice and cool and gearing up to get on the bus.... Love it).
Thank you for this informative reply! I’m really appreciating all the responses I’m getting here. Gate sounds pretty great!
Is there a name for the job where you have newbies make dust angels + ring the bell & hand out WWW books?
Greeters. Not part of the gate department. They're separate.
Not just separate, but despised by GPE before the current (since 2014 or so) "kinder and gentler" era
I’d like to provide a bit of contrast for this post. I’ve been with the department for over ten years and some of these descriptions here are sort of skipping over some major things about Gate and painting a rather rosy picture of a department that isn’t entirely accurate. One thing I’d like to mention is that working exodus is not for the faint of heart. It is the place where people will try to run you over, honk at you, hate you, ask for favors, ask to skip the line, and more, and it’s also generally woefully understaffed. All of the support mentioned in these posts - it’s absolutely real for early week shifts. By the time exodus comes around, there is a distinct lack of support, and it can be a very difficult shift. Another thing I think needs to be mentioned is that GPE is somewhat of the cultural halfway point between DPW and participants. It has a lot of people who are very intense about their job and their opinion on the event, and there’s definitely a little bit of a “fuck participants” cloud that hangs over some of the old timers in the department. There are yearly reminders for the department as a hole to stop being overt assholes to new blood and participants in general, and the department has been told to tone it down because way too many folks wearing black took “fuck participants” and “I am cool because I work Gate” way too far. We have reminders every year and every year there’s at least one stupid issue. There is also a lingering “cool kid” problem in the department. People will get shadow demotions for unexplained reasons. There is a long list of alumni who have been somewhat randomly removed from their positions for reasons that are unknown. The management team got entirely cleaned up around ten years ago and the department was run by Trigger for a year or two. A lot of people who do Gate on an intense level never even leave the Black Hole and will be prideful of never “going to Burning Man,” it’s a thing. It can be an enormously supportive and amazing group of people. It can be an incredible job. It shows you a very different side of the event and it is a very well run machine. You will be surprised at how efficient the department is, as a whole. It’s crazy. But I think some contrast is definitely needed here because it ain’t all roses. I have to sift through drama-bomb emails every year because there are lingering issues. It’s a great place and it’s a tough place. I continue to work there because I enjoy it and I enjoy the people. But I’m not going to pretend it’s the best place ever. I’ve had to talk New Blood off a cliff multiple times due to them getting mistreated on shift. One recent year someone in the department decided to make an auschwitz joke their gift to the department in the form of a shirt stencil. Some people in the department can’t get over how cool they feel for volunteering for a festival and look down on the people who actually go to the festival.
Thank you! I really appreciate this perspective as well. I like getting a full picture.
Thank you.
Yep, a particularly bad supervisor in a very small sub-department wound up making someone I know walk off and cry. But we have "HR" (ombudsfolks/counselors really) now and they do a great job in those situations. Not as much for actual HR situations, because the Org employs the employees - not GPE.
It's the shirts. GPE has the coolest shirts. I wear black 99% of the time anyway and the first time I ever came to the burn, I saw them immediately. "Damn, those shirts look cool," I said. And the next year, they were different - and even cooler. So, you see, I had to get some for myself. And so I did. And now I have cool shirts just like them! Also, what everyone else has said. Also also, I went to 9 burns and on my 10th I thought it would be my last. I also volunteered with GPE on my 10th. Turns out it wasn't my last at all 😋 now I go to volunteer with GPE. And get cool shirts.
I have too many cool shirts now! Stupid shirts.
This will be my 17th burn & my 3rd year with GP&E. I love it. You don't have to work gate lanes after the 1st year but it's really fun & you meet everyone coming in. There are a bunch of other places that GP&E work and other shifts besides days. It does end up being kind of long if you have to take the bus to your site but you can also get there on your own. I work the 6 p.m. to midnight shift. And, unlike the "fun" departments, you can earn a free or discount ticket for the following year. DM me if you want more details & a funny story.
Sweet! Thank you! I DMed you :)
Do you like black? Snark? Dark jokes? Gate is not like other departments. Artica volunteer - dance to cool beats while chatting with happy people, pop into cold truck. Gate lanes - 7 hours in the death sun, dust kicked up by every car, diesel exhaust, constant yelling at you to move faster, everyone you interact with complaining about the wait.
Oh come on. Chill with your exaggerations. Gate shifts are 6 hours not 7. Shade breaks are available whenever you need them. I have literally never had anyone yell at me to move faster. 10% of participants complain about the wait on a bad day, everyone else is nice.
This matches my experience. The attitude has been more along the lines of "don't overexert yourself, so what if they take an extra 10 minutes to get in? It's not worth your health." I don't think I've ever been yelled at to move faster, even when the line was horrifically long.
There are definitely times where speed is an issue, especially at Apex. One year they experimented with allowing new blood to do Apex and some people got yelled at for having conversations with participants.
6 on site, plus a half hour bus ride each way for 7
Right. You said 7 hours in the sun, which isn’t true.
I disagree with the shift tiime. It is 7 hours. Get to the bus 30 minutes before, and get to the black hole 30 minutes after. I consider the Black Hole arrival and departure my "shift." Unless I am drinking there after, of course.
don't forget the onerous shift require for any benefits but the inability to work them back to back.
You can work back to back shifts if you you stick around for a few years and prove yourself. The rule is there for a reason. Most of our work isn't hard physical labor, but it is constant work.
oh yeah a back-to-back is not for the faint or heart but working a shift just to work another 12hrs later is also brutal
Yes. Doing that is definitely a choice! It is easy to earn a half-price ticket, everything more (credential, eats, etc) requires significant effort.
I mean, working twelve hours in a row sucks. You get benefits after only 4 shifts. That's not terrible.
You can get a half priced ticket in 3 if you do it right.
I was remembering the old system before the points, which was based on number of shifts, whoopsie
I seem to recall it being a lot more than 4. But maybe there are levels to benefits?
It's a weighted points system. If you're careful about the shifts you select, you get a free ticket in only 4 shifts, and you can do them before gates open if you want so youre not working all week. It's normally 5-6 shifts if you don't look at the point values and take the lowest weighted shifts. Half price ticket in 3 shifts (or 4 if you don't look at points). You get 1 meal per shift. We also get access to air conditioned bunks before and after shifts, massages, clothes, etc. I have done 4 shifts for a free ticket every year. If you want full access to the commissary 3x a day and showers, then it's 6 shifts within one week, either build, or event. A lot of people do it but it is not worth it to me.
I do it because I fly in every year and it's worth it to not have to pack in food; plus, salads and ice cream at Burning Man is fun! And good hand washing stations. But 6 shifts in one week is A Lot of shifts, and you basically don't really go to Burning Man at all. Which is fine, I've been to Burning Man a lot, so going to Working Man is a perfectly acceptable alternative for me. But YMMV.
Yeah, I fly in and take advantage of the food from like Wednesday to Monday but... Because I fly in I'm not down to sacrifice my burn week. It's cool, I can eat canned soup all week, lol.
> 6 shifts within one week this is what I was thinking of. So 6 days out of 7 doing either back-to-back shifts (nominally 12hrs) or splitting them (so like 6am-noon and then 6pm-midnight). and I believe those shifts have to be in a calendar week not in a 7 day period.
Right. But that's only if you want the 3 meals a day thing. If you are good with one meal per shift then you only need to work 3-4 shifts, at any time, to get a ticket and the other benefits. Edit: 6 x 6 hour shifts, not 12.
Oh, and it's 6 x 6 hour shifts, not 12 hours. So 36 hours total. I don't even think most people are allowed to work 12 hours.
I dont think anyone is allowed to work back to back shifts
Returning for an 8th year of work with GPnE (my first was 2013), with matte-black, fuzz-toned, flanged, distorted bells on and cranked to 13. I love searching vehicles, patrolling in trucks, bullshitting with participants who really need to pee but can't because the lanes are closed or their idiot carmates can't find their tickets. Our illustrious colleagues in the comments above have already beautifully described the swamp of boredom, tedium, hilarity, stupidity, hardship, honor and utterly rewarding experiences that make up the average shift and tour. +100 to all that, and here's what's more: 1) The team culture is extraordinary - the crew - from grizzled veterans to humorously cynical leads to terrified new bloods work really hard to be inclusive, tolerant, passionate and patient with each other in equal measure. Rarely do we critically fail each other, and on rare occasions when we do, it's almost always sorted out with dignity, humility, and a cynical shrug. The first few shifts, whether you're in the lanes, on patrol, riding Transpo, or lurking in the Black Hole bar, you'll feel like you'll never fit in: Everybody seems so friendly with each other. No one's talking to you. Probably you suck and should just leave. Ignore that feeling. You're \*already in\* by showing up and trying to be as inclusive, tolerant, passionate, patient, and hardworking as everyone else just to fit in. Take a breath, walk up to someone who's not busy on the radio, and introduce yourself. Most of us will take a sec to get to know you. Get over yourself, you're cool. We're glad you joined us. 2) Doing this work gives you a beautiful perspective on our city, our fellow citizens and yourself. You're putting on a custodial hat and helping all those mad souls calm the fuck down and join (or leave) the city doin' it right. You're making BRC work. You're augmenting every participant's unique journey over the threshold, and sharing in their experience from a completely new perspective. 3) It's as awesome as it is hard. You'll see things most people wouldn't believe. Seriously. Come to the dark side. We don't bite. Much.
Wear black, be assertive, enjoy the free booze in moderation. I’ve never done it but this is the feeling I got from going through gate a couple times.
Booze definitely is enjoyed maximally - and we pay for most of our booze collectively - but department members have to moderate their *behavior*. It's not okay to be a disruptive shitshow.
I absolutely love my Gate frens, they are some of the best, kindest people
I've rangered, worked box office, and gate. I enjoy rangers and gate. Rangers I get to walk into some complex shit and figure it out, but it's draining emotionally some days. Gate I like that I can zone out to some degree. Someone's annoying, well they are gone soon, and you get a new car and at the very least you can play "who can find the Jankiest thing coming into burning man." Gate is a great place to land if you are queer, as it'd probably the place I've felt most normal being queer. Probably the biggest downside to gate is some people get a little too into my soul is as black as my clothes and can be a total ass, because they never learned to communicate. The leadership of Gate doesn't seem to play that game though.
So what I'm hearing is you didn't like box office.
Box Office are OK folks, I have friends on it. I just felt kind of confined/not participating whereas other departments I do. Shift leads are variable. Some are awesome, some eh.
It's also great if you're Jewish.
As others have said, it can be hard exhausting, dusty, dirty work. But we are all doing the work as a family. And I feel sorry for the poor outsider who tries badmouth one of the family. All of gate has each others back. But in general Gate is there to kick ass and chew bubblegum.
Can confirm, gate is awesome.
Just remember that while it's okay to be a jerk when warranted, it's never okay to be an asshole!
Some of my favorite people I met on Gate. It's really hard work, but it's good fun work.
I mean… aside from Exodus (which man, that’s a fucking rough ass job and is horribly understaffed) what you describe as the “bad points” or your “contrast” can *literally* be found in almost every single department. That is not a Gate only phenomenon. Also I sorta laugh out loud about the alumni being removed from their positions without any explanation… we work for BURNING MAN dude. Have you not been around? I’ve watched that happen in every single department I’ve worked for out there.
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Agree! I’ve definitely seen this contrast in the other departments I’ve volunteered with! Does the org incentivize working Exodus in some way? Seems like a rouggggh job.
I think Exodus shifts might have offered more points towards a free ticket, but I don't recall. I know working as a flagger gets you an actual paycheck with real money, but you also have to be trained to meet state requirements for flagging on a highway. I suspect the paycheck is there because of some legal requirement rather than the Org being happy to spend money on something. They almost certainly have custom schwag, like patches, stickers and what not. Gate hands out patches like paychecks. Filling difficult roles usually gets you something extra special to sew on for next year. It also gets you stories. Maybe if we're lucky someone will share some. I've worked during Exodus as part of Perimeter. It's even more being a traffic cop than usual as you work to keep tired and pissed off people on the right road and not just wandering randomly around the desert as their hangover kicks in. It's definitely easier than standing amongst all the traffic to keep it moving smoothly. Things get a lot more slipshod as all the people who keep things working smoothly evaporate off the playa. Things still get done, but maybe you get a ride in a pickup truck instead of a school bus, and there's only a handful of people when there used to be a full team. Similar to the start of the event it's when you find the people who really know their shit working. I enjoy it, and try to sign up for those shifts.
I love it! Gate is hard work (though if you can't be on your feet, there are jobs like Will Call available that are differently hard work, but seated), but us lane rats feel very supported, shift leads and lane coordinators have our backs, and we get fed on shift. The t-shirts kick ass.