No wallets at Burning Man

Gifting culture is central to annual temporary city in Nevada desert

BLACK ROCK CITY, Nev. - Tens of thousands of Americans are spending a week virtually free of advertising, marketing and sales of almost anything.

The refreshing change of pace is brought by Burning Man, the event where 70,000 people build a temporary city in the Nevada desert and deliberately don’t sell or buy stuff. Instead, they give it away.

Want some grilled cheese? Easy to find. French toast or crepes? Ditto. Homemade rum from a pirate-themed bar? Aye, matey.

This isn’t bartering, although there’s an expectation that anyone who participates in Burning Man as a whole will provide some sort of playa gifts, which can also include rides on mobile dance platforms, free DJ performances, showers, foot rubs, yoga classes or photos taken by a professional. Trinkets, stickers and patches are also popular, but it’s possible to eat and drink for free the entire time.

“How nice is it to just put your wallet away?” asked DJ Justin Credible, (yes, that’s her name) who is attending her 23rd Burning Man. “In our society, so many people are trying to take. Every other festival, they want to charge you $12 for a cheeseburger. If this festival had vendors, it would be a totally different animal.”

Burning Man is guided by 10 principles, which include gifting, decommodification and communal effort, and that means some camps spend months planning their gifts, from the insect-flavored “awful waffles” from Camp Eat Me to the ever-popular fried bologna sandwiches and bourbon offered at Kentucky Fried Camp.

KFC will give away 80 pounds of bologna during the event, with no money changing hands. Both camps, like others giving away food, spend hours complying with state health codes to help reduce the risk of food poisoning or norovirus outbreaks.

“It’s a lot of work, but it’s a lot of fun,” said Kristy Headley, one of Camp Eat Me’s leaders.

To be sure, participating in Burning Man generally requires vast consumerism: Participants jam big-box stores in Reno for days before the event begins, stocking up on water, food, gas and camping equipment.

And there are exceptions at the event, including sales of ice and coffee to participants.

TREVOR HUGHES/USA TODAY NETWORK A Burning Man participant who would give her name only as Too Cute, 42, eats a piece of sushi made for her by a stranger. “Gifting,” the giving of food and other items without expectation of repayment, is a major tenet of Burning Man.