Local couple says 'I do' at Burning Man

The Union reporter Jill Bauerle has been posting her blogs about Burning Man in Nevada at www.theunion.com/blogs under the name “virginburner” — it’s her first time at the event. Here is a recent posting:

As a dust storm blew in, the wedding party tightened their goggles and waited for the bride to emerge from her trailer.

Mandy Farnsworth and Nick Lucchese weren’t going to let a white dust storm spoil their wedding plans at the Burning Man festival in the northern Nevada desert on Thursday. As playa dust whipped the flaps of the shade tent covering a geodesic dome, the couple said their vows.

A group of 50 family members and friends closed in a circle around the Nevada City couple, forming another layer of protection against the wind.

“You realize how much people love you by enduring anything,” said Farnsworth, who wore a repurposed white prom dress. In the spirit of Burning Man, where costumes are the norm, the groom wore a tiger suit and painted whiskers on his face.

The families of the bride and groom traveled to the Burning Man event especially for the wedding from as far away as Michigan.

Some relatives had never attended the Burning Man counterculture festival before. First-time or virgin burners traditionally undergo an initiation at the front gate. The father of the bride reported that his greeter required him to hug a large bell while she rang it with a piece of rebar. Others were asked to roll around in the playa dust.

Originally the couple had planned to get married out on the playa, on the perimeter of an ancient lake bed where Black Rock City rises out of the dust each year. During the 8-day festival, the temporary population swells to about 40,000.

Farnsworth had built an art installation called “Central Park” complete with artificial turf, park bench and a center aisle that her father, theoretically, would walk her down.
But when winds picked up, Farnsworth and Lucchese changed plans. The wedding party gathered at the couple’s camp, where many of the guests were camping in tents and trailers around the perimeter of a geodesic dome.

During the wedding, officiator Greg Jonston commended the couple for their bravery “for bringing us all here to this wonderful place.”

Two hours before the wedding, family members of the bride and groom got stuck in a whiteout while they were taking a tour of art installations on the playa.

Without goggles or dust masks, the family had to make their way back to camp, located about a mile away.

They returned breathless, their faces covered in dust, looking somewhat shell-shocked.

After retreating to their motor homes they emerged refreshed, dressed in finery and sparkling goggles.

In her flowing white gown, Farnsworth shrugged off the change of venue.
“Sometimes you just gotta roll with it,” she said.

ooo

To contact Jill Bauerle, e-mail jillb@theunion.com or call 477-4219.