Walt and Julie's Burning Man 1999

We arrived before the Man was raised, and while we were wondering what was wrong, why the Man wasn't up, the fire dancers still performed.
Finally the Man comes into view. Horizontally.
The Man was mostly up, but the neon was only half working.
I had what should have been a good spot, except that the people in the front row insisted on standing.
Everyone sits down. Except me. I fall awkwardly onto the camera tripod of the guy on my right.
Huh? The arms aren't up, there hasn't been any lighting ceremony, and there are people all over the place. This has got to be wrong.
The Man ignites prematurely, and I'm stuck peeking between people's heads. Can't get up, can't get down, can't move.
Fireworks erupt in huge clouds of smoke.
Wow. Even through the narrow crack between these heads, it's still incredible.
Sparks shoot from the approximate vicinity of the Man's crotch.
Is that the Man? Is he still standing?
It seemed every time I tried to get a picture, someone moved and I had to shift into yet another painful position, blurring the picture.
The smoke is starting to clear...
Yes! He's still standing!
I think I fell again here.
Good silhouette of someone's ear.
After all that, the Man still stands.

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All original material on these pages is ©1999 by Julie Ann Maahs and Walter T. Rhoads.