Don’t Panic – Chapter one for the newer burners out there…
What is a Paddock / Playa name? How do you get one? And who cares anyway?
A Paddock or Playa name is a respectful nickname given to you by your friends and our community, often based on something you did. It may be epic stupidity, epic efforts, or even just a small amount of epicness. If you don’t like it, you can ignore it, having one is not important, not having one doesn’t make you a lesser person.
Think of the Paddock name as just another label – and you are so much more than a label. Be yourself, you are unique.
So how do Paddock names come about?
I became known as Lumos because I sometimes offer spiritual enlightenment (lol… I sneak it in whenever I can), I have some of the biggest and brightest fire props around and I used to organise solar lighting all across the KB paddock. When people first called me Lumos, I liked it so I answered to it, and it stuck. When I hear “Lumos Lumos come back for Miss Unicorn” I know the message is for me and who wants me. There are lots of Petes and Peters on the Paddock but only one Lumos.
My friend Puppy Hammer picked that name because that is his favourite fire prop. Our mate Mango Man was a local when the event was based in Mangakino and one afternoon he was clowning around in a yellow raincoat being superman, so we gave him the name and he chose to answer to it.
One year my friend Cookie baked many hundreds of cookies to give away during the event so she was offered the name. Back on the old site one year we were clearing up after the event and had a wooden structure to demolish, our mate got his Nissan and just drove through it, and Shack Attack was born.
One thing to bear in mind is that if you become a Ranger, you will need a clear two-syllable name that is unique and can be heard well on the radio. That can be your Paddock name, your real name, or some other call-sign you made up for the event. Sometimes, those stick and become your Paddock name!
Last piece of advice…..
Go forth, live your life and do good stuff (of no specific size) when you can. That matters so much more than what you are called!
– Lumos
