sparkle pony

plural sparkle ponies

1. derogatoryslangBurning ManA participant who arrives unprepared for harsh desert survival and relies on campmates or others for basic needs like food, water, and shelter while focusing mainly on flashy outfits.

   [...] it is hard, grueling work in 100 degree plus days through dust storms and the sense of building this, then having the event actually start, can make you somewhat jaded when the gates open and our friends the Sparkle Ponies [...]

   2012, Moze, “All Good Things to an End Must Come”, in The Burning Man Journal

   3 more examples

   "Sparkle Ponyism" is what broke me. I tried to contribute to the burn... because I believe that is much of what a burn is about. Not because of fear of some label. After I arrived it seemed like there was a continual mantra chanting around me: "Don't be a Sparkle Pony.' It was clear to me that it wasn't enough not to be a Sparkle Pony. I could not APPEAR to be a Sparkle Pony to anyone. I specifically came because the tenant of radical inclusion.

   2014, Unattributed, “What is a Sparkle Pony?”, in Mosaic Experiment

   Sparkle Ponies run around trying to look cute (but usually look desperate), trying to get attention from their costumes and their looks, while doing nothing to contribute to community or build a better world. [...] But to be fair, I feel a little sorry for Sparkle Ponies. They’re just immature, clueless and have no idea how to enjoy the emotional benefits and personal growth that come from building community, serving others, acting in others’ best interests or nurturing their fellow human beings.

   2016, Michael Cooper, Queerburners

   More than any other component of the Burning Man ecosystem, sparkle ponies understand that Burning Man is a gift-based economy and expect everything at Burning Man to be gifted to them. [...] Sparkle ponies exponentially increased in number and entitlement between 2018 and 2022 when the volume of dry powder in venture capital exploded and tech valuations became hilarious. [...] most sparkle ponies will be un-camped this year at Burning Man.

   2023, Quinn Larrabee, The Sparkle Pony Recession

plural Sparkle Ponies

1. Alternative letter-case form of sparkle pony.