[Jason]

BIMMERPOST NEWS

BMW Rocks the Desert Launches at Thermal This Weekend for Desert Trip Music Festival

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Event combines music, art, food, refreshments and driving in a unique experience for attendees to the Coachella Valley’s iconic music festival.

Thermal, CA – October 4, 2016… During the opening weekend of the Coachella Valley’s greatest music festival, the Desert Trip Festival, the BMW Performance Center West will offer festival attendees the kind of unique experience that can only be presented by The Ultimate Driving Experience. On Saturday, October 8 and Sunday, October 9 the grounds of the BMW Performance Center West in Thermal will be transformed for the first BMW Rocks the Desert. Attendees will receive a unique experience which combines music, dining, shopping and – of course – driving. Four sessions will be offered over the weekend, with a shuttle service to and from the festival.

When not behind the wheel, guests can enjoy live music and a DJ, powered by Sicky eyewear and the Modernica Lounge. The Urban Art Group CAL gallery will unveil photos featuring performers from Desert Trip by Iconic Images photographer Terry O’Neill, who has photographed numerous music legends including The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. They will also enjoy selected pop-up shops & beauty bar, while Los Angeles based artist, Spencer “MAR” Guilburt will be painting abstract art onto a BMW vehicle.

When not behind the wheel, guests can enjoy a dynamic onsite activation powered by Sicky eyewear, the Modernica mid-century art lounge, LULU eclectic tapas menu, Palm Springs Life photo station, Babe’s brewery gardens, desert recovery area with juices and beauty bar. The Urban Art Group CAL gallery will unveil unseen chosen photos featuring performers from Desert Trip by Iconic Images legendary photographer Terry O’Neill, who has photographed numerous music legends including The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. Los Angeles based artist, Spencer “MAR” Guilburt will be painting abstract art onto a BMW M4 vehicle.

The grounds of The Thermal Club is ideally located next to the Empire Polo Field and next to exclusive facility ROSS AVIATION, where guest will be transported to the track from the moment they land their jets at hanger. BMW will provide shuttles to the festival grounds.

To feed the competitive spirit, driving events conducted by the BMW Performance Center West driving instructors include:

Rat Race: Two drivers compete against each other to catch the other driver.
Drag Race: Two drivers go head-to-head in an old-fashioned drag race.
Timed Runs: Individual drivers try to beat their best time on a handling course that includes slaloms, chicane complex turns, and an end-of-race stop box.
Guests will also have the opportunity to test drive the BMW i8 plug-in hybrid sports car, one of the most innovative and eye-catching cars on the road.

A highlight of any BMW driving event are the hot laps where BMW Performance Center driving instructors take passengers for a heart-pounding, tire smoking ride of a lifetime.

This truly unique experience can be had for just $199. A non-driving guest can join to take advantage of all the other opportunities for a combined price of $250. Festival goers can reserve their spot by calling 888-345-4269 or visiting www.bmwpcxmar.com. Attendees are encouraged to share their experience on Twitter and Instagram with the hashtags #BMWRockstheDesert, #thismeansmar and #urbanartGRP.

[M3 Number 86]

Wonder if the crowd will be drunk and high too lol

[rr006rbc]

LOL I could see this becoming disastrous coming from someone that's been to 4. Lots of Coachella folk can barely afford the $350 GA tickets lets alone this.

[doccyber]

Not sure how good of an idea this is?!

[MachinesWithSouls]

I'll be going.

[RSXDC5]

Shouldnt this event come right before coachella would start?

[CrazyWitness]

Will be there...

[swanlake]

Looks like someone played Forza Horizon for a couple hours and decided to make it reality. I like it.

[raysspl]

Great marketing play here

[BEMR]

I'm at the 10;30 session, should be fun.

[timmerk]

This actually doesn't have anything to do with the Coachella music festival that but the Desert Trip Music Festival. The communication from BMW is confusing and implies we all know which music festival they are referring to.

http://deserttrip.com

[rich8102]

Sounds like a blast!!! Would love to be there

[Dking078]

I'm going. It's their own little thing. They have their own performances and attractions going on.

Hopefully it'll be fun! I'll be there taking pics/driving.

[VTECaddict]

Originally Posted by timmerk

This actually doesn't have anything to do with the Coachella music festival that but the Desert Trip Music Festival. The communication from BMW is confusing and implies we all know which music festival they are referring to.

http://deserttrip.com

Yeah I don't know why they are referring to it as Coachella Valley's greatest music festival. That title belongs to the main Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in the spring. I think BMW is confused since the Coachella Valley/Empire Polo Club hosts several music festivals.

Desert Trip is a new festival in it's first year and aimed at the baby boomer generation...the bands and fans that have aged out of the regular Coachella festival.

[pruettfan]

I just did the 2 day M School at Thermal and was totally impressed. Great track, staff and of course cars. This looks like an inexpensive way to get a little sample of what they have to offer.

[Dking078]

Gotta say, this was actually VERY fun.

Skid pad was fun with no DSC. [340i's]
Drags were okay, the line was a bit long at times. [X6M / M4 / M5]
Auto-X was fun on a bun! Times ranged from the high 20's to low 30's (29.7 here ) [M3]
Hot lap was very fun, maybe not as crazy as the one at bimmerfest, but great nonetheless. [M3]
i8 Drives were a nice experience to get a feel for hybrid drive train, in addition to 2 laps on the south palm circuit! (80 mph limit though)

Definitely would do again. Lunch was complimentary too!

There was however, a bit of a cursed Yas Marina M3. It had a few instances of extreme dirt contact on the Auto-x.

[MachinesWithSouls]

This ended up being a lot of fun! I wrote an article on the event in BMW magazine if anyone is interested:

http://www.bmwmagazine.com/us/en/node/2650