Well, we failed pretty badly.
The friction methods appear horrendously difficult to actually implement. We were unable to produce an ember with an electric drill, using a dry pine dowel and board.
What's our next plan? Someone at the meetup suggested making a lens to focus the sunlight out of clear ice. I think we might have a shot at getting that to work, though we'd have to freeze the ice ourselves.
I think the main issue was that, doing this in an urban setting, we didn't have access to natural wood; the wood we brought was sanded, probably pressure-treated, and (while the packaging didn't say anything about that) possibly also treated with chemicals to make it hard to burn. It was also humid (it had just rained) and windy.
There are upcoming Less Wrong meetups in:
Cities with regularly scheduled meetups: New York, Berkeley, Mountain View, Cambridge, MA, Toronto, Seattle, San Francisco, Irvine.
If you'd like to talk with other LW-ers face to face, and there is no meetup in your area, consider starting your own meetup; it's easy (more resources here). Check one out, stretch your rationality skills, and have fun!
To reduce front page clutter, the new plan is for meetups to be initially posted in the Discussion section, and for me to make a promoted post "upcoming meetups" post every Friday that links to every meet-up that has been planned for the next two weeks. [HT: Carl Shulman.] Please let me know if I omit your meetup.
Please note that for people to see your meetup announcement, you should post your meetup before the Friday before your meetup!