Every Day Adventurers

Hello friends and fellow longtailers. We’re looking forward to Supermarket Street Sweep this December 5th, at high noon, and want to get a Team of Xtracycle riders together. While you can bust your ass compete for speed and cargo hauled, we had a blast just collecting food for San Francisco area Food Banks and goofing off on our bicycles.

That being said, we do have a goal, as Team Xtracycle the Haul-aholics, to haul 1 TON of food for the cause. Obviously, we want more than 10 Xtracyclers to participate (10 riders x 200lbs = 2,000lbs hauled, the more we have riding with us the more energy we’ll have to party after wards), so pass along the word and come out for this fun charity event.

Here are some photos here and here from last year’s ride, complete with Gary Fisher cameos. :)

UPDATE Would be nice to actually have something to act on, no? So, those wanting to go grocery store stampeding with the Haul-aholics for Supermarket Street Sweep can email rick[at]xtracycle[dot]com . But the gist is, meet up at Cupid’s Span in San Francisco (hop off BART at Embarcadero, ride toward the piers and make a right). You’ll see a large bow and arrow sculpture. Thinking a good meet-up time is around 11AM. Last year they ran out of the entry gift, so arrive early if you’re into those sorts of things.

We’ll encounter some hills, nothing too killer if I recall correctly, but get your stretch on. The organizers recommend bringing $15-30 to purchase the food items (to reach our goal this number may need to increase a tad), but you can always buy more to donate. Looking forward to it!

UPDATE

Team Haul-aholic Sign-up Form

Welcome Bay Area Xtracyclers! We’re gearing up to participate (for fun only since we’re sponsoring the event and can’t win anything) in the SF Alleycat Supermarket Street Sweep 2009, December 5th @ high noon! It’s a fun event for charity where we cyclists pedal around to various markets in SF and buy items designated on the race list.

We want to get a team of Xtracyclists who want to pedal at a reasonable pace and haul, collectively, 1 ton of food. So, brushing off the math synapsis, that’s 200 lbs x 10 riders, or 100 lbs x 20 riders. Expect to spend ~$20-40 on food for the event. The race costs nothing to enter, so keep your hemmin’ and hawin’ to a minimum, this is about HAULIN’! So, join the Haul-aholics and have a blast supporting those in need this holiday season. Ride on!

PS We’ll let other, short bikes, come play with us so invite your amigos, sig-others and such to help-a-haul!

Howdy – just a quick note to say that Xtracycle will be at the Bike Love Swap put on in conjunction with WOBO this Sunday 9-13-09 from 8am to 2pm.

We got stuff to sell! Come buy it!

For instance…
5 complete Free Radical Kits with Longtail Kits in really ugly boxes – $299! These have slight blemishes but come with all the parts to get your long bike rolling on the cheap. Two 700C models and three 26″ at this price.

Sparkly-ass RED Free Radical Kits – includes Longtail kit with custom painted V racks! $399 – two at this price.

Incredibly well organized pile of wheels, tires, fenders, Xtracycle accessories and more! Cheap!

Finally, we have a few Big Dummy framesets in sizes 20″ and 22″ for the low low price of $825! These have slight blemishes from hanging around the shop for too long.

Cash only, please. Only selling these items at the swap meet. Hope to see you SF Bay Area XC riders (or XC curious riders) out there!

Oh, did I mention the donuts and coffee? Worth the price of admission (uh, free) by itself.

Hanging out in Japan this weekend? Join our Japanase distributor for a weekend filled of Longtail partying.

Our friends and Motocross International, are hosting a test ride party and picnic featuring Surly’s Big Dummy and Xtracycle’s FreeRadical as well as the Radish longtail.  We sure wish we could ride with Ross as he hangs with our East Coast amigos!

We landed in Quincy, CA late Thursday night – after a flat tire just as we edged out of the Bay Area (changed in under eight minutes – go team!) and a drawn out Thai dinner in Marysville that left us burping curry and feeling sleepy. Two hours later Ross was wiped from keeping his eyes glued on the windy mountain road, I was simply giddy to be suddenly on a work vacation, and Rick was, as usual, shooting photos.

Outside the Airstream, folks picked guitars and sang folk songs under the strange light of the adjacent sawmill – the giant piles of lumber misting into the night…something about keeping the wood wet so it doesn’t crack someone said. I thought the scene was just plain creepy – a perfect backdrop for a scary movie. But the guy playing the Melodian with incredible finesse made the whole horror movie notion less plausible – I returned to feeling giddy with each song perfectly accompanied by the master Melodianeer.

Our camp spot was primo – right on the corner, in the more bourgeois RV camping zone, sure to yield great foot traffic and ridiculously close to the main music stage. Truly, a fantastic spot to pop out the Airstream porch and break into the 8 lbs of organic raspberries we scored at Costco .

Up went the Xtracycle tent, out came the Radishes, and quickly they were plucked up by High Sierra staff ready to release their golf carts in the name of a more social, undeniably more sexy mode of transport. Box office administrators, merchandise divas, well caffeinated paramedics, hipster artist liasons came one by one to meet their steed.

Rick quickly walked them through the essentials of Xtracycling – how to carry people (slide forward for better control) and stuff (big stuff, little stuff, long stuff, heavy stuff). And off they went, diminishing our fleet and leaving us strangely without much “work” to do after all.

There is truly nothing like the moment when you realize that the work that is calling you to task involves riding out into the night with a DeWalt portable job-site stereo strapped to the back of your bike, a cowboy hat on your head, a bottle of tequila in your FreeLoaders and an available seat on the back of your Radish.  Except perhaps the moment right after when you realize that you have four more days of “work” to go.

When I wasn’t cavorting by bike, I spent a good deal of time just sitting in my orange Alite chair, catching up on what is about 30 years of too few evenings spent “stooping” (sitting on one’s porch, people watching, falling into conversation, sharing food or drink with a stranger). Passers by were curious about the bikes, wishing they could borrow them, rent them, buy them. I realized we could stand to bring 3 times as many bikes as we did next year, but for now, Xtracycle was a limited resource, a finite source of human powered fun in this quaint mountain town.

Welcome to our High Sierra Music Festival 2009 blog recap. Each of our four, intrepid co-workers who attended the festival will share with you our insights, experiences and strenuous moments. Enjoy!

My heart burst this weekend, into a thousand sparkles of light. Never before have I encountered such a wonderful collision of natural beauty, glorious humanity and perfect escape.

Two weeks ago, Peter and Andrea, with a little help from the rest of the crew, started stripping, cutting, tearing, unscrewing, sanding and painting the ’77 Airstream that was parked in our lot (a gift from Ross’ grandfather). Our dream was to convert a cramped living space into a spacious traveling showcase for our company, and to transport our fleet of Radishes, known as the Red Hot Roots, to festivals for event organizers to green their event and learn more about Xtracycle longtails.

As usual with our small company, everything was down to the wire. Our initial departure time was slated for 10AM on Wednesday. That expectation started to crumble as soon as our intern, Nathan, texted to inform me the night before that he crashed in the Port of Oakland alley cat severely damaging his face and totaling his ride. With him being down and out, I had to BART over to SF to pick up our Red Hot Roots Tour shirts Wednesday morning. Which is always fun considering that bikes are not allowed until 8:45AM.

I snagged the shirts (they are sexy, and instead of Plastisol we used a water based ink for a soft feel – Jeff of the Loin hooked us up!), sprinted back to BART and rolled into work right around 10AM, thinking we’d be ready to roll. Turns out the universe said, “Whoa, Nelly,” and made us tackle a variety of problems and finaglings before finally leaving at 6PM. I’ll leave Ross and Nate to detail their U-Haul experiences.

With our fleet stowed safely in the “belly of the whale” (thanks Gary Fisher), we were finally on the road. Traffic was in full effect on 580N, but we were stoked just to have the bay breeze rushing in the cab. Cherries and raspberries filled our famished bellies as we headed north.

Just as we crossed the Richmond-San Mateo Bridge, our high-tech U-Haul F150 alerted us to low tire pressure. A quick scan out the window revealed a hissing sound out of the front tire. We pulled over, and in 5-minutes flat (pun intended) managed to drop the spare, wrench off the flat and get back on the road. Quite possibly one of the easiest, most fun flats ever. Oh, and it helps to have three mechanically inclined people to make it easier.

Knowing that our delayed departure had already shifted our plans, we took a leisurely approach for the rest of the drive. Glorious weather graced us the entire way, we even encountered a swarm of dragonflies between a massive apricot grove just as the sun was setting.

A wonderful Thai restaurant re-lit their stoves for us despite the fact that we arrived past closing time. We gorged ourselves on some yummy red and green curry while chilling in the Airstream.

Back on the road, Ross easily navigated the twisty turns leading to Quincy. Despite traveling in the evening, the three-quarters waxing moon helped sprinkle light on the deep Yuba river gorge below. Nate was right, this ride does make you feel like you’re on a human scale train set.

Once in Quincy, we started seeing festival direction signs. This is where we learned one of our biggest lessons: persons in yellow (PIY) jackets are given strict orders not to believe, or help you, in any way. They are only there to point, say, “No,” and insert you back into a line until someone else with official status can point you in the correct way. We drove around asking PIYs where sponsors line up and arrive. Finally, after about four different PIYs, we ended up at the entrance of the Will Call lane, but not after one dude tried to scalp $20 from us for “allowing us to park in line.” Nate, still on his A-game despite the long day and late night, asked for a receipt, which threw a wrench in the spokes of the scammer. We got our Hamilton back and motored on through the grass, Airstream in tow.

Finally, a PIY with some power/knowledge, named Sasquatch (small feet though…), guided us to the front of the line. Since it was past 12AM, the Will Call box office was closed. Content with this information and position in line, we brushed teeth and claimed a bed in the bala de plata.

6AM rolls around with a friendly knock from Sasquatch alerting us that we need to be in the cab of the U-Haul, despite the fact that they won’t let anyone in until 8AM. So, we wrench ourselves up from slumber, letting Nate sleep, thinking we could handle it between Ross and I. A fun dance ensues between the car, some PIYs and the Will Call box office (a line I find out I’m not supposed to be in or cross). 7AM rolls around with still no clue as to what’s going on, other cars are getting their tickets and parking passes, despite us being first in our line. Time to wake Nate. He rises, cellphone and ID in hand and pursues a person with fanny-pack (PWF). This seems to be the ticket since dude walks up to the Will Call line and returns with our tickets and pass, but no instructions on where to go.

Joy! We have the tickets and decide to at least start moving since it’s harder to tell a F150 and 31′ Airstream to turn around. Our new strategy, ask every PIY where sponsors might setup. Tim, a fairly knowledgeable-seeming PIY, suggests that we get in the back of the line of RVs waiting to get into the RV camping spot. This seems foolish, and thankfully Nate was finally able to ring Casey, on of our points-of-contact for the festival. He gave us the lowdown, pointed us to Gate 3 and said ignore everyone and head over there. Thanks Casey, you saved us hours of frustration.

With our newly charged conviction, we confidently uttered the words, “We’re heading to Gate 3,” to our PIY friends who seemed relieved to have this silver behemoth leave their territory. At Gate 3, a helpful Jeff led us into the RV grounds, we were the first ones in and were allowed to snag the spot of choice.

We eyed up a corner under some gorgeous pines to set up shop. With a few turns and twists by Ross, we got the Airstream level and parallel to the dirt path.

The three of us took charge in setting up camp. Our EZ-up tent secured the corner and became our bike repair space. We unloaded the Red Hot Roots fleet and I started to do a final quality check on them before our virgin riders embarked on their maiden voyages.

From the moment we started setting up camp, we made friends with those around us and those passing by. The weather, a glorious 85° and calm, helped the happy feelings stick a little bit more. Hal showed us his shaft-drive bicycle that he picked up from his local Salvation Army store. Lucinda allowed us to set up our tarp covers using her pole system, and Carl, Jeff and the gang offered us to chill at their pad whenever. This same thread of smiling, happy, friendly people followed us throughout the festival.

Casey was the first to take off on a Red Hot Roots Radish. Being the first to show up, and the one to help us out of our PIY funk, I gave him #1. Turns out, Casey went to school with my best friend, Luke, so that mutual connection was an added bonus to the immediate friendship that sparked between us. Dave, the High Sierra organizer, swung by to pick up his Radish. He was stoked to be free of his golf cart and its noise and girth. From there, various other event heads visited our booth to learn more about our longtail cargo bicycles and how much fun they can be. Sarah, from Merchandise, took off on one; Bindu, from Artist Liaisons, rolled off on a Passenger Kit outfitted Radish and later sent for another one to bolster their crew.

With the majority of the fleet out and about, Ross, Nate and I took off to explore the festival grounds and see just what was in store for us…. And with that, I leave the story telling to continue with them and Lauren. Happy trails!