
Duct Tape beauty at the Paping Soapbox Derby - Near the Brooklyn Heights Promenade. I asked this guy if there was a prize for the ugliest racer, he said no, but there is one for the most artistic.
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Spills, and thrills but no chills. It was a hot, humid, drizzly day.
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Bug fix - A lot of the race cars needed repairs after every run down the hill. And there were many runs down the hill. They raced round-robin style two at a time, so each vehicle (if it survived) went down the hill at least a dozen times. This “birch beetle” won most artistic.
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The Cabinet of Death took a couple of tumbles. No injuries happened as far as I know. View Large

Good thing the guy on the little red wagon was well armored, he even had a spine protector. The other one was able to replace the bike wheel, and according to one of the folks at Paping: “Morgan in his refrigerator door/bike parts mobile was in a huge lead when the cops came and threatened to throw us all in the “paddy wagon”. We gave the trophy to him.”
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The sole function of the guy in the back is to brake, by standing on a piece of wood that drags against the pavement. Good thing he never fell off.
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Continued reading >
Here’s the plan: We meet in Minneapolis in late July with sections of our raft in tow. We piece together our pontoons and fill them with salvaged blocks of foam. We make it beautiful and tie on anything that floats, adding it to our junk armada, our anarchist county fair, our fools ark. Our precious cargo is everything we hold dear: pieces and parts of the culture we are already creating. Our zines and puppets, sewing projects and poster campaigns. Mutant bicycles and punk rock marching bands. Plus our thoughts and dreams and irrepressible energy.Together we float down the Mississippi river, as far as we can—all the way to St. Louis—anchoring here and there to perform, give workshops, and create the big huge stinking spectacle we wished would have stopped in our hometowns. And at each place we invite anyone to contribute performances or workshops of their own.
Our flotilla is built green with precycled materials, rainwater collection, solar ovens, and steam calliopes. If we make it right everything will run on sunshine and french fry grease. We want a floating garden, a bicycle-powered sound system, and wind-powered lights. We want to steal hippie technology from the hippies.
We are a small group of people with extensive experience making big insane projects. In the past we have taken 20-person bands to Mexico, pulled off town square-sized guerrilla theater in Berlin, and fed hundreds of people with garbage and love. We know this idea is ridiculous and impossible. That’s why we’re obsessed with it.
Via Workhorse Visuals
Wednesday, July 5th, 2006

From a loft roof in Williamsburg.
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From a local showman.
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Wednesday, July 5th, 2006

The City Reliquary and the Brooklyn Civic Riders held the 2nd Annual Bicycle Fetish Day on July 1st 2006 from noon until 5 PM. The festival was held on Havemeyer between Grand & Metropolitan. Contests included: Best in Show, Best Vintage, Best Hand-made, Best Chopper, Best Small Wheel (includeds foldable bikes), Wheelies, BMX tricks, Track bike tricks, Heaviest Bike, Ugliest Bike, and more…
cityreliquary.org/events/archives/cat_bicycle_fetish_day_…
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It held a sound system.
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Big pumping beats.
Full size for your reading pleasure.

Pedal power makes a tasty smoothie.
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Tall bike.
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Heavy Creatures, a rock band at Bicycle Fetish.
profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile…
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Continued reading >
Sunday, January 29th, 2006

It’s the year of the dog. Lion Dancers in front of the famous Wo Hop’s restaurant on Mott Street. View Large
Mott Street, Chinatown, Manhattan. View Large
In 1997, New York City’s Mayor Giuliani banned firecrackers for the Chinese New Year, without any understanding of their ritual necessity. This centralized display in Chatham Square is a pale shadow of the noisy chaos surrounding the lion dancers prior to ‘97. Walking anywhere in Chinatown during the New Year’s celebration back then, you were likely to be dodging firecrackers at your feet. These days compressed air confetti cannons supply the closest thing to chaos you will find.
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Lin Zexu Statue in Chatham Square designed by artist, T.C. Ho. The plaque says “Pioneer in the war against drugs.”“In November 1997, Chinatown welcomed the addition of a new statue memorializing Lin Zexu, a Qing dynasty commissioner celebrated for his efforts in the Opium War. The height of Lin’s career peaked after he managed to successfully confiscate and destroy three million pounds of raw opium from European drug lords.” View Large
Tuesday, December 20th, 2005
The friendly waitress at Katz’s took my camera from me and said " Let me take your picture with your friends." I complied even though I’d never met any of these folks before in my life. View Large

Screwdolf the illegitimate son of Santa and Rudolf. He had an elaborate backstory for his creation involving Mrs. Claus being away and leaving Santa to his devices. View Large
Second Avenue, East Village. One of the requirements of a good Santa is an unlimited Metrocard. It’s a good thing the strike didn’t happen last Friday as was threatened. The Santa Stumble was organized by a veteran of Santacon from way back, when it flew under the radar, and did not attract 500 Santas and media coverage, as did the previous weeks Santacon in NYC.View Large
At the Scientology booth in the 34th Street subway station. View Large
More of my photos and story of the Santa Stumble Continued reading >