Just got back from "TRIKE!TRIKE!" in Phoenix. "TRIKE!TRIKE", is an Arizona state Bicycle collective convergence. We took part in some productive workshops dealing with oppression awareness, community building and consensus decision making. We also got to go on an amazing scavenger hunt that took us around Tempe. Here are some pics.

I finished a frame of my own, it is based on a 1898 Lamplighter. I filleted all the joints and made the dropouts myself. I have ridden it a handful of times and it is really fun. The bike stands a little shorter than 1898 model, but it is still taller than any other tall bicycles I have built.

Here is the giraffe, my buddy ed made it, I got to ride it. He makes many many great things and you should check out his art. Chosen medium ------> the bicycle

Another quick note. . . .

Awhile ago when I was deciding I wanted to do this I was up in Seattle and was lucky enough to check out the Bikery, if you have the chance pop in and see this great project.

http://www.thebikery.org/

OK, so this is the first little note that I am writing on my new blog. At the moment I am still here in Tucson Arizona, I am spending a lot of my time at BICAS (http://www.bicas.org/) and getting geared up for this book project. At first I was only going to be driving to locations to take pictures. I then realized how lame it was to be documenting a culture that is trying to counteract the dominance of the automobile from my truck. Then I was thinking how it also would be difficult to be carrying around Expensive digital equipment and sleeping by the roadside. So I came to a compromise. I will bring my bike with me on my truck. I will go to a location set up camp and use that location as a hub to travel out from for a small group of mini bicycle tours. If a location is incredibly far I will drive to it and set up camp there.