Welcome

Hello and welcome to my blog. This will serve as an online mostly visual documentation of my experiences in Ireland. I will attempt to update it daily with new photos and some commentary indicating what those photos depict. I hope you enjoy, and watch it daily!!

Andy Tuba from Baton Rouge, LA

New School Year

School started last week, Monday! I am quite excited to be beginning a new school year. This, my second year of the DMA program, will prove to be my most challenging and (hopefully) productive yet. I worry that I will have to shed a lot of my social activities in order to fully achieve my maximum productivity and efficiency, but that may be what needs to be done.

On an unrelated note, I still have the blue Raleigh Grand Prix for sale. I am willing to separate the frame from the wheels, so if anyone wants a set of blue fixie wheels, hit me up. $400 for frame and wheels. $225 for frame alone, $ 190 for wheels alone.

I am also selling my 1969 Raleigh Professional. There were 500 of these made in 1969. It is hand painted and in beautiful condition. It comes with Campy components an a full replacement set of all components. Asking $1500 for the lot.

If  you are interested in any of this stuff, let me know.

Update!!!

So it has been a while.

Haven't sold the car yet due to continuing pain in my knee. I hesitate to sell a car when my main mode of transportation involves increased usage of a joint that gives me trouble already... I have appointments to get it looked it.

Haven't sold the 58cm Raleigh yet either. SOMEONE BUY IT!!!

Also for sale: Solid wood dresser that I have owned since I was 4. Asking $65. 3 drawers, 3.5 feet or so tall, 4.5 feet wide maybe? nice dresser. I wish I could keep it, but I have revamped my room and all my current furniture is black.

Bike shop work rules, except it keeps me from being productive at tuba.

I want to buy a Cervelo RS though.....................................

ISIS

This shot is from The second to last ISIS show in Portland, ME last
night. I'm sending this from my place of work in Baton Rouge, LA. I
got to work at 12:30 this afternoon.

Maine!!!!

Pop quiz!!!!!!

I decided I would fly to Boston yesterday to:

1) see my best friend Mark Vann

2) drive to Portland, Maine to see Cave In and Isis ( in their second
to last show ever)

3) fly back to Baton Rouge less than 14 hours after arriving in Boston

4) all of the above

Neat idea

Blue Raleigh fixed gear bike for sale

I am selling my blue Raleigh fixed gear bike.

It will NOT include:

seat, tires/tubes, pedals

It will include: all original parts (except wheels) from being a geared road bike.

NOTE: one of the crank bolt spindles on one of the original crank arms is broken.

Upgrades: wienmann blue rims (Fixed/Fixed flip flop), 2 Euro-Asia imports rear cogs (15T, 13T) 47T chainring, unique oval link shimano chain

Asking price $400

A few things

I have a bunch of stuff for sale. I figured I would put it all on here before I try craigslist so that my friends have first dibs.

List of stuff for sale:

TV with remote - the one in my living room $30

Dresser - 3 drawers, solidly made of wood, been mine since I was 4 $50

desk - small desk with 2 shelves on the side $10

XBOX 360 - comes with two controllers and a whole slew of games $300

This one I will sell individual games, if you are interested in them

I will have bike stuff for sale in a week or so. I've got a few campy chain rings, some nice stems, and a few other vintage components.

If you want any of this stuff, hit me up. You know how to find me.

And, enjoy the video.

bikes

So I decided I am going to sell my car. A few factors came into play with this decision.

1) I am no longer teaching at Southeastern in Hammond. After May 11th, I will not be needing to drive there anymore.

2) I am broke.

3) The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has really pissed me off. If I can lesson my dependence on oil to tires and other necessary cycling related products, than I feel like I am shoving it to BP and their new CEO (who killed their green/renewable energy department)

4) I like bikes.

That being said, I have changed my polo bike into a commuter. This means no more polo for me until I have enough cash to build up a polo bike again. Which may happen sooner than you think. Depends on summer cash flow.

Can't wait to get rid of this car, though.

Ride bikes, play tuba.

Update

Let's play polo this weekend, Baton Rouge. I'll send out a facebook since that's the only way you communicate. ;-)

Don't steal bikes, bro

Bike Thief vs Street Justis from triple on Vimeo.

Read This

http://davidfinlayson.typepad.com/fin_notes/2008/12/some-words-about-gilbert-kaplan.html

funny stuff

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vn29DvMITu4

Grocery Getter building contest....

FROM THE FIXED GEAR GALLERY.........

Grocery Getter Contest

The contest is officially open.

General Rules.....
1.Grocery Getter..... your interpretation.
2. No price limit.
3. Must be able to transfer safely the following:
10# bag of dog food
5# bag of kitty liter,
1 gal milk and a pint of half and half
5# bag flour
Pkg of 8 rolls of tp,
1 loaf of bread
1# of spaghetti or other pasta
2 six-packs of beer
a 12oz bottle of maple syrup,
six cans of tuna,
and 1 box of Tuna Helper
any reasonable substitutions of these items may be made. .

4. $25 entrance fee to benefit the fight for a cure to Histiocytosis. Use the PayPal link below for your entry.

5. Submission photos must show the grocery list loaded on the bike.
6. Conveyance may include trailer, sidecar, extensive racks, skyhook accessories, etc.
7. Judging based entirely on function and creativity.
8. Must be fixed.
9. All contest entries must be received by July 10, 2009. 10. Prizes to be determined by contest start.

I have the utmost confidence that the judges will look past the $ spent and find the winner. I see no reason for someone to be limited to choosing between either a crappy crankset or a decent set of tires. These bikes are meant for utility.

http://fixedgeargallery.com/contest/grocerygetter/ for more information....

Bike Tour

Willie, formerly of NOLA, is doing a bike tour from Wisconsin to Vermont. Follow his journey here: http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/WItoVT

Willie is a very cool dude, so follow his journey and send him notes cheering him on. What he is doing is hard to do alone, so he could use some home grown support.

Atlanta Midsummer Invitational

Deezer, RoadRash, Weeber, and Dr. Tuba are departing for this event tonight. Wish us luck!

A few articles...

Here are a few articles on cycling in Louisiana. We have some exciting laws making their way thru the state legislature right now...

http://bestofneworleans.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A56735

http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/capital/index.ssf?/base/news-7/124417932844810.xml&coll=1

More Memphis stuff

Pre-festival interview: http://www.bikeblognyc.com/?p=3336

Nice recap by Cort of Memphis: http://www.bikeblognyc.com/?p=3573

Safety in Numbers

For years cyclists have thought that there was safety in numbers. Well, here is proof!

Prose taken from fixmemphis.blogspot.com:

From 1998-2008, daily ridership in NYC slightly more than doubled (rising to 180k from 80k). In that same period the number of annual cycling casualties fell by nearly half from 5000 to 2700. The more people ride, the safer riding becomes for everyone. The average cyclist in NYC is now four times less likely to be injured while riding than they were ten years ago.

Think about this. Every person you convince to ride their bike as often as you, makes you four times as safe.

Put the word out, save some lives.

Graphic from: http://www.streetsblog.org/2009/06/05/safety-in-numbers-its-happening-in-nyc/

June Alley Cat

Here's my route: http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=2891823

Here's what I would've ridden, had I known the correct answer to the clues: http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=2891839 ......significantly shorter....