Thanks Sunday Streets fans and crew!

Aug 10, 2009Posted by in Blog, V3 Mundo Cargo Bike | Comments Off on Thanks Sunday Streets fans and crew!

Thanks Sunday Streets fans and crew!

Rock The Bike pumping up the Mission District for Sunday Streets. by you.
Morning ride: Crew pumping up the District for Sunday Streets.

Sunday Streets (near the beach), August 9, 2009 by Steve Rhodes.

Set up our Pedal Powered Stage on the Great Highway, with dancing on the beach. Photo: Steve Rhodes

Represent.  by you.

First we loaded the Biker Bar with hundreds of pounds of audio gear.

Custom V1 Mundo trailer hitch flexed a bit under this extreme load. by you.

The custom V1 Mundo trailer hitch flexed a bit under this extreme load, but basically it was a very controllable ride.

Adam entertains. by you.

Adam entertained in Golden Gate Park on the way to the beach.

Fossil Fool & Rock the Bike perform at Sunday Streets, August 9, 2009 by Steve Rhodes.

We set up a 5-bike Pedal Powered Stage on the Great Highway — two electric Mundos and the Biker Bar.

 

Cousin Ken pitching in on the Biker Bar. by you.

Cousin Ken pitching in on the Biker Bar, with Arie along for the ride.

Fossil Fool & Rock the Bike perform at Sunday Streets, August 9, 2009 by Steve Rhodes.

Fossil Fool, the Bike Rapper, with guests Mafiosa Felice, Terry, and Jared May.

Sunday Streets (near the beach), August 9, 2009 by Steve Rhodes.

The scene from a nearby dune. Photo: Steve Rhodes

Police car going by as Sunday Streets ended by Steve Rhodes.

Cops threatened to shut down Tornado Rider.

So we moved.

IMG_0725 by Steve Rhodes.

IMG_0724 by Steve Rhodes.

And they shredded the venue.

Tornado Rider - Rock the Bike at Sunday Streets, August 9, 2009 by Steve Rhodes.

IMG_0738 by Steve Rhodes.

Hoop Jam with Movement Maker Mei.

All photo montages: Steve Rhodes

This is the 36V 18Ah Sealed Lead Acid rechargeable battery that helps us get up and over the hill from the Mission to the beach.   by you.

This is the 36V 18Ah Sealed Lead Acid rechargeable battery that helps us get up and over the hill from the Mission to the beach.

Ready for gear return mission. by you.

Rolling the 'Long Things' bundle. by you.

Rolling the ‘Long Things’ bundle.

Fully loaded Biker Bar, probably 275 pounds of gear, including bass drum, two JBL PRX535's, and the Fossil Fool tent. by you.

Fully loaded Biker Bar, probably 275 pounds of gear, including bass drum, two JBL PRX535’s, and the Fossil Fool tent.

We made $52 in tips. This is what we did with the money. by you.

We made $52 in tips. Thanks to all the fans who pitched in for Tornado Rider and the Rock The Bike crew. This is what we did with the money.

Down Low Glow (front) and MonkeyLight ambient glow comparison. by you.

Late night gear return mission.

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Making beats while you ride.

Jul 4, 2009Posted by in Blog | Comments Off on Making beats while you ride.

Making beats while you ride.

Two fresh ideas:

http://una-love.com/beat-bike.htm

 


http://www.engadget.com/2007/10/15/switchbike-goes-from-bicycle-to-chopper-in-seconds-flat/

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Joel Elrod, LiveOnBike drummer, and an explanation of the LiveOnBike Mundo

Jul 23, 2008Posted by in Blog, V3 Mundo Cargo Bike | Comments Off on Joel Elrod, LiveOnBike drummer, and an explanation of the LiveOnBike Mundo

Skip ahead to 00:24:

This video gives a taste of the LiveOnBike performances we’ve been doing on SF Cruiser rides this summer. Joel Elrod, who had just finished playing a gig with Pleasuremaker, is drumming on a SPDS electronic drum machine. The signal from the SPDS is carried from the back of the Mundo to the front where it enters a DIT Head Unit containing a Rolls MX56c 4-Channel mixer and Shure Wireless body pack microphone, and DoubleWide Down Low Glow battery that powers the SPDS and a dual tube DLG system for 5 hours.

Skip ahead to 1:15.

The LiveOnBike rig also has a microphone seen in this video of Janaysa performing at the Bicycle Music Festival, but it takes longer to set up, so we haven’t been using it with Joel. The signal of the Shure body pack on the LiveOnBike rig is caught by the receiver on the backrest of the Choprical Fish. I select the tracks from an iPod on the control panel of the Fish. When I pick a new track, Joel listens for a few moments and then picks up the beat and improvises on the playing-card-sized rubber pads of the SPDS.

Both Adam (pilot of the LiveOnBike Mundo) and I have the ability raise and lower the volume level of the SPDS. When I was piloting the bike for Janaysa, I was able to set her vocals and keyboard levels independently using Channel 1 and Channel 2 of the MX56c. We were experiencing a very short range with our wireless transmitter that night, as you can hear in the first moments of the videos.

The DIT Head Unit uses the excellent 1-button KlickFix handlebar mounting system, and the wiring harness simply Velcros to the bike, so we can convert the Mundo from Town Hauler to Rock Star in only 5 minutes, and that includes mounting the SPDS and aTractor seat. I know that’s lot of names for you, but well, that’s how we did it.

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Water bottle-based music systems help you hear (but maybe not feel) your music

Mar 4, 2008Posted by in Blog | Comments Off on Water bottle-based music systems help you hear (but maybe not feel) your music

Water bottle-based music systems help you hear (but maybe not feel) your music

A couple new products are helping bike people cruise with music this spring.

The Gadget Bottle is a functional water bottle that has no batteries or speakers, but its unique shape allows you to strap a cell phone with an internal speaker and listen to your MP3s as you ride. It fits inside a standard water bottle cage. At 2:35, inventor Steve Lach takes a phone call from his wife, holding the entire Gadget Bottle to his ear, with his flip phone securely rubber banded in place! No problem with one-handed use while cruising or training.

 

To up the volume a bit, the iHome2Go Cycler is a rechargeable black water-bottle shaped single-speaker music system that conceals an iPod and includes a handlebar mounted control.

Eugene, Oregon-based bicycle advocate and customer Shane Rhodes, a.k.a. The Bike Phantom, recommends it and says the volume is big enough for a small cluster of riders to hear the music. With a 3″ speaker, the Cycler isn’t going to deliver satisfying bass hits. It’s a basic law of speaker design that the smaller the speaker and its enclosure, the harder it is to get good bass response.

But how important is bass response on a bicycle? I think it’s essential, and Rock the Bike is obviously committed to the path of building bicycle music systems with cabinets large enough to deliver satisfying bass. With good bass, you and the people around you feel ‘in the music’. Without good bass, you can sing along with your friends to your favorite songs, which is a wonderful experience. But it’s a different experience than cruising in the music, which feels a bit like being in your own music video. Plenty of people disagree with me on the importance of bass response.

Others are more hardcore than I am:

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