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Robinson the Adventurous BF Otter is at it again ... posing with one of PACTOUR's excellent and thoughtfully laminated route maps. WHERE IN THE WORLD IS ROBINSON?
April 2006: Getting his kicks on Route66!
March 2006: Robinson co-stokers at Desert Camp, closeup
January 2006: Heloha! Robinson gets lei'd wiith a fellow otter in Hawaii, closeup
September 2005: Hai! Robinson rides with Jackie in Japan, closeup
January 2005: Robinson escapes tsunami with Slo Jo in Sri Lanka
November 2004: Robinson is off to Qatar!
ROBINSON's TRIP FORUM - INVITE HIM ON YOUR NEXT TRIP HERE!
April 1, 2006: Austin and San Antonio, Texas
After gadding about in the Philippines, Qatar, Sri Lanka, Japan, Hawaii and Desert Camp Robinson finds himself in Texas minus his little 13 tooth cog and starfish. What happened? In Hawaii, TSA knitted their collective brows and led him around the corner to a small carpeted cubicle with a hard plastic chair to question him about his choice of neckwear. "It's a neckbrace, after I had a bit of a meeting of muzzles with gravity in Hawaii," he replied. They let him go, but he decided to gift the cog to a worthy cause - a forlorn set of housekeys in need of a keychain. "Besides, it will slow me down on Route 66," he said, referring to his forthcoming expedition with Lon Haldeman and The Galfromdownunder.
In Austin, Texas Crusoe Owner Sue Anderson, a biology meister, pointed out that the starfish purse Robinson originally clutched for dear life is actually food.
"Furthermore, they dive to the bottom, grab a flat rock, lie on their backs with the stone on their bellies, then crack the crustacean or whatever they've caught against the rock, to break it open," she said.
Yowee! A bit like a karate master splitting logs on his abs. Consider yourself Animal-Planeted. Meanwhile, we're looking for a half walnut shell, drilled with a couple of holes, to make a bicycle helmet for Robinson. The problem is, walnuts are out of season down south. Can anyone help? Post it on his little message board below or email robinson at bikefriday dot com
May 15, 2004: Getting ready for Qatar and Sri Lanka
SQUUUUARK! Colony Kreklow, Bike Friday Office Manager, was recently deified by a customer who apparently did something unorthodox with the chain of his Air Llama, then called the factory in a panic. We can assure you he was not doing anything involving ceilings, chairs or jugular veins, but Colony saved his sanity by commanding, "Mr Chamberlain, step away from that bike!" "I was smiling all day after that," says Mr Chamberlain of San Francisco. But I digress...the real point of this week's screech is the picture below, spotted by our ever-vigilant Colony...
Spied by Colony on a May issue of Velonews. Judging from the offers Robinson is receiving, he'll have to be pretty tough ... all those joy rides are bound to take their toll on his poor fuzzy little butt...
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May 5, 2004: Back from the Philppines
Well, Pilot Mark Madach walked into the showroom and Robinson immediately jumped into his suitcase with his Air Friday on his way to the Philippines! Mark is even going to try and get one of those clever Filipino tailors to whip up some cool cycling threads for our Adventurous Otter. He'll be back in 3 weeks...
Meanwhile, the offers to take Robinson around the world on a Friday have started flooding in. Al Gilens of Philly has offered to get him digging holes in Tour de Trees' Philly to Pittsburgh ride, Aug 2-8, .
Deb Rhodes of LA said: "I am heading to ISRAEL (Jerusalem) on June 27, the day after the Los Angeles Wheelmen's Grand Tour (100-200-300-400 miles in 24 hours). I'm not taking the bike, as I will be studying most of the time, but will have enough to get Robinson to a few interesting places..."
Deb, Robinson would love to visit the holy land but he thinks if he can do it on a Bike Friday, so much the better... let him think about whether lounging poolside nibbling at rabinically approved sabra salad on kosher crackers might not be a bad interlude between biking jaunts... how long are you going to be there for?
Then we got this junket to QATAR from Slo Jo Keenan:
Hello Robinson,
Well, yours truly will be traveling to a place that Lonely Planet described as "....best known for being unknown." You're welcome to come along as I do a double century and see the whole country in one day. On or about September 25th or so, I'll be heading to QATAR to spend 8 months with my significant other, who will be working as a high school counselor in an international school. I figure the two of us could take a spin around Doha, taking in the complete city in a whirlwind tour. Whataya say? If so, let me know how many days you want to spend with me exploring Camel Races, Sand Dune Skiing, and the Emir knows what else. Hope you can join me for a few days at the end of September. Slow Joe
Joe, Robinson's off like a bride's nightie as they say in that country full of convicts ...
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SCREEEEEEECH! Not me, actually, but my little friend here. He wandered in to the Bike Friday factory last week ... an unemployed otter clutching his resume (inside that star-shaped purse). He claims he was sent by Phillip Moreland, reader of this column in New York, to apply for a job in the Bike Friday Production line.
Always open to giving enthusiastic otters a chance, the Bike Friday team put him through his paces. Paint booth, welding, brazing, final assembly, even briefly in the salesroom practicing how to say 'And how would you like to pay for that Mr Bricca?'
Well, by the time we managed to unsinge his eyebrows (brazing), unfuse his tail from his elbow (welding), untangle his whiskers from a set of brake housings (pre-assembly) and decolorize his candy-apple-red-cream-soda-blue-canary-yellow-green-gear-green pelt (paintbooth) we started to worry. And when he got onto the salesfloor and told one potential customer to 'buy a Bike Friday and go away' we knew he'd be better off out in the field.
So he's officially been employed as the Bike Friday Traveling Otter. He'd like to accompany you on a Bike Friday trip and be photographed in exotic places. You can then send him back with a photo and story of where you went and collect a nice prize (tires, headbadge, sox, clothing etc) for sharing. A quick change of jersey and he'll be ready for the next trip.
Imagine, a little furry otter with a 13-tooth cog around his neck (a legacy of his brief time in Pre-Assembly) traveling the world - more exotic and less dangerous than running with the bulls in Pampalona... SCREEEECH! What's that you say? 'This is not a new idea?' Well neither are folding bicycles buddy, so go fly United...
Now, like any good traveler we have to prepare him for his trip. We'll be scrounging around for a jersey to fit him, maybe one that's been left in a dryer for a few weeks, but if you'd like to send him clothes to wear he'd appreciate it (the local Goodwill is clean out of doll's clothes). And a tiny bumbag to carry something useful, like single Presta to Shrader converter, and we'll put a Bike Friday stick pin in there to give to a Bike Friday owner you meet on the road.
And what about a name? We thought 'Made with all new Materials' just didn't have the right ring.
Send all contributions and bookings for his passage to fred@bikefriday.com.
SQUUUUUUUAARRRK! I can't believe I've let a watery mammal rob my limelight...and he gets to fly in the new first-class Bike Friday TravelCase ....
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