March 14, 2011

Yes, it has been almost a whole week already, but we had to send out one "final" Krewe of Bikeus 2011 email.

We wanted to send a huge thank you to everyone who came out to Bikeus this year, despite the crappy weather that was predicted. Sure, we faced a little bit of it while at Pal's and when our ride first started, but after that, nothing but a dry ride....well, dry rain-wise, definitely not dry drinking-wise! And sure, we got off to a later start than intended, but there were people we were not going to start without. And sure, we were booted off the route earlier than intended by Pete Fountain's Half-Fast Marching...er, riding in what looked to be a streetcar-like thing... Club, but how about the placement of those portapotties! Totally planned that! And sure, the Pun-King lost his pedaling ability for a while (bike malfunction, not drinking malfunction), and the Recyqueen's dad got a flat tire...3 times...on the same tire... but the Recyqueen is an expert about bike-fixing stuff, so we were able to roll on. And sure, we didn't have the Broussard's house this year (my biggest pre-roll concern), but Jules and Kent's place was a great comfortable resting spot, and the Avenue Pub was more than efficient in their drink-serving and bathroom-providing. Several coconuts, spears, zulu beads, and yes, even underwear, were obtained by our Krewe. Then, we got to McGuire's, just when we knew it was going to rain for a short bit again. Planned! "I meant to do that!" right Pee-Wee?

This year the "wild-card" was skipped, and we went straight to Frenchman from the River. Well, I say we, but I mean y'all. After King dropped Queen and parents at the car 3 blocks from McGuire's to bring the parents home, King, again perfectly timed, the Krewe to be rolling by that spot, to join them on the ride to the river. After that, Pun met up with some friends in the quarter, and eventually re-joined his no-longer-costumed, street-clothes Queen there, and never made it to Frenchman. So we apologize to all of you who we were going to only see there. Next year! :)

A slightly more specific thank you goes to our Pal's-to-Lafitte's "pace car," "spranglers," spy-boys, lock-up hosts, picture takers, and anyone else we may be forgetting.

By the way, if anyone left a scarf and gloves at our bike lock-up, I have them. They seemed to have been abandoned when most of the Krewe had left for McGuire's.

And, if there is anyone who did not get a Bikeus koozie, I do have some left. I've set aside a few for our long-term members that we did not run into, or that we did run into at Pal's and Jeff was too preoccupied with other things to give them out until the Blacksmith Shop. Get in touch with him, and they'll be available on a first come first served basis.

I will be posting a link to pictures soon. It's the ones I took, plus a few I "harvested" from the web. If you have any posted online, or that you wanna send us, or whatever, let us know.

Just a note for anyone who questions whether or not they want to come in for Bikeus. I don't think anyone could put it any better than a member of our Krewe who decided not to join us this year put it on Mardi Gras day:

MOTHER F***ER! The one year we skip the Bikeus parade, @kenjeong kicks things off and reads the poym. Dammit!

Finally, we just wanted to send another welcome out to all of our new and relatively-new Bikeus members. As Snow Queen said in one of our pre-roll emails, "It is a different year and a lot of unknowns due to our relocation from Jackson St, but I know we can make it just as perfect and wonderful as all the years past. Life is change and change is good."

Hail Bike-Us!!
Pun and Recy

March 7, 2011

Welcome to all of you, those of you who will make it, those of you who will not, and those of you who fall somewhere in between!

And, welcome to the new Bikeus email address. This makes it easier if anyone else ever wants to take over the list, and makes it look official. Official? What are we trying to accomplish here anyway? Weird. And thanks to this new email, we have at least 4 new riders with us this year!

Now on to the final plans. Nothing extremely new to report. The route is still the same, the time frame is still basically the same. I just wanted to send out this final email as a status report with a couple of quick minor updates. If you need to refer to the detailed detailed email, check out our website, www.kreweofbikeus.com, under the February 28th heading.

The only major, and unfortunate, change I have to report is the "brilliance" of our rookie mayor and police chief, who are doing their job well to fight crime and turn this city into the Disney Paradise it should be, by finally deciding to enforce the ages-old ordinance outlawing the extremely offensive practice of having private portapottys on the neutral ground, and their even further brilliance by not announcing this until a day before the big weekend. When they passed by during Bacchus yesterday, I referred to them as the Porta-Potty-Posse. But I digress. However, we will still have use of the Avenue Pub's restrooms. We just ask that, while we will have our own drinks, food, and snacks for that stop, that you at least give them some patronage. We stopped by today and gave them an extra 12-pack of toilet paper and introduced ourselves. The bartender is super-nice and her name is Shelly. Polly (our contact) was with some people in her office at the time, but she said thanks, and "didn't know what to say about that." (In a fun, grateful, and who ARE these people type of way, I imagine.)

Anywho, everything else is done. Rose is prepping our bikes right now, then it's off to meet with last year's royalty for a few to make some final arrangements. The poym is ready to be "read," the stops have all been contacted and alerted to our impending presence, drinks/food/snacks have been delivered to Kent and Jules', I've sent a little note to God asking for this weather to continue for about 36 more hours, and now, the final pre-roll email is being sent out. I will have access to this email from here on out.

Anyone new or newish to our krewe, please feel free to go to the Archives section of the website to get some ideas about what to expect, or any other things you may not have thought about.

The time is almost upon us, Bikeus! Get your costumes, drinks, and everything else you're planning on bringing with you ready to go, and we'll see you in about 17 hours! Wooo hoo!

Jeff and Rose

February 28, 2011

Well here we are. 8 days until the big day! Time to let everyone in on the route, and time to get some information from you!!

First, the boring stuff.

We would like to get a rough headcount of who will be rolling with us this year. This is mainly from a food-and-beverage perspective. Please email me back and let me know.

Bikes wanted: If anyone knows of anyone with extra bikes, please let me know!

Cash: Please bring your Krewe dues ($20). This will cover Bikeus "goodies," thank yous for our various hosts and helpers, and food and a "room" for our parade stop.

To quote Queener from 2009 (which you can find in the Archives section of our site): We will be offering bike tune-ups on Lundi Gras at the Royal Condo of Jeff and Rose for all members. If you decide to come by, get in touch with us for our address. Hopefully the weather will be superb, and you can take advantage of our pool and/or hot tub. Please take advantage of this offering, especially if you haven't touched your bike since last Mardi Gras.That being said...we can handle minor tune-ups, but you may want to pull out the bike this week and make sure that things seem to be generally looking OK. We are also happy to change tubes, but you must supply your own tubes. Your tube size can be found on the sidewall of your tires and will look something like 26 x 1.95, 700 x 28, etc. If your tires have been flat for a year you may want to get 3 tubes just in case your current tubes won't hold air, and that still leaves you with a spare. Also, I might recommend that you check your currently flat tire for signs of dry rot, as this is never a good sign, and we can't do anything about it on Mardi Gras day.

Bike shops in the greater New Orleans area include:

Bicycle Michael's on Frenchman in the Marigny
GNO Cyclery on Carrollton
Bayou Bicycles on the Bayou...duh!
Bicycle Connection in Metry next door to Drago's
Bicycle World on Jefferson Highway

Last item of business: We have not had any volunteers for "spranglers." But don't worry! We are still accepting volunteers!

Now that we got the business out of the way, time to reveal the route!

You can find a google map of our proposed and always open to interpretation route at http://bit.ly/gflHcx.

Details (copied as a template from King Idol's reign ... recycling!):

6:30–7:00ish Meet at Pal’s Lounge 949 N. Rendon St
We will have the Coronation Ceremony, the Reading of the “Poym,” safety, and official start of the 2011 Bike-us Carnival Scenario Finaglement Extravaganza!

-Roll by 7:00 down St. Phillip St. to Bourbon St. and Lafitte’s Blacksmith Bar.

7:20–7:40ish Lafitte’s Blacksmith Bar 941 Bourbon St.
Quick stop for a bathroom Break and, of course, drink refills. We Roll in twenty. (approx.) Note!! This will be your main bathroom break until we reach our next stop. There will be a possible bathroom at our bike lock-up, but it will mainly be used for extreme bladder evacuation ONLY. And by extreme, I mean medical emergency. :) It will not support the 1.5-2 hours of drinks of our full Rolling 100!

745ish-Roll Down Royal St to St Charles Ave
until we get booted off the avenue. The further we can go before running into Pete Fountain, the more awesome. Let's go for a record this year! :) At that point, we will take a LEFT off of St. Charles to Magazine St, then a right on Magazine until Race St. We will be locking up at Kent and Jules place. Some of you may remember Kent as "The Dude" last year. I assure you, Kent does not remember Kent as "The Dude." ;) There will be food and drinks to snack on and/or take with us. We are planning to have a ton of plastic grocery bags that Jeff has been keeping around the house, since he can't find anywhere to recycle them, for you to pack away some food and drinks to take with you to the route. As most of you know, our next stop has for the last few years been Kent's (as well as Russ's) parents' house on Jackson Ave, the lovely pink house where we set up shop for a couple of hours to watch Zulu, where they treat us all like family. Unfortunately, Joe and Sidney (sp?) have moved on to an equally lovely house, but unfortunately for all of us, it's in Algiers Point. So Kent and Jules have filled in as a lock-up and cooler stop, and we will then walk a few blocks to The Avenue pub, which will have all the drinks (and possibly food?) we could want. Plans are in the works to actually have a spot across the street from the Avenue Pub, complete with our own Bikeus portapotty. The Avenue Pub will be open, without a cover, and with access to their bathrooms. Fox8 rents out their balcony every year to broadcast from, so if we're lucky, we'll be on TV! Here's the email I got from Polly at the Avenue Pub:

Our balcony is already booked for Mardi Gras Day. Fox 8 news does their Mardi Gras street broadcast from our balcony every year and they rent out the entire balcony.

The up side of that is that if you decide to make our corner your homebase your group will probably be on TV if the costumes are creative enough. the downside is that you wont have access to the balcony.

Our crowds are as manageable as any in the city on that day. The groups on the neutral ground are about 1/3 families and the rest adults. We get some tourists but most are locals who live in the neighborhood or come back to this spot every single year. We aren't nearly as crowded as further uptown or further downtown.

We do not charge a fee for bathrooms. In fact I think we are probably one of the only places on the avenue that doesn't employ a doorman and doesn't charge a fee or drink minimum to use the facilities. I ask only that people buy some drinks from us during the day if they are going to use our resources. I know a lot of people bring ice chests and coolers and I'd do the same....but if you just make the effort not to stand in my bathroom line with a can of coors light you bought at rouses and occasionally let me see you buy a drink from my bar ill be happy.

We do allow kids to use the restroom. I'm a mom and id never tell another mom with kid who is about to have an accident that they cant use the toilet...customers or not. We are a neighborhood bar and we try very hard to keep that approach even during mardi gras.

We'd love to see you guys out there especially if you plan to 'dress' for the occasion:)

8:00ish–11ish Avenue Pub

11ish-To McGuire’s of New Orleans!! Roll down Magazine St to 869 Magazine St. Roll your bike through the parking lot to the courtyard for safe off street parking!

11:15ish-12:30ish McGuire’s Pub Food, Drinks, Bathrooms, Breather

12:30ish-Roll down Magazine to Poydras to river for photo op

1:10–1:25 Photo op by Woldenberg Park/Imax Theatre and themighty Mississippi! A toast to the day and the Krewe!

1:40 - Time for the wild card. Roll along the river until about St. Peter St (jackson square), where we will take Decatur to Molly's at the Market. 2 major bike locking options here. One is 2 blocks further east at the mint, and the main one is right across the street from Molly's!

2:30ish–Til? Bikeus rolls to Frenchman St. to waste away the rest of the afternoon. Laisez les bons temps rouler!

We can't wait to see you!!
Jeff and Rose

February 15, 2011

Haiiiiiiiiiiilllllllllllllllllllllllllllll Bikeus!

Just thought I'd send a little update. Plans are starting to be firmed up nicely. Hopefully everything works out as well as it is in my head. Currently our route is somewhere between 99-100% confirmed, so be looking for it about a week in advance.

Now the part where I start asking for assistance! Please contact us if you feel like volunteering for any of the below, or if you need community service.... ;)

1. Wheeled coolers, wagons, or a combination of the above. I would think that 4 total would be enough, if that many. You could drop them off at our bike lock-up spot before Tuesday...more details on that to be gathered and distributed later. This will be for the food and beverage that would normally be at the Broussards. I say on wheels because we will be bringing them from our bike lock-up spot to our parade-watching spot, and while it's only a few blocks, I really don't think anyone would want to "carry that weight" even that far.

2. Spyboys and wranglers. This is one that we'd like to try to get "confirmations" from in advance. What are the roles of the spyboys and wranglers? Is "wrangler" even the correct term? I dunno, it's the first thing that came to mind, and I'm going with it, because i'm being annoyingly interrupted at work and typing this as I'm being blabbed at about absolutely nothing, and I have no time to think of a better word, other than maybe "shepherd." Can a spyboy be a wrangler, and can a wrangler be a spyboy? YES! So what are the roles of a sprangler? Ok, here's what we need you to do. We will need people to go ahead of the krewe at busy intersections and hold traffic until we are all safely across. We will also need people to try to "herd" the krewe, to keep us from getting too separated as we ride together. The closer we are as we travel from stop to stop, the safer we all are. Plus it makes us look that much more impressive! :) Last year our King Highlander got stuck doing a lot of that, and that's no place for a king! That place is up front, leading his people to the promised land(s), with his queen. And I'll just mention, while King Highlander did an awesome job being leader AND spyboy AND wrangler, I can guarantee that I will not do such an awesome job. My costume will just not allow it. You'll see.

3. Videographers and photographers. Every year since 07, I've been filming the opening speeches, coronations, poyms, and whatever else may go on outside of Pal's. Except for when we got engaged, and even then a friend of mine was filming that with my camera, but that didn't come out anyway because when he pressed the record button, it actually stopped recording b/c I had already hit record....but I digress. Anywho, since Rose and I are king and queen this year, and I refuse to wear one of those helmet cams like on Wipeout or Fear Factor or some other game/reality show, we will need people, or even just person, to video that for us. And take pictures of it too. Now, I'll have my camera for the rest of Bikeus, so I'll be snapping and video-ing away, but we would definitely appreciate an assist for at least the Pal's stuff. We can arrange getting copies later. Real copies, not just "hey I put this on bookface" copies. :)

I think that's all I have for now. It's just over 2 weeks away, and it'll be here before you know it, THANK GOODNESS. And hopefully this awesome weather will still be around!

And now some non-mardi gras day news.

I think we're gonna attempt to hit the week-before parades on Napoleon, probably near Prytania, across from that school, or school board, or whatever that is right there. They have food and I believe bathrooms. If that changes, I will let you know. That way we can catch the parades early and still either go out and have fun or go home and put the kids to bed, whichever case may apply. Or go home and put the kids to bed then go out and have fun. 8-D

As for Barkus, I was considering walking with Daisy, but then I felt bad about leaving Samantha at home. So, what I'll probably do, is hang out with some friends near Dauphine and Dumaine, with Samantha and Daisy. :) Come on out if you're in town!

Have an awesome week!
- Jeff

February 10, 2011

Hail Bikeus!

We, Jeff and Rose, are honored and excited to be your royalty this year:)

We've been taking some flack for not having sent out any emails since we were named as King and Queen over a month ago. Well, here we go! It's already been a whole month, and we have almost another whole month to go. I assure you that we are grateful for all that time, we've needed it...and let's not mention the -(globalwarming) we are going through right now. I am putting all my faith into the fact that this year's Mardi Gras - almost the latest it can possibly be - will be warm and sunny and fantastical! Endymion is my (Jeff) mom's birthday, and Rose will be in town from her year-long neurology internship in Virginia starting on Muses Thursday. Sure, she's flying into Gulfport, as tickets to New Orleans were $600 for round trip, but hey, it's only an hour away.... Anyway, as an added treat, her brother and parents will also be in town and will be rolling with us Mardi Gras Day.

We are working on several things right now including a route (actually that's pretty complete already, omg!), place to watch parades, snack and beverage details, photo spot, bike repair day, and much much more! As you may or may not know, our super-mega-awesome Zulu-watching, food-and-drink-having, bathroom-using, awesomely-hosted-soiree spot at the Broussards on Jackson Avenue is no longer available, as Joe and Sidney (sorry if I misspelled that) have moved to an equally-awesome but much further off the parade route place in Algiers Point. But have no fear! Plans are in the works. Nothing could ever compare to the hospitality the Broussards have given us over the past few years, but we promise to deliver a good time nonetheless. We've already hashed out lots of the details...it's just a matter of filling in the blanks.

We will be coming to some of you for help in some pre-parade and day-of details and will certainly accept suggestions from everyone for how to make the day fun and as stress-free for all as possible. We will keep all of you updated by e-mail as usual, so please be sure we are getting everyone on our list. Also, the website, www.kreweofbikeus.com, is up, and has been somewhat updated. It will be updated with all of these emails, in case anyone misses anything. And, you can subscribe to the RSS feed of the site, for all you geeks out there, to see what's going on. So there will be no "out of the loop" excuses. I'm not on bookface, so I won't be posting it there. Rose is on bookface, so maybe she'll cross post some stuff too. Ooh, isn't there a facebook page for bikeus? Whoever owns that, feel free to put our updates there too. Regardless, you'll be drowning in information. Not quite as much information that King Fool drowned you in, but drowning nonetheless. ;)

One more thing. I think the address book that I sent this email to includes everyone that I know of from last year, even the ones who opted out of the multitude of emails. I do have separate lists for last year, so I guess I can do that again this year. Just let me know if you want to be off. Also, PLEASE try to lay off the REPLY-ALL button as much as possible. After this email, I may start BCCing everyone. We'll see. I just don't want anyone to have to resort to this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=beF0LTvbdfw :)

There will be more to come very soon as we continue getting details hashed out, so get to work on your costumes and get ready for a fun day!

- Jeff and Rose

January 2, 2011

All Hail Bikeus! And a happy New Dat Year to ya!

As reigning king and queen of the most wonderful Krewe of Bikeus we humbly invite all of our rolling subjects to join us on 12th night (this Thursday, January 6, 2011) for the announcement of the Bikeus royalty 2011.

The program: Early evening revelers head for our lady Saint Joan of Arc Celebration and Parade in the Quarter, where you will find our dearest King Sinner in full glory. The official announcement of the royals 2011 and the kick off to this year's carnival season will then take place for the second time at Chickie Wah Wah on Canal Street: The fabulous Creole String Beans will entertain, King Cake will be had. Be there by 8pm.

Excited to hand over the big honor of leading this Krewe on dat Mardi Gras Day, we'll leave you with this:

In 64 days,we'll be rolling again!

yours truly,
Queen Edelweiss, King Highlander and Prince Drummer Boy

February 15, 2010

All Hail Bikeus,

After some consultations with previous royalty (Thank you, thank you), we have decided to change the route a bit. Since it is close to impossible to navigate the 80 or so bikes through the French Quarter to the Supreme Court Building, we have decided to have our official photo at the river again this year. And as for a new stop after the photo, we have made arrangements with......now be open minded.......Coyote Ugly! It is on the edge of the quarter, has a long lock-up wall across the street, and has a big bar! If some in the Krewe wish to parade in the quarter, this will be your chance. As for the royal family, we will be taking a more baby-trailer friendly route. Down North Peters/Decatur. We expect a crowd like we have never seen since the boys won the Super Bowl, so staying together from Coyote Ugly to Frenchman may be difficult.

6:30AM PAL’s for mimosa’s, poem reading, crowning, route and safety.
7:00AM Roll down St. Phillips to Lafittes Blacksmith Shop.
8:00AM Pedal down Royal/St. Charles to Lee Circle, where we take a left and head up Prytania to our Lock-up on the 2200 block. Second line to Broussards.
9:00AM Zulu watching, drinking, eating and bathrooming.
11:00AM Second line to 2200 Prytania.
11:45PM Arrive at McGuires for a drink and a pee.
12:45PM Leave McGuires for The French Quarter via the river.
1:15PM River photo
1:30PM Lock-up across from Coyote Ugly for a round or two.
2:30PM Parade/walk/pedal down North Peters and Decatur to Frenchman. Dance, drum and generally enjoy living in the greatest city in America!

That's it for now, if anyone else has concerns, please feel free to share them.

Peace, King and Queen and Prince to be.

p.s. For all who want to come by Monday for some bike repairing, here's where you'll find us:
4316 St. Ann Street
As we'll be running some last minute errands, please call Chuck before you show up, so we can make sure one of us is home to welcome you and your bike.

February 3, 2010

All Hail Bikeus! Hello friends!

The king-to-be and I drove down the Avenue this morning - Saint Charles that is - and marveled at all the Mardi Gras preparations happening. As we watched the stands down town being built, we couldn't help but smile from our deepest Bikeus hearts in anticipation: Soon, SOON we all are going to pedal along exactly that oh so beautiful, oh so historic Avenue. Oh what a joy it will be when our beloved Krewe of Bikeus rolls once again!

But as the celebrations hit us back to back these days, first things first: all eyes, thoughts and minds are FOCUSED on our SAINTS who are marching in, at this most important kick off ever next Sunday! We are shouting out a loud, a happy, an ECSTATIC WHO DAT! Have the best Super Bowl party ever!!! GEAUX SAINTS!!!!!! We SO believe!!!

Come next Monday, you'll have another week to finish up your costumes, get your bikes ready, buy some extra tubes for the tires and get more, MORE and MOOORE excited about the Gras!! Do some parading, if you're in town, catch them beads, stuffies and glittery shoes, and look out for some detailed Bikeus info about the happenings on Mardi Gras Day coming your way.

Who Dat and Hail Bikeus to y'all! We so look forward to seeing all of you, bright and early on that Mardi Gras Day!

yours truly,

your queen-to-be
Rea

January 20, 2010

Hail Bike-us!

May you all roll towards the fabulous day of Mardi Gras in peace, hearts filled with joy and anticipation, hands deep in fabric, glitter and glue.

The royal family-to-be is currently on a retreat in winter wonder Switzerland, the queen-to-be’s homeland, preparing to take over that oh so joyous, oh so glorious reign of Krewe of Bike-us. Knee deep in snow, we dream of the day when the sun will hopefully shine her golden light on all y’alls faces, smiling at the beautiful sight of a Krewe ready to roll; a Krewe ready to take on this wonderful Mardi Gras day once again!

As the preparations are in full swing, we will inform you about all the things to know as they unfold. Right here, right now we want to take a minute to share our thoughts and hopes for Bikeus 2010:

Honored to be the first royal family, providing the first prince -to-be, we want to invite all of you all with little ones to be part of the ride this year, however it suits YOU: Join us for the kick-off in the early morning hours, meet us along the way, roll with us just for a bit or all day long. The prince-to-be would be more than delighted to play the rhythm of the Gras along side other youngsters! Or to lean on the words our honored King Idol has said: Inclusive it is this year.

A special shout out goes out to our beloved Krewe of Trike-us: We SO would be honored to have you all join us this year, however you see it fit! Prince-to-be is more than happy to shlepp diapers in all (kids…or adult if need be) sizes as well as all the shebang needed for successfully keeping dry pants, full bellies and good moods along the ride in his chariot!

Now a practical word:

It is our special honor to announce that King Sinner ’05 once again agreed to choose the royal poem as well as the reader of the mystical rhymes. Long and prosperous may he live!

We have some folks in mind to help Bike-us stay safe, but if there’s any volunteers to be road guards, please let us know.

We loved last year’s route and plan on following closely with a few small changes - details in work.

There will be a bike repair team to assist you along the way, repair flats, etc. As well as a bike tune-up session in the days before. We have people in mind, but will gladly accept any volunteers.

Out of town visitors who will need to borrow a chariot need to contact us. The royal family-elect has one spare pink cruiser ready to roll. If you have such an extra bike, please let us know. If in ill-repair, we can fix most minor issues.

King WIMP would like to remind folks to pick up a spare tire tube or two.

Your webmaster would like to let you know that there are videos from last year on the videos page. Please read the disclaimer before watching the videos.

Whilst recuperating the spirit in our splendid retreat, were have spent hours in consul with the relic of Saint Gall and the essence of Magnus of Füssen, reciting the ancient blessing of the pig:

“May his aim be true
This man named Drew
And topple the the master of cold.

The pig-skin will fly
Through the needles eye
For the young must replace the old.”

Geaux Saints!

All Hail Bike-us
All Hail The Who Dats!
Peace to all.

Your humble servants,
The Keith Family

January 7, 2010

Hail Bikeus!

What a surprise, (holy crap) what an excitement! Bikeus officially goes family!
Queen White Wedding and Kind Idol have chosen the Keith family to be your royalty 2010!
We humbly accept this honor and are touched to receive this special gift, and look forward to serving you.

Yours, truly
Chuck, Rea + Jackson Bänz Keith
Royalty-in-training

Now a message from the reigning King and Queen, Idol and White Wedding:

Official mailing list count at 83 and increasing. We may be the rolling 100 by Mardi Gras day. Permit this year, anyone?

Who shall be the reader of the Poyem and who will have the winning entry for our send off this year?

Entries can be submitted to Rob Clemenz for consideration if you have an appropriate poym for the ride,or the appropriate stage abilities for the reading persona. Thanks so much to Wendy Talley for her send off last year! Awesome job. Adam up for this year? Parking and party at the Broussard's. Let me know. Adam on the mailing list? He should be.

That being said,

All Hail the new Royalties & Rolllllllllllllllllll Biiiiiikeus!
Exclusive is out! Inclusive is the new vogue!

Officially, King Idol but I will always be your king of fools.

KOF out.

January 6, 2010

ALL HAIL BIKEUS LOYAL!!!!!!!

We have the first decree of the 2010 bikeus season; Come one Come all to the joyous noise!

Where: Chickie Wah Wah 2828 Canal St
When: January 6th, 2010 * 8:00 - 11:30pm
What: Come celebrate 12th Night with the Creole String Beans! Show will start after the downtown parades! Royal Decree prior to the start of the Beans...Don't miss it!!!!

The Beans will start at 8:00 pm, probably 2 sets going til 11:00/11:30.
Nice and early for a school night.
The house will charge a meer $6 cover.

King Idol and Queen White Wedding will be announcing the new royalty for the upcoming festival season. Please be in attendance if possible...Hope to see y'all there!

Please pass the royal word to those who may not be on the email list. Let me know if someone needs to be added to the latest Bikeus email.

Also, Someone hit the facebook and myspace sites as I am no longer on either.

KOF
King of Fools,
KI
That's Right! Tis the season to be foolish is once again upon us, costume ideas, bike in order? The ride is closer than you think.

February 25, 2009

ALL HAIL LOYAL BIKEUS FOOLS!!!!!!!

The king and Queen have one request for all the fools out there who took any pictures throughout the day. Unfortunately, the king and queen's camera bit the dust after the blacksmith bar, so we did not get the photos we usually would have taken. Much to our dismay on our wedding day! Please email your pictures to me and I will try to assemble them to put together a wedding album. Thanks again so much for making the day a glorious one!

What a day indeed!!!!!!!!

It was a day when the Mardi Gras Spirits were definitely smiling down upon our Foolish Krewe! A free ride down St Charles Ave. (oh yee of little faith) that seemed to last forever! We held up Pete Fountain on the Avenue!!!!! The king and queen were able to witness a Mardi Gras Indian standoff in the streets!!!! Amazing!!!!!! The weather could not have been better! I was able to show off my Idol look without freezing!!!! It is great when a plan comes together. And I must say the costumes this year were just amazing!! We are quite the rainbow going by. 83 bikes total from the Queen's count, quite impressive when you watch us roll by!

It was a miracle thanks to everyone's input and suggestions. So thanks to you all for making this Mardi Gras and our wedding a memory we will cherish forever!!! Cudo's to King Combover for a very touching and beautiful Foolish White Wedding ceremony!!! My compliments to you sir....Well done. We will keep your streak in tact.

King Idol (aka King of Fools)
Thanks to you all!!

February 25, 2009

Hail all you bikers! And once and for all times, HAIL BIKE-US!!!

What a day! I can't recall a Bike-us with so many memorable moments. Weddings, proposals, Pete Fountain encounters... And how about all the surprise appearances? Richey AND Phil Deville? How did we get so lucky? I had so much fun catching up with old friends. By the way, in case you didn't hear, my very accurate count of biking revelers was up to 83 at the Blacksmith shop. 83!!!!!!! King Wrench wasn't very far off when he called us the "Rolling 100."

For all you stone-agers, it's time to get on facebook. For real. I want to see Sonia, Jeff P., Rose, Phil, SUSAN, Bryan B. - all you people. Get with the times. I want to be able to tag all your crazy mugs in my beautiful photos.

I'd like to take this opportunity to give thanks to King Idol and Queen White Wedding for making a gorgeous Mardi Gras Day experience for everyone. It was so special. Miraculous, even. May your reign be long and your honeymoon even longer!

Here's to us. It was an incredible day. Best Bike-us ever!

Tired and happy,
Queen Green Bean '08

February 17, 2009

ATTN FOOLS: OFFICIAL ROUTE RELEASED!!!

The link below is the Google Maps interactive map which shows walking directions. Times are not accurate but the route is correct. Attached, in the pdf document, are the correct times and further route descriptions.

Official Route! Click Here!

This is the where and when for Mardi Gras Day. This is for everyone to get on the same page whether just joining or a seasoned vet of bike-us. The route is officially released but always subject to change.

More to follow,
KOF

February 15, 2009

TO: King WIMP, Queen Bean, their Royal Subjects, Other Peasants & Fools
FROM: King Sinner, '05
RE: The Reading of the Poem
DATE: Now

Please be advised that the Reader of the Poem (therein lies a hint as to his or her identity) Invitation has officially been extended and accepted, this date, at 11:49 A.M., Central Time.

______________ will be reading an excerpt from ____________, an entry suggested by Royal Krewe of Bike-Us Member Jill Allemand.

_________________ will join:

WWL Meteorologist Dawn ("deDawn Dawn") Brown (excerpt from "Through the Looking Glass")
Thespian Richie Montgomery ("To the Virgins to Make Most of Time," AKA "Gather Ye Rosebuds While Ye May")
A Guy Who Began the Tradition at Eddie Ecker's (Reading from "Walden" I think... ) as Official Readers of the Poem...
and....
Vicky Peterson as Persons Selected to be Readers of the Poem, or, in the alternative, the "Person Who Was Snubbed"

as the Official Readers of the Poem (which would be "POYM" if the Reader of the Poem was from Louisiana).

Thank you for your attention to this matter. I trust all subjects will laud The Reader(s) of the Poem, Past & Present, on Mardi Gras Day.

Tarry on - This is the Bottom Line!___________________________________

February 14, 2009

Hail Bike-us!

As the silliest and funnest of all days approaches, let me remind all riding members of the krewe that now is the time to get yo' wheels ready. We will again be offering bike tune-ups on Lundi Gras at the Royal Palace of Queen Medicine and Queener for all members. Please take advantage of this offering, especially if you haven't touched your bike since last Mardi Gras. That being said...we can handle minor tune-ups, but you may want to pull out the bike this week and make sure that things seem to be generally looking OK. We are also happy to change tubes, but you must supply your own tubes. Your tube size can be found on the sidewall of your tires and will look something like 26 x 1.95, 700 x 28, etc. If your tires have been flat for a year you may want to get 3 tubes just in case your current tubes won't hold air, and that still leaves you with a spare. Also, I might recommend that you check your currently flat tire for signs of dry rot, as this is never a good sign, and we can't do anything about it on Mardi Gras day.

Bike shops in the greater new orleans area include:

Bicycle Michael's on Frenchman in the Marigny
GNO Cyclery on Carrolton
Bayou Bicycles on the Bayou...duh!
Bicycle Connection in Metry next door to Drago's (Fat City, bruh) -added by Jeff

We'll probably offer tune-ups starting in the afternoon. Time, location, etc to follow.

Queener

February 13, 2009

Virgin Riders Need Motion Makers!!!

All Hail to those near and far! And newly added subjects,

King Spyboy has sent out a request for available bikes for three or four newbies.....anyone have the extra wheels? They would help a newbie experience bike-us the correct way, Riding not walking or whatever other option is available.

The parking area at Adam's house is sweet. The Queen to be, a very loyal subject, and myself were there to scope it out Yesterday, and it will be a perfect place to lock up and be completely invisible from the street. We will find a place there to take a group photo. Work with us on this one.

Calling all the royal minstrels and fools....this should be a year of many surprises, so come with your Mardi Gras Game Face on and bring your A Game to the party. I am hearing many rumors of surprises, on top of surprises, and fun will be had by all who come and make merry with the King and Queen to be and all the fools who choose to follow!

Busy, busy, busy, make that costume sooner than later......you know who I'm talking to. Don't even try to deny it!?! That's all I'm saying. Snap to and just do it!!!

Moore Foolishness to follow!

Rob Mo

February 5, 2009

Virgin Riders Need Shtick!

Explain to the new folk the way of the bike-us Krewe member and rider. Can only be done by The Bike-us Krewe!

It has come to my attention that there are many newbies in the mass email list who have not experienced Bike-us before. I was asked to explain "the Bike-us way" to the newcomers. It is not fair for one person to explain this, because it is what you make it.

This is how I see it:

Everyone's day is a different experience. You make it what you want. BYO? Dress up as anything you can imagine, no matter how ridiculous, insane, outrageous, or simply make a statement, ANY THING Goes. The day belongs to you, it is a blank canvas and you are the artist. Paint the day however you want to see it. My day will be full of foolishness, laughter and some surprises. I hope to share it with as many of you as possible. I am very excited to be the K2B. I hope I am not too unruly, Susan. LOL I am very humble to have been chosen after only one year of riding. That is why I have been working so hard to try and make it a good time for ALL the fools out there. Over zealous at times, maybe, but with nothing but good intentions for the masses.

-Rob Mo

I hope all our former members, especially the former royalty who know how much work go into organizing the day, appreciate all the hard work you are putting into organizing this year. I hope everyone gives the same enthusiasm to your reign as was given to Bike-us past.

I am digging the King to be's enthusiasm and attempts to organize. Bike-us is free flowing fun but with out planning it doesn't flow and isn't freeing so I say well done.

A few things new Krewe members should know.

1. costumes are mandatory, don't show up in street clothes to ride with Bike-us
2. bring your own lock, you will need it, don't count on locking up with someone else
3. bring a basket or something to carry your stuff in, throws, drinks, snacks, clothes as the day grows longer and warmer and you begin to shed them
4. female bike-us members may want to bring a box of tissues in case of Port-o-let stops.

-Fugetaboutit

January 25, 2009

All Hail Again! and for some the first time!

King of Fools is proving a point! I heard the map was not so much help as I had intended. Therfore it was obviously "Foolish"! So, I hope this map is a little clearer. Try this link: New Official Bike-us Route to see the mapquest interactive version of the intended route for 2009. I hope this is helpful in letting everyone know when and where the Bike-us 2009 Experience will be MGD. Also attached is the written version in pdf format if you choose. Also a little info on the official stops along the way. Pal's Lounge, Lafitte's Blacksmith Bar, and McGuire's New Orleans Pub. Thanks to these establishments for entertaining the mass of fools we expect to partake in the Fun!

NOTE: Pal's Lounge is confirmed as the official meeting place at 6:30 AM. We roll no later than 7:00. Don't be late and miss any of the foolishness! The rest of the day, we'll see what happens....

King GnikofslooF!
Q & K 2 B !!!!

P.S. please use the latest thread to reply to the masses. People who want to hear the latest foolish statements are getting added to the list each and every message! So please keep everyone informed by doing this for me and all the loyal fools who crave the latest Bike-us info! Keep me amused, so far so good! I am not disappointed....

January 24, 2009

All Hail, Latest update form your 2009 royalty!

Pal's is confirmed as the Official Starting place for Bike-us 2009. We will be meeting at 6:30 for the usual drinks and coronation ceremony. The reading of the poym. and the official Bike-us Kick off. Thanks to Pal's and Suzanna again for being our gracious host.

K2B and Queen Cork

January 22, 2009

All HAIL from King of Fool 2009!

I hope this message finds everyone well and in good cheer.

I have heard many thanks from people far and wide who are enjoying this foolishness we are putting forth called Bike-us; Trike-us; Hike-us! It is good to know that the hard work, time and effort, and thought that is put into this crazy thing is appreciated. It takes many to make it happen. Thanks to you one and ALL for the help and planning. Without you we are nothing! Together anything is possible, Yes We Can! So please, ignore this if you could care less, but there are many out there who do care and want to hear what we Fools have to say. So, to you I say, "Bike-us Rock and Rolls through the New Orleans streets passing a good time and sharing it with all who wish to roll with us in good spirit and good cheer. All are welcome as long as fun is the rule and a good time is had by all! You gotta fight for your right to be totally and completely silly with lack of concern for what others may think of you! Dance like no one is watching!!!!!!!"

"Mystik Krewe of Bike-us" is a facebook group open to anyone who wants to keep more up to date with what is going on with the Bike-us 2009 ride and the events and happenings leading up to the big day! Anyone who will not be able to be here with us in body, can experience and live vicariously through the members who will be posting pics and who knows what?!? Anyone is welcome to join the group and it is very easy. Don't let technology stand in the way of you enjoying this cool tool for sharing life.

A link to a 2009 preliminary Bike-us Mardi Gras route is posted on this site which gives an interactive mapquest map. It has locations and stops planned throughout the day so anyone can hook up if they choose to drop in. There are pictures, discussion topics, links to vital information, and lots of fools and foolishness of course! The route is not exact but the stops are pretty well set in chalk. So anything is subject to change.....stay tuned! or not we don't care! Check it out dude, that's all i'm saying.

For those of you far to the North, I'm sorry it is going to be in the upper 60's low 70's today. A beautiful day is shaping up. A clear blue sky with warm gulf air flowing in from the Gulf of Mexico. Short sleeves and shorts later. Sorry guys, but it is true. I think the extended forcast will be the same if we collectively start our Mardi Gras weather dances now. Anyone with any influence in this area....do what you can for your king and queen to be! Any proof of such results from a loyal subject on Mardi Gras Day will be greatly rewarded by the King and Queen! Good Luck with that one! I may be foolish but i'm not an idiot! Make it good and fun!

St. Charles Ave is penciled in as a ride spot early in the morning before the police presence gets too tight and we are denied access. Miracles are happening as we speak. I think the Mardi Gras Spirits are with us. Good things are in motion....sure you can't make it for some foolishness with this bunch of fools???!!!!! The Royalty past, present, and future call to all; "Come Join the Foolishness and laugh with the Fools if you care!!!!!"

All Hail!
King of Fools 2009 (Rob Mo!)
Queen Foolishness Abounds (Corky Laying Low)

January 21, 2009

All Hail, A royal proclomation and decree is about to be handed dow! The upcoming royalty, King Fagetaboutit and Queen 4dapeople have made a scouting trip in advance of the upcomeing festivities. We have found an Excellent stop between the Broussard's and The quarter. McGuires of New Orleans 865 Magazine St. He will be open and expecting 50+ bikes and riders which he said can pass through the bar to the courtyard. A five dollar cover which goes to your first drink. Food will be available and activities unmentioned will be taking place. Pics available here. Check it out!! The miracles are happening!! Bike-us Rock and Rolls 2009.

King o Fools!!! you fools Let's pass a good time y'all!

January 11, 2009

Hail Bike-us!! Carnival 2009 is upon us!!

Great suprise on the part of this years royal nominees.....but we are embracing and joyously moving forward with the planning of this years festivities.

We are currently seeking an alternative parking place for our Zulu experience. Thank you soooooo much to Snow Queen 2002 for smoothing over our church parking last year with a promise we would not be back this year. It was a Mardi Gras Miracle how our past royalty was able to pursuade a possible troublemaker with some very smooth talking...WELL DONE! We are currently investigating a spot near Camp and Third that would be locked up and off street parking. If anyone has another suggestion or solution...please let us know.

A Message from my loyal subject Wendy....

I remain your humble servant,
Wendy"

I, King to be, or King wanna be, will post the pictures of the courtyard and Adam's house, where we will lock up, on my facebook site if anyone wants to look at them. If you don't have facebook, click here. The house is on the corner of Camp and Third. A short walk to the Church and the Broussards. It is a SWEEEEET location if I don't say so myself. Which of course, I do! So, many thanks to our loyal subject Wendy for securing our Zulu experience safe parking!

The 2009 royalty thanks you.

With that being said, we would like to get some preliminary numbers on people planning to ride. Please RSVP and let the King and Queen know if you will be in attendance this year.

Laissez les bon temps rouler!
Bike-us Rock & Rolls 2009

King "Ain't Nuttin Yet!" & Queen "Cork Gone Domestic"

Robby & Christy