I talked with Matt Bort the 1st and Chris Williams from Burro Bags, a messenger bag store in Springfield. Burro Bags is having their grand opening this Friday, May 16th from 6:00 to 10:00 at 1520 Main Street in Springfield.
Podcast Episode #15: Burro Bags Grand Opening May 16th (42:56)
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A close friend of mine asked me to help get the word out about this benefit show at 9th and Main on Thursday. Donations of $5 at the door to help fund the Sarah Copeland Medical Fund. All proceeds go to the medical fund.
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All Photos courtesy of JaxScene. Also this is the first post by contributor Jon Bosworth.
While many hood rats were sleeping off their hangovers from First Friday in Five Points, the dead were rising in Springfield. You may have spotted some of them, walking… or rather riding among the living at First Friday because Friday was day one of the free Bury Your Bike Festival.
A subculture is rising in Springfield. Even after the sad departure of Inertia Records (don’t worry, Royal Treatment Records is selling Days of War Nights of Love on their behalf), the ironic fashions and deeply held ideals thrive on. Replacing Inertia Records is Zombie Bikes, a bicycle collective and a bike shop that welcomes you to come to customize your ride among fellow enthusiasts.
We are just adamant bikers that wanted a bike shop that we’d like going to said Zombie Bikes’ founder Devin Wolf.
This most recent tenant puts the building at 1520 N Main Street at capacity, since only a few weeks ago Burro Bags also opened their shop inside of the space. What was once being tentatively referred to as Buyers Market Lodge is truly living up to that name. But rather than being a traditional commerce center, it is more like a community center where recycled materials are being made into useful luggage, old records are being re-sold to new fans, and old bike parts are being brought back from the dead and returned to the street.
I spoke with Devin Wolf while he was busy welding two children’s bikes into one medium-tall bike. I presume he was doing this so that this bike could enter the tall bike race that would happen tomorrow. According to Wolf he was one of the people responsible for the tall bike movement in St. Augustine and now we can expect them to be invading the streets of Jacksonville.
The tall bike trend has arrived, Wolf proclaims. We’re definitely gonna make an impact on the community.
I didn’t catch the tall bike race, but I did get to watch some of the bike polo tournament on Saturday. It was brutal. From seeing shirtless dudes fly over the front of their bike as their wheel jackknifed to seeing an ambitious player fly wildly into the a busy mid-day Main Street, it was nerve racking, but the players seemed to be capable of striking the small rubber ball with their oddly long mallets without striking one another. Bystanders had lawn chairs and beers. It was like tailgating but with more tattoos and an uncommon sense of community.
Following the bike polo was a Zombie hunt, wherein painted tires were hidden all over the city and participants raced around trying to collect the most. Other activities included a bike build-off at Wild Bill’s (a rather surly bar near the stadium) a bike toss and a dirt jump.
Zombie Bikes has a workshop with pipe cutters, welding equipment, tools and plenty of spare parts. Zombie has the sort of vibe that makes a welcoming place to hang. There are couches and a television and plenty of workspace. Resurrect your bike at Zombie Bikes. Go to zombiebikes.com to learn more.
As for Burro Bags, they’ve only been open for a few weeks but they are already managing to crank out a substantial collection of custom luggage. Spend as little as $40 for a small bag or get a $200 large custom bag. In addition to courier satchels and smaller bags, they also make bags from recycled vinyl fast food promotional banners and other reclaimed materials. They hope to soon introduce wallets. Check out burrobags.blogspot.com.
Burro owners Chris Williams and Matt Bort live in the same house as some of the Zombie Bike guys, so being neighboring businesses has just become an extension of their home and the partnership is flowering into something much more significant. It is just another evolution as Springfield grows its own distinct personality and brings Jacksonville another step closer to being the kind of community that can sustain a variety of interests, the way a big city should.
More Photos
Bike Jax’s Bury Your Bike pics
JaxScene’s Bury Your Bike pics
This show is May 25th at The Pearl in Springfield. Anybody have a link for Fruit Machine?
Zombie Bikes, a bike co-op in Springfield, kicks off it grand opening tonight with a critical mass and ending with live music at Shantytown.
Here’s all the events and the times for the 3 day mega-bike event
Friday @ Zombie Bikes
5pm Register @ Zombie Bikes
6pm Critical Mass
730pm Tandem Relay
8pm BBQ
9pm Music @ Shanty Town
Saturday @ Zombie Bikes
12pm First Round Polo
1pm Tall Bike Build
3pm Scavenger Hunt
5pm Pizza Dance Party
Sunday @ Zombie Bikes
2pm Food Not Bombs Brunch
1pm BMX Dirt Jam @ The Garden
3pm Alley Cat
5p.m. Closing Ceremonies
8pm Bands and Bike Games @ Wild Bills
More Links!
http://burrobags.blogspot.com/2008/04/festival-new-shop-and-warranty.html
http://jaxscene.blogspot.com/2008/04/may-23and-4th-may-10th.html
More specifically Springfield is street art famous. When your photo shows up on the Obey Giant website, you know you’ve made it. I took this picture of The Pearl Friday and three days later it shows up on the homepage of one of the most influential street artists of our time. Bam!
I will sleep soundly tonight. I love you Internet!
This is the first official Summertime in the City update. I’ll probably post updates every other week until we get closer to the festival. Right now we are booking events and raising money. At this point the festival is still scheduled for August 2nd. We have considered moving is back one weekend if we can book a certain local band. So far we have the following events confirmed:
Zombie Bikes and Burro Bags 1520 Main Street
Bike repair and workshops on different types of bike maintenance and riding safety along with pamphlets on bike laws. Bike Polo mallets will also be available for anyone during the day and the week prior at Zombie Bikes. Bike rentals will also be available for adults and kids. You can stop by the shop and put one on hold the week before the festival.
Dance Party for Kids
It’s a modern dance party for young children, with DJ Caz.
Summertime in the City Handmade Market
All things handmade: clothing, jewelry, baked goods and more!
Also
We are planning lots of other things and as soon as we confirm them, we’ll let you know. If you want to stay connected you can always get updates here on Urban Jacksonville, but there are other ways to stay informed about the festival:
Summertime in the City on Facebook
Summertime in the City on MySpace
Official Summertime in the City website (Ha! I know!)
Wilco at the Florida Theater August 6th at 8:00pm. Buy Tickets Online
