The Captain’s Log

Well, Jeff likes it right off the bat. I’m still fussing over the typeface and Emily says the red arrow distracts from the point of the logo, which is the name of the museum. Well, she didn’t say exactly that, but we figured out that’s what was disturbing her about the red. We fiddled with several blues and even black before we stumbled on a green that mimics the intensity of the pink and yellow without overpowering the IMBM. Here’s how it looks:

Keep them cards and letters coming, my friends. Here’re two bonus photos shot by the official photog at last August’s Cackalacky Cup. One is me. One is Otis Guy. Guess who still takes his mountain bike racing seriously? I think we bracketed the group, as in alpha and omega. Otis won and I was pretty much DFL. We both had a lot of fun, which is more the point, eh? Click on these to see them bigger:

Jeff is thinking of making the upstairs of First Flight bikes something a bit more formal, if only to alleviate some of the expenses and taxes going into the effort. I mean, it’s not like they’re gonna charge money to scope out the vintage hardware. It’s more like they’re going to make it a real museum so it’s not idle space costing money.

But the cool part is Jeff asked me to take a stab at a logo. So I did. Here it is:

Jeff’s still deciding on what to call it. I like IMBM because AMBM is what comes, thank god, just minutes after AM coffee. A wonder to behold, but not a good name for a mountain bike museum.

The circle format is inspired by the Jay Challenge logos/medals. The “Big World” is a Dirt Rag tribute. They had this cool t-shirt in the early days with hands on a handlebar superimposed on a globe with the words “It’s a big world…Ride on it!” The bike is Charlie Kelly’s Breezer #2–one of ten first-ever production mountain bikes. The pink started out a tribute to ultra violet anodized parts, but morphed to pink for (Big Pink) personal reasons. Hows that for a subliminal byline? The big arrow was inspired by Putney’s own Curtis’s Barbeque. His sign calls it the eighth wonder of the world and has a big arrow thingy.

I like it. Do you? I’m not nuts about the IMBM typeface, but it’s what I had available at home. Other than that, I’m pretty satisfied. But I have plenty more ideas. How’s bout you?

I’m all for obtuse blog entry titles. This one’s about change. Not personal change. I mean money.

I was just at the Putney General Store returning this weekend’s videos and picking up ANOTHER gallon of milk (I feel like I’m raising veal lately). The milk was three something and I gave her a ten. She hands me back the bills and puts the coins on top. The coins slide off onto the counter and we apologize to each other for whatever. That’s when it hit me.

A long time ago (I’m guessing because I can’t remember when it started–at this stage in the game it coulda been last Thursday), I made a conscious decision to hand people change coins first. When the bill at the Duncan Donuts drive through comes to $2.35 and I have exact change, I put the coins in the window person’s hand first, follow by the bills on top. Unlike the coins on top model, the coins first approach hasn’t caused a spill yet. Although sometimes I get confused looks like I’m trying to pull something funny.
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