UPDATE: I scouted the site and part of the course yesterday. Here's a bit more information...1. There will be park grills on hand for use, plenty of picnic tables, and a large shelter in case Lady Nature turns spiteful.
2. Along with your brew, BRING FOOD, as suggested below.
3. If you have a set of fatties, throw 'em on the bike. Your ass and rims will be happy you did.
Not much else to say. If you contacted us earlier, look for an email from us within the next day or two. The email will state the location and time, along with some other details. If you're interested, will have homebrew ready in time, and haven't contacted DT, shoot him an email.
Okay, the Bliss is on. Venue has been determined. Date is set at If you're interested and haven't yet reached out, shoot an email to DmofoT and we'll get back to you with details. If you don't get an email response immediately, be patient, we'll get to you. Just make sure your beer is ready and we'll do the rest. To those of you who have already responded by email, look for a reply with the location and other details early next week.
Like most local gatherings, this is a free event. That's the point. From a philosophical standpoint, the Bootlegger's Bliss was conceived as a small step outside of commerce**—a tick in the matted hide of mass-production—and as an appreciation of highly personal craftwork against the backdrop of some sweet singletrack. It's a celebration of use value, that immeasurable quality that fills the soul with a sort of natural, ineffable satisfaction too seldom felt in the cold void, the funereal absence, the blanched banality that clings to exchange value like stench to carrion. A modified potlatch: give a beer, take a beer...and ride a bike. It's a good thing.
Simple stuff. And yet...
Alright, enough with the pretentious prose, thanks for suffering through it. Onto the fine print. Since using the word "rules" would be antithetical to the philosophy of this event, I'll simply call the following "strong suggestions." You will do well to heed them.- Bring a bike suitable for offroad use.
- Bring a six pack or growler or equivalent of homebrew that YOU brewed, either by yourself or with the help of as many friends as it takes. In lieu of bringing your own homebrew, you may instead bring a friend who homebrews and who brings a six pack or growler or equivalent of homebrew that HE or SHE made. Said friend should also bring a bike suitable for offroad use.
- Bring your BEST homebrew, something you'd be proud to take home to Ma. There will be a moment of judgement, so front your finest.
- Bring a glass...the vessel and the matter from which it's constructed. Plastic is for shitty beer, and hands make horrible receptacles.
- Bring other people who meet the first four requirements above and who don't have a problem with the whole concept.
- Bring enough food for yourself and, if you're nice, a wee bit more for sharing. HOMEMADE FOOD IS BEST, even if you're only cobbling together commercial ingredients. There should be charcoal grills on site; we'll confirm this on Sunday, October 8, and we will report shortly thereafter via email. There will likely be a camping gas grill as well, but if you have one, bring it; no such thing as too many grills.
- YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR OWN WELFARE. Makes sense, right? Remember: mountain biking is inherently dangerous; drunken mountain biking can be downright foolish. Both are tacitly—but NOT expressly—encouraged, in keeping with the principle of "think for yourself, drink for yourself."
- The beer-tasting piece will likely occur in the middle of the event to discourage those who drive much better when they're drunk from doing so. After all, we want you to come back next year.
That's pretty much it. Anything else is fair game.
POSTSCRIPT: The title of this post was suggested by a folk ballad.* Date Change: The date for the Bootlegger's Bliss was changed to avoid hunters in the area.
** Thanks to The Make-Up for each four-word phrase preceding the referential double-asterisks. Don't mind the mind...
2 comments:
That looks like a fun time. I wish i could hit that up. I am about to brew up my second attempt. I am trying a Pale Ale this time. I like the flyer. Did you draw that? Nice. My pick for victory in the 1st Annual Bootleggers Bliss is the Outlaw. Prolly with a Kolsch. He always seems to be brewing up a kolsch.
Yeah, my "artwork." An older piece, done for our semi-defunct The Big Meats "racing" team. Trying to come up with a new logo for this event now, but running out of time.
As for Joe, well, an event involving moutain biking AND homebrewing automatically makes him the odds-on favorite.
Too bad you can't make it, but then again, with the trails you have there, would you really want to?
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