Note: The Crew would like to chime in about their developing subculture.
The Bike Trip Subculture
By: David Margolies and Andrew De Figueiredo
While isolated from others and exposed to only the same eighr people unyieldingly it is not uncommon for a group to create its own customs, sayings and rituals otherwise known as a subculture. The Bike Loud Crew is essentially, at this point a minimalist nomadic tribe, making their way from town to town hunting in gas stations and gathering from Dollar stores.
The Scooby
One of the staples of Bike Trip culture is the coveting of THE Blue Scooby. Elusive and rare, the Scooby has become a valuable commodity comparable to gold in its weight.
While interacting with only the same eight people, there are commonly said words which are exhausted after heavy usage... Unless said in a different tone or even substituted for a word that is non existent in the English language or has a completely different meaning.
Imagine going to Jamaica for the first time with no knowledge of the local accents and the different dialect of English used. That is what it would be like to join the bike crew at this stage of the trip.
Among our most used terms unfamiliar to the "outside world" is "Punishment" The term came about on our first night in Triangle Lake, OR. Alex was using the restroom at a gas station and after he had concluded his visit, Brian asked the attendant of the convenience store where the restroom was located. The attendant replied with directions including instructions; "Just don't punish the toilet like your friend over there." Since then the phrase "going to the bathroom" has not been used.
Brian knocks.
The people of the bike trip are a superstitious one. While some cultures practice rain dances and others sacrifice sheep, we obsessively knock on wood. Anytime something is said like... "No rain today" or "looks like we have a tailwind" the entire crew proceeds to locate a tree, table or their cork handlebar tape and knock twice. It is not uncommon to be passing someone and see them controlling their bike with one hand and knocking on their handlebars with the other.
If we were to be a tribe, Brian would be our medicine man. It is rare to see him not knocking on wood or telling people "don't jinx it." It appears his spells are working.
Just like the ancient Greeks the bike crew has an Oracle... Ed Billings, and the spirit that posses him is "THE Weather App" This is no normal app, as he so frequently tells us. It was developed by a mysterious meteorologist that Ed knows, or so the legend goes. We rely on our prophet solely and loyally for all the knowledge about the sky above and what is to come.
The Bike Trip is its own autonomous civilization that seldom contacts people ranging outside of the tribe. We have our own dialect of culture that may seem odd to an outsider, but due to time and isolation, it seems completely normal to us. At least we can still realize it, but don't have the same expectation when we reach the beach. We are fully immersed, bikin' it and likin' it.