MANVIL

It’s in the best interest of everybody who tries to race anything to put a plan into action. Great planning can lead to awesome success and victory, but it can also be a complete pain in the ass if you fail to win.

Oh, we’ve tried with great intetnions to plan for winning this thing we call the Portland Adult Soapbox Race. We’ve also failed so abysmally that we’ve cursed openly for what seemed like days. Keen ideas put forth by those who mean well, but do not have degrees in engineering makes for cars that might just go like hell, but self-destruct violently at speed. (Been there, done that. Surprisingly don’t have the tee.)

So, remarkably, we are putting the request out for a wooden part of this years car. The other parts are more integral, and will be bought new, but this part, all fashion over form, is something that must be chose from options that are out there. We’ll be approaching the boys at Harrity Tree Specialists for our need this year, and we’ll see whether the forward progress will get a car built for us in time for the August 18th (or so) race.

Unless of course you have a great crotch you want to offer the effort…

Here at MANVIL, we’ve had the great opportunity to work some pretty hands-on jobs. Anybody who’s seen prior work will see that Pete Wilson Stoneworks has been a major player in MANVIL’s work. We love working with Pete and his crew, and we like the feeling of a hard day of work making the city of Portland a better looking place.

So it comes as little surprise that when our client Link-Wall came a calling, we were excited to help. Simple enough in concept, yet thoroughly researched and supported by actual engineering math, the Link-Wall product is getting the ball rolling for some handsome, stout, structurally sound soil retention.

As graphics go, the product speaks for itself: thick, simple and effective. Our hat goes off to the designer and fabricator, a good friend and supporter of Soapbox. How could we not accept the challenge?!

Our hat is off to the Link-Wall project! Efficient, adaptable and good looking is not and easy product to put forth unless it has been thought out thoroughly. Cheers guys!

Soapbox extravaganza!

MANVIL has enjoyed being a part of Portland Adult Soapbox for almost 9 years now. Nine years? Oof Dah!

Oh, it started out innocently. A lunatic red-head at the bar stated she needed somebody to push her car. No big deal, right? So we stepped right in to help. Well the day was a blast, the ginger raced like the loon she is, as did her partner, and although she didn’t win, the fun and camaraderie (there honey, it’s finally spelled right) stuck in our heads. About a thousand fun-loving souls, all relatively well medicated, having a giant party in a public park with the paid-for consent of the city of Portland. (Our fair city!)

So, many years later, when the Derby Grand Jefe, Captain Chaos asked MANVIL for some help with the graphics on a fairly tight deadline, we were more than happy to oblige. We fulfilled all design needs for the event with pride of ownership.

Then a potential client asked about any recent integrated marketing campaigns we’d finished lately. Big words! Fancy words, which to us meant, “what did you do to promote something”. So we roughed something up for them… and realized, hey, we were on task with this whole thing. There is ‘cohesion in the design elements’ (read; a common theme) and the damned things kinda look good. They looked great post-production thanks to the professional efforts of Tom at Northwest Imprints and Sher-Lynn at the IMI Group. (Tees and posters) Our rapidly produced advertisement was displayed in the Portland Mercury and the Soapbox website turned out to be well received as well.

So here is a pile of the images, in a rather hastily built display. (sometimes it’s better to get the images displayed hastily, than to never display them at all)

So I suppose all sorts of folks started chasing their passions whilst youngsters. Maybe I fell for graphics late. Maybe I’m a delayed bloomer. Hell, maybe I left my keys in my ignition. Whatever reason there is for pursuing anything, there might be somebody wanting to help you make your off-center dreams come true. All it takes is to get the word out.

Enter the 2011 PDX Kids Soapbox race on August 27th. Curiously enough, the current (as of this week anyways) All-American Soap Box Derby World Champion calls Portland her home. She dreamt about running the PDX Adult Soapbox race, but realized she wasn’t going to be allowed to. (Not unless she can shotgun a beer like a champ, but that’s ill-advised at her age anyway.)

So here’s to letting the gremmies have free reign of Hawthorne from 50th to 55th. If you’ve got a yoongster who wants to roll, take a peek and look into the race. I’d imagine it’ll be a great time, and I am glad MANVIL may be a part of the events success. Some Assembly Required.

Those who know MANVIL know that for the last six or seven years (Maybe eight… OK it’s kind of a blur) we have been involved in one way or another with Portland Adult Soapbox. This year the powers that run the race turned to MANVIL for a little creative aid, and we were very happy to oblige.

Soapbox this year is on August 13th, and the MANVIL car may be a little more prepared for the race than in years past, but that’s no fault of ours. The beer will flow the race will run and the winner, whomever they are, will enjoy a grand spectacle.

MANVIL, well, we’re in it for the fun of being a part of something delightfully PDX. (And of course the full pic-i-nic basket and cooler of refreshments) Let the freak flags fly and enjoy Mt. Tabor!

A special thanks goes out to the good folks who support PDX Soapbox… the Portland and Soapbox racing public at large, and especially Pete Wilson Stoneworks, Jens Edwards Electric, Ecoheat, Infinity Tattoo, Bakery Bar, Bipartisan Cafe, Pine State Biscuits, Laurelhurst Theater,  Migration Brewing, Cheese Bar, New Deal Distillery, Beulahland, MEAT, Adams Law, New Deal Cafe, IMI, Lompoc, Flying Pie Pizzaria, Oregon Sports Action and Kolorwerx.

Here’s to Soapbox!