THE SHOW'S SETUP
This revolution WILL be televised! Uniquely blending documentary and scripted elements, each very real tournament is presented by hosts from a SportsCenter-esque studio as though it is a live event of global significance, like the Super Bowl or World Cup, and the jousters hyped as the superheroes they so clearly are.
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THE TALL BIKE JOUST originally served
as a pilot for SMART PEOPLE BEING STUPID - an unscripted TV/ web series traveling the nation to find intelligent and successful people who engage in random, silly, and seemingly pointless events the general public does not even know exists.
BUT GIVEN THE SUCCESS OF THIS PILOT
... and the growing popularity of of the underground sport of tall bicycle jousting, this project also now serves as a pilot for THE TALL BIKE JOUST WORLD CUP - a series following five jousters from the pilot as they earn points in tall bicycle jousting tournaments across the country and strive to earn the highly coveted crown of the year-end champion.
WHY THIS SHOW
HAS TO HAPPEN
I've made short documentaries of some bizarre events: cardboard boat races (life-sized boats you have to physically row), neighborhood-wide water balloon fights, and even 24 Hour St. Patrick's Day pub crawls. But, nothing prepared me for the adrenaline rush of tall bicycle jousting. It was a bedlam of steampunk meets Mad Max, but there was also an overarching joy and camaraderie
where jousters laughed in the face of humiliation (and potential injury).
COUPLE THAT ABSURD
CELEBRATION OF LIFE
...with the fact that the joust was run by
a local non-profit bicycle shop and the proceeds from that one event helped 54 people living on the streets have access to their own bicycle (not a tall one)--providing them with much-needed basic transportation and the means to earn a living. Now other non- profit bicycle shops want to copy this format and be a part of the world’s first (semi) professional tall bike joust tour. In today's divided society, what could be more important than bringing people together to joyously reveling in our shared eccentricity and to help others in the process?