RLM - Resurrecting the Salt Vampire

 

Given this thumbnail and that it's 17 minutes long, I couldn't figure what this could mean. RedLetterMedia has acquired an artifact from the original series of "Star Trek."

Does Rad Take Place in Kentucky?

 

Early on in the film, Cru takes a consent form to his mom to allow him to race in Hell Track (really the qualifying race). 

The text is as follows:

HELL TRACK MINOR RELEASE FORM

(PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING BEFORE SIGNING)

In applying to enter any or all of the above mentioned races, I the racer & I/we the parent/guardian, hereby release all the rights and claims which I may have against you arising from conditions related to use of the track or track area or as a result thereof. Each of the undersigned expressly agree that the foregoing release waiver holds harmless and indemnifies National Bicycle League, Schwinn Bicycle Company, Levi Strauss & Co., its directors, owners and possessors of Derby City BMX Association, the Kentucky Department of Parks, and E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park.

Parent/Gdn. Signature _____

Date Signed: _____

Rider's Signature: _____

Date Signed: _____

Aside from the most important thing - that St. Louis beat Houston - there are some interesting nuggets here. I never knew that Hell Track was sponsored by Levi Strauss, all the signage in the movie says 7-11 and Chief Auto Parts. 

But then aside from that, why would they have to agree not to sue the Kentucky Department of Parks unless the race is supposed to take place in Kentucky?

Of course we know from the magazine article (and I think other places?), that the film takes place in Oregon. I suppose even within the props department, there was some disagreement. And by the way, E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park does exist in Kentucky (Louisville) but no Cochran or Cochrane Kentucky exists (at least on google maps), but there is a Cochran Oregon, of course.

The SATs in Rad

 

Ask anyone on the street what "Rad" is about and you're likely to be hear someone drone on about BMX bike racing and how Bart Taylor is "the man." But, at its core, "Rad" is essentially about the SATs - and specifically about scheduling the SATs.

Early in the movie, when Cru brings a consent form for his mother to sign. She looks at the form (which doesn't have a date on it, more on that later) and says "Isn't that the day you're supposed to make up your SATs?"

Did you ever notice that she says "make up." Doesn't this mean that he already missed them once? Later on in the movie, he's told that the conflict between Hell Track and the SATs could be resolved by simply taking the SATs at a later date and it seems like this is revelatory for him. But if he's rescheduled once, shouldn't it be obvious that he can reschedule again? 

So this is the second time he's putting them off. He's missing the SATs that he already missed.

And why didn't he take them the first time? What, the local yokel was too busy with his paper route? Pfff.

Popcorn in Bed - Star Trek TNG Season 5 Part 2

 

"Cause and Effect" and "Inner Light" - two of the greats.

Guy Buys an American Chopper Bike

 A dude bought a decades old OCC bike, one made on the show "American Choppers." It's extremely overpowered and has rarely been run. This is a series where he tries to fix it up into working order.

As a weirdo "American Chopper" fan, I like that the form and content of this video echoes that show, very nostalgic.

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For the video below, skip to 22:23.

And apparently this is an ongoing saga for which we have to wait for new videos.

3 miles per tank? Holy cow.

For the sake of accurate information, I tried to lookup this episode and watch the bike being built. As far as I can tell, this is from "Senior vs. Junior" Season 1 Episode 6. But looking for that episode, and other episodes, it looks like there is no place to watch "American Chopper" - pay streaming sites as well as free, it's nowhere. I'll grant that I may be the only person looking this up in 2024 but I'm very surprised and don't know how to explain that.

Not necessarily this guy but there are too many drama queens on the internet flipping out that OCC bikes are unreliable. Of course the themed bikes were commercials. Of course they were meant to be looked at rather than driven. Come on.

The Government's Cheese Tunnels

 

I've heard of many aspects of this "conspiracy" for years but never got the whole story. It's not really a conspiracy at all (by the informal definition) since it's all done in plain sight.

I don't appreciate this guy's whole "slacker attitude," but the information is what counts.