The Manic American

Summary graphic for article about Chaps Pit Beef, with images depicting a pit beef sandwich, the restaurant exterior, and a man working in the kitchen

Checking in on Chaps Pit Beef (Baltimore City, Maryland)

On: 12/31/2022

We stopped for legendary, charcoal-grilled Chaps Pit Beef sandwiches and took a deeper look at the surrounding neighborhood.

Summary graphic: A helmeted motorcycle rider takes a photo of a rainbow arcing over a vista of red rocks and buttes.

Behind The Photo: The Rider and The Rainbow (Torrey, UT)

On: 11/06/2022

In: The West

We stopped to look up at the last remnant of the storm that had just hit Torrey, UT: a rainbow arcing above the road to Capitol Reef.

Summary graphic: The census tracts which contain the IBX, and how they would align with the NYC subway system.

Mapping the IBX: Analyzing The Data Behind NYC’s Proposed New Transit Line

On: 06/19/2022

In: New York

NYC may be getting a new transit line, the IBX, so we dug into data from the Census Bureau to reveal where the IBX-lands are, who lives in them, and why they need it.

Summary graphic: A lone ice cream truck on Rockaway Beach at night

Rockaway Beach 2020: When the Most NYC Place in NYC Saved NYC from NYC

On: 09/10/2021

In: New York, Northeast

After 2020’s spring of nonstop ambulance sirens and the daily 7 p.m. clap for healthcare workers, New Yorkers needed a vacation. Rockaway Beach was the only place they could trust.

Summary graphic: A shirtless man selling alcoholic beverages on Rockaway Beach

Rockaway Beach, Part 2: THE BEACH, and The Hustle

On: 09/10/2021

In: American Travel, New York

New Yorkers make New York work for them. It’s no different at Rockaway Beach.

Summary graphic: An ice cream truck driver photographs fireworks at Rockaway Beach

Rockaway Beach, Part 3: Urban Filth and the Fourth of July

On: 09/10/2021

In: American Travel, New York

Let’s celebrate the grit of Rockaway Beach, while taking a closer look at Fourth of July celebrations there during the first summer of the pandemic.

Summary graphic: Two photos of hamburgers from Rippers, in Rockaway Beach

Rockaway Beach, Part 4: The Food of Rockaway Beach (Go There Now!)

On: 09/10/2021

In: American Travel, New York

A lot is being written about Rockaway Beach food these days. Let us show you the pictures.

Summary graphic: The coal elevator of Peabody Energy's Kayenta Mine at night.

Channeling Hayduke’s Ghost At Arizona’s Kayenta Mine

On: 04/17/2021

In: The West

You don’t need any signs to explain what you’re looking at when you’re near Arizona’s Kayenta Mine. All you need is a copy of Ed Abbey’s The Monkey Wrench Gang.

Summary graphic: The smiling pig graphic outside of John’s Roast Pork in South Philly.

How Philly Became the Best Sandwich City in America: A Pandemic Bike Tourism Exploration

On: 01/31/2021

In: American Travel, Mid-Atlantic

America is a land of awful sandwiches, of industrially produced, sugary bread; of rubbery, microwaved half-meats; of watery, shredded lettuce. The one city that doesn’t tolerate mediocrity is Philly. Philly’s urban density means there is a never-ending appetite for classic comfort as well as hoagie experimentation, and that density gave me the idea to do a Philly sandwich tour by bike.