1. Don’tMess WithKati Texas
By BenjaminFordham
She firstcame to Humboldt, like somanyof us,performingaone-womanshow about19th
-
centuryanarchistEmma Goldman.Now,she isone of us, praise be to the Glory.
She isKati Texas: RutabagaQueen, ArtistinResidence atthe InkPeople,andco-creatorof the
popular“Classical Nudes”and“Heroesof Gloryopolis”kineticsculptures,andshe rocks.
TexashailsfromKaty,Texas,outside Houston,anddiscoveredHumboldtCountywhile taking
the aforementionedone-womanshowon aWestCoast road tripin 2003. She didtwoshows here,one
of whichwasinan oldbarn.
“That was the best show of the whole trip,”saysTexas.“Isaid, ‘that’sit,I’m movinghere.’”
She soongot involvedwithDuane Flatmo’s RedwoodBurl Mural Bureau,andthenthe Ink
People.Thatledtoa pit-crewassignmentinthe KineticGrandChampionship,andthe rest,as theysay,
ishistory.
Now,inwhat she describesasa “laborof love”, Texasistakinga two-yearhiatusfromthe KGC
to helprunthe KineticUniverse,whichis the non-profitorganizationbehindthe KGC.
Whichleadsus to the Grand Championshipitself,a three day,42 mile race that founderHobart
Browncalled “adultshavingfunsochildrenwill wanttogrow up.” FestivitiesbeginonSaturday,May
26th
at 10 a.m.on the Arcata Plaza, withthe 44th
annual KineticGrandChampionship kickingoff athigh
noon.
Followingthe startatthe Plaza, where judgingtakesplace andonlookerscanbaskinthe Glory,
the racers travel down throughthe Arcata Bottomsand out to the ManilaDunesCommunityCenter.
From there it’s downtoDead Man’s Drop,so namedforthe manygruesome kinetic-relateddeathsthat
have happened there overthe years(thisisnottrue).
Thenit’sonwardthroughEureka, past HumboldtHill,andeventually downthroughLoleta,
Fernbridge,and Ferndale,where “we close downMainSt. Ferndale andthrow a bigparty.” There are
several pointsalongthe course where fanscanwatchthe race and/or attend variousevents,including
music,food,Queen-spotting,andabeergarden.
“It’sreallythe bestreasonto do anything,”saysTexasof KGC’sslogan,Forthe Glory!
Whenshe’snot helpingwith the KineticUniverse, Texasdedicateshertime tothe InkPeople
Centerforthe Arts, whichshe describesas“a hubfor artistsand art activitiesinHumboldtCounty.”

2. The Ink People sponsorsthe NorthStarQuestCampforGirls,the DreamMaker and MARZ
programs,an operatroupe,a fashiondesigntroupe,variousmediaenterprises,and cultural and
language preservationgroups,amongotherthings.
Dream Makeris an umbrellaprogramwhichmanagesthe non-profitstatusof almost60
organizationsinthe area,includingthe ArcataRepertoryTheatre,KineticKids,andNorthCoast
Storytellers.MARZ(MediaActionResource Zone) provides free accessforaspiring youngartiststoart
supplies,arecordingstudio,andmore.“We tryand show themthat theycan turn theirart intoa career,
not justa hobby,”saysTexas.
Texasdescribesherownartas easyandhumorous.“It’sjustmy take on how everything’sso
fuckedupand awesome atthe same time.”She alsolovesthe collaborative aspectsof art,whichmakes
hera natural for the KGC. “That’sabsolutelymyfavorite part (of the race).”
So as we enterthat particulartime of the yearhere on the NorthCoast whengiantmobile art
projectsare raced throughthe countryside,let’stake amomenttoappreciate whatgoesonbehindthe
scenestomake it all possible.Whoobtainsthe 20+ permitsrequired bythe variousstate andlocal
agencies?Whomakessure the racers are fed,libated,andkepttrackof?Who arrangesfor giant
Connect-4gamesto be playedatHalvorsonPark?Kati Texas isone of those people,andyoumay now
kissherpaintsplatteredshoes,if itpleasesHerMajesty.
For more informationonthe KineticGrandChampionshipgotokineticgrandchampionship.com
For more informationonthe InkPeople gotoinkpeople.org
To viewKati Texas’sartgo to katitexas.com