Tommy: Welcome back to The Trail Lunchbox on Trail 103.3. I'm Tommy, and today we've got a very special guest in the studio. If you've spent any time on Instagram or Facebook lately, you've probably seen a very unusual vehicle making its way across the country—a pear-shaped motorcycle that's become an internet sensation.

Unfortunately, that pear broke down right here in Missoula, Montana, which is actually how we ended up meeting today's guest.

Glubbey, welcome to the studio.

Glubbey: Thanks for having me!

Tommy: Before we get into the story, introduce yourself to everyone listening.

Glubbey: Absolutely. I'm Glubbey—my name's Andrew—and I'm traveling across the United States in a pear-shaped motorcycle that I call the Pear Car.

I started in Florida with the goal of riding all the way to Seattle. After that, I'll eventually head back across the country, probably taking a different route. I'm thinking about following the coast down to San Diego before heading east again.

Tommy: When you first started this trip, did you expect something like this to happen? Did you ever think, "This thing might break down?"

Glubbey: Definitely.

Honestly, I'm surprised I made it this far.

I was getting close to Seattle and thinking maybe I should ask the scooter company for a sponsorship because it had been running so well.

I did have one smaller issue earlier in the trip. I ran completely out of oil—which is never a great feeling because you don't know whether the engine's going to survive.

Luckily, I happened to break down on a farmer's property. He was incredibly nice, went to the auto parts store, grabbed some oil for me, and thankfully the engine started back up.

So I got lucky that time.

Tommy: This breakdown looked a little more serious.

I saw some of the photos online and it looked like you had the whole thing torn apart on the side of the road.

Walk us through what happened.

Glubbey: I was coming down the hill near Bonner when I suddenly heard a loud pop.

Immediately the engine lost power and stalled.

I pulled over and hit the starter just to see what would happen, but the engine was basically free-spinning.

That wasn't a good sign.

So I pulled out all my tools—wrenches, screwdrivers, everything I carry—and started taking it apart right there on the shoulder.

After looking things over, I pretty quickly realized this wasn't something I was going to fix by myself.

Tommy: And then, as luck would have it, somebody from Missoula stepped in to help.

Glubbey: Yeah.

A guy named Cooper reached out after seeing my posts on Instagram.

His account is Fruit Fetish, and he messaged me saying he'd come pick me up.

He loaded the Pear Car into the back of his truck, took me home, and introduced me to some friends who know a lot more about motorcycle engines than I do.

They put one of those tiny inspection cameras down through the spark plug hole and immediately found metal fragments scattered everywhere inside the cylinder.

At that point we knew the top end of the engine needed to be replaced.

I ordered the parts, and now we're just waiting to get everything back together.

Tommy: That's incredible.

You're obviously not a mechanic...

You're an artist.

And the Pear Car is just one of a lot of creative projects you've built over the years.

How did all of this start?
Tommy: You're obviously not a mechanic—you've described yourself as more of an artist. The Pear Car is just one of several creative projects you've built over the years. Tell us about your background and what eventually led to Glubbey and the traveling Pear Car.

Glubbey: I've been building sculpture vehicles for at least five years now.

A couple of years ago, I moved into a minivan. The original idea was to raise the roof so I could stand up inside it, kind of like a Sprinter van.

Once I built the roof extension, I looked at it and thought, "Well...this already looks completely ridiculous."

So I kept going.

I covered it with spray foam, started sculpting it, painted it, and turned it into something really unique. It was so much fun driving around in that van that I realized I couldn't go back to driving a normal vehicle.

After that, I started coming up with all kinds of ideas.

My next big project was turning a box truck into a party bus.

The front of it was designed to look like a giant smiling face. The windshield became the eyes, and the whole front of the truck looked like this huge cartoon character smiling at people as it drove down the road.

It turned out really cool.

Ironically, I enjoyed building the party bus more than actually giving people rides in it.

Tommy: So the building process is really the fun part for you.

Glubbey: Definitely.

After that I started making custom mailboxes for people in Florida. I'd build these big sculptural mailboxes, and eventually I found myself with a little downtime between projects.

I thought, "Why don't I just build a giant pear?"

So I did.

The first one wasn't a vehicle at all—it was just a wooden pear sculpture with a big smiling face and one giant eye near the top.

Somebody bought it.

Then somebody else wanted one.

So I built another one.

Eventually I bought this scooter, looked at it, and thought...

"It has to become the pear."

Everything just kind of snowballed from there.

Tommy: So what's the Pear Car actually made out of?

People see it online and assume it's fiberglass or foam or something molded together.

How's it built?

Glubbey: The internal structure is all wood.

That's basically the skeleton.

Then the outside is covered with aluminum beer cans and soda cans.

Tommy: Wait...

Beer cans?

That's actually the finish?

Glubbey: Yep.

People ask me all the time if it's spray foam or fiberglass or some kind of resin.

Nope.

It's wood underneath and aluminum cans covering the outside.

Pretty much everything except the screws was free.

The paint was free.

The cans were free.

Most of the wood was reclaimed.

It ended up being a really inexpensive project to build.

Tommy: That's incredible.

How long did it actually take from the moment you had the idea until you were riding the Pear Car down the road?

Glubbey: The idea really started while I was driving the party bus around.

That thing only got about seven miles per gallon.

I drove it from Florida to Houston, then up to Tennessee and back, and I spent something like twelve hundred dollars just on gasoline.

Eventually I realized I couldn't keep traveling that way.

While I was in Houston I found a great deal on this scooter from a friend.

I figured...

"I could live in a tent for one summer."

I've spent plenty of time living out of vehicles already.

Sleeping in a tent didn't seem like that big of a sacrifice if it meant saving thousands of dollars on fuel.

That's when the scooter became the obvious choice.

Around that same time, I happened to be at a neighborhood block party in Chattanooga.

I started looking at all these empty beer cans people had thrown away.

Next thing I knew, I was digging through recycling bins collecting cans.

By the end of the night I had filled four huge contractor bags.

I remember thinking...

"This is probably enough aluminum to build something pretty big."

When I got home, I already had stacks of reclaimed fence boards waiting.

I went straight to work.

I built the entire Pear Car in just eight days.

Tommy: Eight days?

Glubbey: Eight days...

...and during that same week I also got my motorcycle license.

Tommy: That's unbelievable.

You built the vehicle and earned your motorcycle endorsement in the same week.

That's pretty impressive.
Tommy: So you've spent the most unexpected amount of time here in Missoula because of the breakdown, but before that, what places have really stood out to you on this trip?

What are some of the moments you'll remember?

Glubbey: Chattanooga, Tennessee, has definitely been one of my favorite places.

It's absolutely beautiful—there are waterfalls everywhere, great hiking, and we've made some really good friends there.

I actually brought my party bus to an art car event in Chattanooga. There were all kinds of wild sculpture cars and painted vehicles. It was a huge gathering of creative people, and it was just an awesome experience.

Funny enough, my girlfriend's car also broke down while we were there, so we ended up spending quite a bit of time on a farm outside the city.

Looking back, it was actually a great place to get stranded.

The community really came together to help us, and everyone was incredibly kind.

Honestly, this experience in Missoula has reminded me a lot of that.

Tommy: I'm glad Missoula has been able to step up for you, too.

Outside of repairing the Pear Car—or scooter...or motorcycle...or whatever we're calling it...

Glubbey: (laughs) Honestly, you can call it whatever you want.

Scooter...

Motorcycle...

Pear Car...

I'm good with all of them.

Tommy: Fair enough.

Outside of fixing the Pear Car, how can people follow along with your journey or support what you're doing?

Glubbey: The easiest place is Instagram.

My username is @glubbey.

I'm also on TikTok with the same name.

And on Facebook you can find me under Andrew Glubbey.

If people want to follow the trip, see what I'm building next, or just keep up with the adventure, that's where I post everything.

Tommy: Since you've unexpectedly been hanging around Missoula for a while, what have you been up to?

Glubbey: Mostly tent camping.

A friend has been letting me camp in their driveway, which has actually worked out really well.

The place I'm staying is within walking distance of just about everything, so even without the Pear Car I've been able to explore the city.

I've spent time downtown, checked out Caras Park, gone hiking...

Honestly, I've really enjoyed being here.

Tommy: Have you been getting a lot of attention along the way?

I imagine people see this giant pear coming down the highway and immediately start asking questions.

Have you had much media coverage or people stopping you everywhere you go?

Glubbey: Oh yeah.

People wave.

People honk.

They yell out their windows.

Lots of people stop me at gas stations wanting pictures.

I've been fortunate to have quite a few interviews and articles written about the trip.

It's funny because the Pear Car seems to make people smile immediately.

I think people appreciate seeing something completely unexpected.

Tommy: What's it actually like driving this thing?

You're only going about forty miles an hour.

You've got semis flying past you on the interstate.

That has to be a little nerve-racking.

Glubbey: That's honestly been the scariest part of the trip.

Sometimes a semi will start passing me without having much room, and I'll have to move over onto the shoulder just to give them enough space.

When trucks pass in the opposite direction, the wind they create really pushes the Pear Car around.

You've got to keep both hands firmly on the handlebars because it'll move you around pretty quickly.

You definitely stay alert.

Tommy: I bet.

Hold on tight.

What do you hope people take away from this whole project?

Obviously it's funny.

It's creative.

It's getting attention online.

But is there something bigger you hope people get from it?

Glubbey: Honestly...

I just want to spread some love for pears.

I think pears are one of the most underrated fruits out there.

People don't appreciate pears enough.

They're delicious.

They're about to be in season.

Everybody should eat more pears.

Tommy: (laughing) I love that.

That's probably the best mission statement we've ever had on this show.

Well...

Before we let you go...

We've got one more thing to do.

You can't come into the Trail studio as the guy driving a giant pear across America without playing a little game.

Glubbey: Absolutely.

Tommy: Perfect.

We've got nowhere to be, right?

Glubbey: (laughs) Nope.

Tommy: All right...

Let's play a game we're calling...

"Rate the Fruit."
The Trail staff has put together what we believe are the Top 10 fruits, and we're going to let the man driving the giant pear decide whether we got it right.

Ready?

Glubbey: Let's do it.

Tommy: All right, here's what we've got:

Strawberries
Oranges
Coconut
Apples
Bananas
Cherries
Limes
Mangoes
Peaches
Pears

You're going to rank them from your least favorite to your absolute favorite.

Glubbey: Okay...least favorite...

I'm going to have to go with cherries.

Tommy: Cherries?!

That's your last-place fruit?

I did not see that coming.

I love cherries.

Glubbey: (laughs) Yeah...they're just not my favorite.

Tommy: All right.

Cherries land at number ten.

Who's next?

Glubbey: Number nine...

I'll go with lemons.

Tommy: Interesting.

So cherries are below lemons.

You're already shaking up our rankings.

All right...

What's next?

Glubbey: If that's a red apple...

I'm putting the apple next.

If it were a green apple, it'd be a little higher.

Tommy: Ah...

So this is specifically a strike against red apples.

Glubbey: Exactly.

Tommy: Fair enough.

So apples move into the next spot.

We've still got peaches, strawberries, mangoes, coconuts, bananas, limes, and pears left on the table.

Take your time.

Glubbey: I'll go with peaches next.

Tommy: Peaches!

All right.

We're getting into the top half now.

Who's next?

Glubbey: Coconuts.

Tommy: Coconut lands in the middle of the rankings.

Now things are getting serious.

We're down to limes, mangoes, strawberries, bananas, and pears.

Honestly, my predictions are falling apart here.

I wasn't expecting this.

Glubbey: (laughs)

Next...

Limes.

Tommy: Really?

I thought limes would be much lower.

Glubbey: I love the flavor.

You can't really eat them by themselves, but they make everything taste better.

Tommy: That's a fair argument.

So limes move into the top four.

Now we're down to mangoes...

Strawberries...

Bananas...

...and pears.

What's next?

Glubbey: Mangoes.

Tommy: Mangoes are out.

Now we're down to the final three.

Strawberries.

Bananas.

Pears.

Who's taking third?

Glubbey: Strawberries.

Tommy: Wow!

Okay...

So we've got bananas...

and pears...

for the championship.

Who's number two?

Glubbey: Bananas.

Tommy: Which means...

The number one fruit...

According to the man driving a giant pear across America...

...is the pear!

(Everyone laughs.)

Glubbey: I know...

That was probably a little predictable.

Tommy: I promise everyone listening...

We did not rig this.

It just worked out exactly the way you'd expect.

Glubbey: (laughs)

Tommy: Well, Glubbey, thanks so much for stopping by.

It's been a blast getting to hear your story.

Hopefully the Pear Car is back on the road very soon.

Until then, enjoy your time in Missoula, and thanks for hanging out with us today.

Glubbey: Thanks so much for having me.

I really appreciate it.

Tommy: That's Glubbey, the creator of the traveling Pear Car.

Be sure to follow his journey on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook, and hopefully the next time you see the giant pear, it'll be rolling down the highway instead of sitting in a repair shop.

Thanks for listening to The Trail Lunchbox.