Yellow Bike Dude BMX Superhero Greensboro Country Park Blues

During a week of smoking hot temps in Greensboro, I finally got a chance to go back out to my beloved Greensboro Country Park, where by the end of the season I'm sure to know lots of new people, and to have seen many familiar and friendly faces as well. This week included some fun times.

On one lap last weekend, I went flying down the longest hill in Country Park (in a safe way of course). After checking for the pedestrian situation before going down the hill, I noticed a young guy on a trick bike, a BMX or something. I started cruising the hill and was gaining on him, as is common on moderate to steep hills. I noticed he was dancing in his seat (as opposed to dancing on the pedals), putting on some moves as he jammed to his not iPod personal stereo.

As he was weaving a bit and there were people walking up the hill on our left, I decided to announce myself and pass on the right. I don't think he heard me of course, in spite of my not being timid in my declarations.

About two-thirds of the way down the hill I was passing on his right as he made some moves in his seat then looked over to see me a foot away or so. He was pleasantly shocked and in a friendly way he started cranking and took the short way around the last left turn at the flagpole (the one most of our skater group goes around, taking the long way so we can sometime get in a slightly uphill switchback crossover for practice).

His frantic pedaling reminded me of an old wooden-handled manual mixer I enjoyed studying and using as a kid. It was fixed wheeled too, as I recall. A cool device, all silvery chrome with red handles and no sign of ergonomic design...just basic function with bright colors and metal. This dude's bike was pretty basic but still cool of course, as he was riding it, and pumping away as I took the long way and took care to not push too hard.

Taking the switchback, I saw him checking back and hoping for a contest. I was not going to push myself, I was sure. He kept looking back, weaving each time, but I knew by now he was likely tired, and thinking I wasn't coming for a chase.

Something happened and I turned into a Sheltie for a moment, sure he had the tennis ball of my dreams to chase, upon which my meaning existed. Thinking he was through checking, I kicked in whatever I had to see if I could catch him as he napped.

Once I was close, we were almost at the last little drop where it is sometimes congested, so for safety, I knew I needed to pass him before the playground driveway on the left. I drifted over to his left and I was sure he had seen me when he busted a move and extended his left arm fully just a few inches in front of my face! I looked at him and was ready for him to hit it like a mixer, but we was just posing his way along in his own wonderful audioworld. That was great for him and for me.

Rolling along at about 15 to 20 mph, I was close enough to reach over to tap him on the right shoulder, the side away from his extended arm which had now been drawn back in like he was carrying a football to the goal line or some such.

He seemed truly shocked that someone tapped him on the shoulder as he rode along riding his bike, and he looked over his shoulder quickly, inquisitively, in his sonicfunk, figuring it out...huh? Nobody there!

YellowBikeDude then looked around to my side and I had kicked in the quads for all my penguin self could muster and was by him. I heard him shout “Oh No!” like a secret superhero who had broken his mom's ming vase while visiting, and could not display his powers to save the prized possession.

I kept pushing, knowing I had gotten the advantage by choosing the spot just before the brief downhill and catching him just as he finally was chilling from his previous sprint. The smell of hamburgers from the picnic shelter was incredibly wonderful blended with humming skate wheels jarring in my brain and the thrill of lucky timing in our fun little game.

I didn't look back until I had gone by the parking lot and back up the first hill by the veterans monument, whereupon I saw he had long since become bored of any chase. Thank goodness, for he would have toasted me completely on the uphill curve!

For YellowBikeDude I'm sure all of this was insignificant. But for SilverBlueSkatesDude, the episode was spectacular due to its implausibility and sheer luck. I had not expected to chase, wanting to take it easy and build gradually and all that rot. But just enough checking back on my location from YellowBikeDude sparked the engine and put a burst of fun into an otherwise repetitive sixteen-mile day of laps in Country Park.

Back around at the high point of the loop where the road comes in from Jaycee Park, I saw YellowBikeDude sitting on the bench with his helmet off, taking it easy under the tall pines there, still spinning in his tuneweb and working out his moves. I spoke with him briefly to say I had not been yelling at him going down the first hill because I was upset, but just so he'd know I was there.

With a bit of a blank stare, he curved out a friendly smile and said without words, “No worries,” or “That's cool,” or maybe “Huh? When were you yelling?”

Skateylove y'all...

Blake