For the past two years I have been trying to get up the courage to do the legendary San Francisco Friday Night Skate. Last night I finally did it… and I didn’t die! (I did fall a couple of times.)
It was the 69th birthday of my friend and FNS organizer Lainie that got me over my fear and anxiousness. I figured, if Lainie can do it at age 69, the least I can do is TRY.
Here’s me surprising Lainie by showing up at the starting point by the SF Ferry Building.
So I put on my big boy pants (and pads , helmet , lights and skates with my softest wheels and toe stops) and headed for the Ferry Building. It was already a mob scene when I got there at 8:30pm. And it just kept getting bigger and bigger, with around 100+ folks rolling out from there.
I’ll be honest, a lot of the night was a blur to me. I was mostly concentrated on not falling and making it to the next rest stop.
The most memorable parts:
- smoothly rolling through the Embarcadero to Fishermans Wharf. So dreamy!
- an impromptu roller rink at the historic Palace of Fine Arts
- the “window people” cheering us as we rolled through various neighborhoods
- slaloming down the Stockton Tunnel into Union Square
When I made it back to the Ferry Building well after midnight, I was dead tired. And happy. And proud.