Forty Long Years Ago

As I am riding a bike and writing a blog solely for pleasure, I get on the bike in the morning and let it take me where it wants to go. Today, that meant down towards the harbor, on a remarkably clean and quiet street:

The sun looks scorching-hot, but since it's only 8 in the AM, looks can be deceiving. It's not hot but very nice for riding (with sunglasses). I hope I haven't burnt out the sensors in my iPhone by "looking" into the sun.

Earlier in the long history of this blog, I mentioned my early days in cycling, and posted a picture of myself in the Shelter Island Time Trials in 1973. Here it is again.

Here's the same bike on the same corner. I rode it there this morning, and am taking the picture. As a youth I couldn't imagine such esoteric concepts as "40 years later" but still, here we are. And lucky to be here too. A generation ago, this island wasn't here - it was just a sand bar.

Shelter Island was built from mud dredged out of San Diego harbor to make a channel for Navy ships. This happened in 1934; you can read its history here. It hasn't changed much over the passing years.

I decided to do a lap of the island. In the process, I noticed a new piece of public art in front of one of the hotels. I like it, especially as it's framed by the palm trees. The two separate halves of the wave do not touch in the middle - they are cantilevered off the bases on either side. I hope it's sunk well down in the mud.

In case you are now considering putting up a sign that says "Gone Fishing" on your desk, here's the panoramic view you will see when you amble out onto the Shelter Island fishing pier. [Click any photo to let it take over your desktop, and click return to come back.]

Notice my bike is in the foreground just above this text. The pier is straight, it's just the panoramic view that gives it this curved look. I am pointing southwest, looking towards the North Island Naval Air Station. The small bump in the middle is Mexico.

You are not allowed to ride on the sidewalk or the pier, so be sure to walk your bike and avoid a ticket. There's a cafe on the pier where they sell hot coffee, cold beer and rent fishing gear. What more could you want?

On my way back off the island I spotted this little Mitsubishi Galant Station Wagon. This orphan car is one of the very few that have been assembled in Australia and imported to the US (Mercury Capri convertible was another).

For some reason, I've always like the BMW-esque lines of the car, though I've noticed the cars themselves don't seem to hold up very well. This one's only about 10-12 years old. Imagine if the paint were still shiny, the roof rack removed, the antenna missing, the droopy seat belts tucked away, and you are sweeping down a curvy road...