I briefly mentioned the bike race but, having sore muscles 3 days later, it is still on my mind. Yes, I sat around and drank beer all day, and my muscles are sore as hell. I can’t imagine how the cyclists who rode 156 miles (including 10 trips up the Manayunk Wall) in 100 degree heat must be feeling. One of those cyclists was my high school friend Ted King, which I realized as I watched the race on tv in the fantastically air-conditioned house we partied at. His name was shown several times as one of the front-runners, causing me to tipsily exclaim, to no one in particular, “I went to high school with that kid!”

The bike race is a big social event around these parts. Though the race goes from the Art Museum through East Falls, Manayunk, and Roxborough, Manayunk is the place to be (and drink). The cyclists race up the Manayunk Wall (a crazy, San Francisco-esque hill) over and over again while we walk around, beers in hand, and cheer them on when they come through. It’s rather like tailgating, or Memphis- you can walk around wasted, holding a beer, and the numerous cops don’t care.

My muscle soreness stems from my many, many bathroom trips. You see, the two houses I hung out in only had bathrooms on the second floor, forcing me to abandon my chair at the foot of the stairs, clamber up on my hands and knees, and scoot down on my butt (not freefall-style; one stair at a time). Drinking makes me have to pee quite often, so I made many such trips. I guess it was the fact that I used muscles I don’t usually exercise, but when I woke up on Monday, my arms and legs were sore and stiff, and still are.

Other injuries sustained while spectating include my poor ass, which was sore from all the stair-scooting; a scrape on my knee, from hitting a rock wall while someone was piggybacking me up a flight of outdoor stairs; and a scrape/bruise/bump on my bad shoulder, from when I went to sit down on a couch and kept going, stopping when my head and shoulder collided with the wooden floor. Man, it’s dangerous to be ataxic and drunk.

Some of my fellow handcyclists took part in a fun ride before the race, which included a trip up the Wall. As much as I love cycling, there seems to be very little fun about that. I think that’s the only way I could be in more pain. Maybe next year; marathon first.

I like this picture as it shows you what I often see: people’s butts and obscured views.