Posted Tuesday 06 July 2004

Dodge-Em

Oakland, CA 1976: I sped over the Bay Bridge on my shiny Yamaha motorcycle, very sportif in my brown motorcycle jacket, jeans, and high boots. I needed to register my Thumbtack Bugle business name in the East Bay.

I found the Oakland courthouse perched between one-way streets, and wrapped inside a freeway exit. It was kind of hard to get there from here, if you know what I mean, but I wrestled the motorcycle around in the parking lot after a couple of wrong turns, and pulled out onto the street, and at just that moment a city bus swept down from the freeway.

No problem for active me.

I swooped myself and motorcycle over a traffic island, and let him pass, then pulled out in his slipstream.

At the red light, I pulled up into the left lane, and the driver, sitting behind the open window just above me, grinned down at my quick maneuver. I grinned back.

"Do you get the same points for someone driving a car as for a pedestrian?" I asked him.

"Naw!" he said, "We get higher points for pedestrians, but you guys on motorcycles, you're quick! So you're worth three extra points."