Cycling the Santa Cruz boardwalk

Fremont, 11-11-2002.

We leave Pete`s house late in the morning for Santa Cruz, our bikes in the back of his truck. Now Pete is a big talker and the main topic of his conversation is girls, especially brown haired ladies have his undivided attention. Being polite I listen to him talk about all the beautifull brown haired girls that inhabite this world while we enter Santa Cruz, a city that stretches out along the coast for what seems to be an eternity before reaching the main drag, an old fashion boardwalk with an amusement park on it.

I see young girls on roller scates manuevering themselves swiftly and with grace through the crowd.

We park his truck and take the bikes out. We wanna cycle from here on, on this great looking boardwalk that is despite the early afternoon hour already filled with people.

Pete takes the lead while I follow quite happily listening to his many "hey Hans, did you see that Gal", "look at that beauty over there", "oh, wow, look over there, that must be Miss Mexico".

I see young girls on roller scates manuevering themselves swiftly and with grace through the crowd, dressed in thight shorts and well filled T-shirts. Young latin males dressed in pink satin shirts hanging around a big buick whistling at the roller scating girls while drinking cans of DosXX mexican beer.

I see fat caucasian women with a whole bunch of fat kids in their wake, probably on a day`s excursion from San Fransisco.

I see young black males that have barely left their childhood behind them, dressed in blue jeans and singlets that do little in the way of hiding their muscular bodies smoking sigarettes and taking swigs from a bottle of scottish Red Label Johnny Walker while oggling a young lady jogging by.

A young teenage mother holding her infant protectively against her chest.

This place is funky and fun, people seem to be enjoying themselves. "Hey Hans look...wow..with that Reina de Belleza i could get old", Pete`s excited voice take me away from my people watching...hehehe, this bloke is fun to be with.