Eureka! A great Bay Area weekend getaway!

Carrying Everything
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Human powered floats that race across sand, land and water That is how Daph described Eurekas annual Kinetic Sculpture race to me. We had been trying to figure out where to go for a weekend away from San Francisco and the Mr. Fix-it in me was screaming, Human powered floats that race - we have to see this! So we loaded up the truck and headed North on Highway One towards Eureka.

Ive spent a lot of time driving up and down the most famous parts of Highway One, south of San Francisco, but I have done very little driving north. It was a very different and beautiful drive going north. It is a six-hour drive from San Francisco to Eureka but an easy and enjoyable drive. Traffic was light when we drove up on a Saturday. The road winds through Redwood forests and you are constantly passing through little towns that look like they are still stuck in the sixties with large funky murals painted on the sides of the buildings.

Floats that race across sand, land and water

Daph and the Magic Bus
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Around noon we stopped at a little caf for lunch called the Bluebird Caf (13340 South Highway 101, Hopland, CA, 95449) in a small town called Hopland. And no I didnt have a beer. I ordered a salad but when it arrived it looked like they had brought the entire salad bowl over it was huge! Sadly, I would have been more satisfied with a smaller better salad. Daph had a chicken salad sandwich that wasnt much better. However, we did see a shrimp dish get delivered to a number of tables that looked very good. After lunch we walked around the town. Several nice little art and antique shops are there. We checked out a couple and then hopped back in the truck since we wanted to get to Eureka to see some of the first day of the race.

The Cat
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We arrived in Eureka around 4pm and checked into our hotel The Carter House Inn. Very nice hotel that is part of a group called Unique Hotels. More like an upscale bed and breakfast than a hotel. Lots of character and a great location to see the race since it is a few blocks from the first days finish line and few blocks in the other direction from the second days start line. I wish I could say that this was great planning on my part but it was luck.

We dropped our bags off in the room and walked a few blocks to the old downtown where the race was finishing that day. As we walked several of the Kinetic Sculptures ran by us. Really clever machines that people have clearly been working on for a long time. The rules say that they have to carry everything that they need to race across land, sand and water at all times. Each day is a different stage and while they are allowed to take time to inflate floatation devices, and the like, everything has to be carried with them. Some of the teams (there are often 4 people peddling the machines) have clearly opted for looks over functionality. Others have built machines to win and a few of the really cool ones manage to combine both form and functionality.

The Eye in the Water
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While several machines were still coming across the finish line when we were there, many of the teams had already finished. The machines were still there and you could walk up to them and check them out. It is amazing the amount of effort and thought people have been put into these machines the Mr. Fixit in me was clearly way out of his league here. Daphne and I soon picked our favorites. Daphs was a large Cat and mine was the Magic Bus. The Cat had four or five little dogs peddling around on bicycles nearby and I would guess there must have been ten people involved in the team although only four were actually peddling the Kinetic Sculpture. Perhaps they took turns stronger peddlers on day one for the road race strong swimmers on day two for the river race and strong drinkers in dog outfits for the celebrations (hee, hee).

Disco Inferno
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After most of the racers had come in and we had looked at all of the machines that interested us, we took a little walk around town. We eventually found a nice little pub on the main corner nearest the water cant remember its name. Like the rest of the buildings in the old downtown it had lots of character. We sat at the bar and ordered two really cold beers. We soon noticed a team of racers sitting at a nearby table not that it was a big feat since they were all dressed in homemade tux jackets (old suit jackets with tails added at the back) and shorts. So there was no doubt whatsoever that they were in the race they also had ID badges on their jackets. How could you resist talking to guys that had gone to so much trouble? When one of the guys stood up I asked him if he was in the race like I didnt already know but it broke the ice. Turned out he was a pilot and that several of the other guys at the table had been in the race for twenty years running. Sad that we didnt get a chance to talk with him some more but didnt want to impose on their fun. Wished him luck in tomorrows race and let him get back to his beer.

Getting Lizzard Ready to Swim
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After our drink we headed back to the hotel for a little nap. It was around seven and after the beers and the driving it wasnt long before we were fast asleep. We eventually woke up around 10pm to find that all the restaurants in town, including the one at the Inn, were closed. I spoke to the Inn manager and explained how we were in a bit of a bind. He was great. He went and spoke with the chef who was cleaning up and had him make us some excellent soup and a few appetizers.

The next morning we got up early and grabbed some free breakfast in the lobby/dining area. With some healthy food in us we were all ready to watch the water portion of the race. Walking 4-5 blocks to the docks we staked out a good location on the rocky, muddy shoreline where we had an ideal vantage point of the start line. The start line for the water section is a long cement boat ramp. As the crowd screams For the Glory the racers accelerate down the ramp and into the water. Some are clearly try to make the biggest splash, others try to make a smooth entry and the unfortunate few desperately try not to sink to the bottom of the river. If you are going to see the river portion of the race make sure you get there about an hour before it starts to get a good seat, or perhaps more accurately a rock on the shore - you wont regret it. Both the Cat and the Magic Bus made it through safely. I thought the Magic Bus did the best but Daph didnt seem to agree with me something about a Cat being better but I cant seem to remember now.

Trying Not To Sink
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Once all the racers were launched in the river we headed back to the old downtown to look around a bit before we made the drive home. Found a good little music store and, even better, a great little ice cream shop. We then loaded up and headed back to the City.

All and all a great weekend getaway.