Pride

	This beautiful location is a downtown Baton Rouge building of brick and glass made even more beautiful by the bright sunshine and hundreds of people inside. It's also the location of my Saturday scoot adventure. People of all ages, colors and sizes were there, from the little ones with their painted, giggling faces to older couples finding a quiet spot on a remote bench to talk. Faces would light up when friends saw each other across the venue. Lots of hugs and smiles were exchanged, the room was vibrating with energy. It was like being at a family reunion -- if you could choose your family.
Welcome to my first PRIDE event. Made possible by my TravelScoot and the dedicated folks at Baton Rouge PrideFest.
One of the highlights of my day, I made sure I was there in time to hear the New Orleans Gay Mens Chorus. Being on my TravelScoot gave me the best seat in the house -- the one near an air conditioner vent! The pianist made me reminisce about Kerry, my best friend from high school, who I hadn't seen in years. Fifteen seconds later I heard him calling my name! :-)
Almost as soon as I arrived a couple stopped me to quiz me about my scoot. They were funny because one of the women thought her partner was asking about it for her, but instead she was inquiring for her mother. A couple of hours later another couple came up to me and asked about it too. They were also asking for one of their mothers, who likes going places, but just can't walk very far. Later on a friend (waves to Rachel) with an injury questioned me too. She was jealous of how easily I was zipping around! Beep! Beep! I don't think this little girl's feet stopped moving all day. She was delightful to watch.
This pretty girl is my younger sister Rae, and the reason I'm here today. I'm not normally allowed to "out" her, but since she was performing at Pride, I think she'll be okay with me doing it, just this once. Rae is my person. I don't even have any memories before she was born except being 3 years old and arguing with my brother Sam about whether the baby was going to be a girl or a boy. I won. I'm really proud of her for singing her heart out for the crowd today, but I'm even prouder of what it took her to get to where she is now. Gays and lesbians face a lot of adversity, probably the hardest of it is coming out to the people who are supposed to love them the most. I'd like to say our family took it in stride and just kept going, but it took us awhile to get to that point. That was 30 years ago. My hopes are that it's easier for gay and lesbian teenagers today, but judging from the reactions I got from some people over just attending a Pride event makes me wonder. It wasn't anything overt, just some dead air and a deer in the headlights look. PrideFest was a family event, with entertainment for the kids (of all ages), and an opportunity to open our minds and hearts to a group of people who face far too much adversity just to live their lives. So take a look. This is what gay looks like. My hopes for my family and yours is that we accept the whole gay and lesbian community, not just our family members. ~~ Here's Rae with Daphne MuShatt, singing their hearts out. And not only can Daph sing, she was also the very first instructor for the Women of Size fitness classes in Baton Rouge. She's a woman accustomed to blazing trails! Stephanie, Rae, and Daphne And finally, one picture of me to prove I was actually there! This one was taken right after the performance was over, and I had just (accidentally!) run into Daphne's foot. I don't think she ever did get to finish that cupcake. That's Laurie with me and Daph. You might remember her from the Women of Size Scooter Party.

Scooting in San Francisco

From Lynn Ellen:

I decided to drive into San Francisco rather than take public transportation, which was a mixed blessing. it may have been more direct than transfering from BART to the city train, but the time it took to find a place to park probably evened it out. I did find a good spot, assembled my TravelScoot, and since I've purchased the Travel bags that Hardy sells, I put some supplies in the bag and slipped it over the stem of the seat. I also decided to attach the triangle soft basket, and the travel bag sort of set inside of it, and only once did I try to get off the Scoot by stepping into the center of the triangle, the strategy I used when I was first getting used to getting on and off. I am still hanging a shopping bag sized nylon bag from the handlebars for my immediate needs, which seems to work well.

As you know, San Francisco has a lot of hills. I parked in the middle of the street, and I was headed south, which meant going downhill. I didn't want to rely on the brakes, and if I let myself free-wheel down the hill, it was hard to stop even with brakes and my feet. so I sort of walked myself down the hill. Also there were lots of people walking in all directions. Finding curb cuts at each intersection was challenging, as well as avoiding getting my wheels caught in street car tracks, but the cars were having to go slow with all the foot traffic, so that was a plus. Sometimes people would not see me, or they'd step in my way suddenly. Sometimes I called out "excuse me" or just waited, but the sidewalk was narrow, and while there was grass to stand or walk on, not for me. I think this is still just a part of learning to navigate. The other challenge is when the sidewalk is not level, perhaps in both directions, or I have to navigate the sidewalk sloping down away from the houses and toward the streets, and then there are driveways that make the sidewalk go up and down. I find that I'm leaning toward the high side, or I just have to slow down. Being able to walk the Scoot at times is essential.

I got to Dolores Park, and I drove closer to the stage, but the most direct path involved two sets of about 5-6 stairs. I got off, and started to lift the Scoot sideways up the stairs. I held the handlebars in one hand, the back of the seat in the other, and lifted the front, then the back, step by step. with both lithium batteries, plus a bit of gear, the Scoot now weighs 40+ pounds, which is a bit heftier than what the frame weighs when I take it out of the car. I got some help from someone, but when she grabbed the seat back, the pad slipped off the stem. We just put it back on the stem, but this was an unexpected thing, and I hope it isn't going to come loose and fall off on its own.

I was able to half ride, half walk the Scoot over to the grass in front of the stage, but at one point there was a dip between sidewalk and grass, and I almost tipped over. I think getting off to navigate uneven surfaces is best. But I had my own ringside seat, and I find the emergency brakes very helpful, as even then the ground was sloped. I walked the Scoot back down the hill and the stairs were too crowded, and I got myself at the front of the Dyke March with the other Scooters. I had the only TravelScoot in the march, and it did just fine on the streets of the city, pacing the march just fine.

I did have a new mishap, however. I was pacing a group of women who were doing percussion together (the group is called "Sista Boom" and they are fabulous) and sharing my water with a friend who was percussing. The hill I was on was very gentle, but I think it was the fact that I wasn't changing my speed, so even though I was going slow, it was a constant load on the motor. All of a sudden it just stopped, but the green indicator lite stayed green. I walked it over to the curb, got off to swap the batteries, thinking that still might be the problem, and at that point I felt the motor and it was really hot. The other battery also turned the light green, but no go. So, I sat still, thinking that either I'd burned out the motor and it was dead, or, hopefully, it was just overheated, and once it cooled it would be fine. It was about 85 out, but I think this could have happened on a cooler day. I probably waited no more than 10-15 minutes and tried it again, and voila! it went fine. and that was the last time that happened, but in fact I was almost at the end of the march and was ready to go find my car.

Finding the car was a challenge, as I was off by a block in each direction, but fortunately I never had to try to go back uphill in the way that I looked for it. it was also dark when I was on my way back to the car, and I was aware that my visibility on the sidewalk, still filled with people meandering and partying, was difficult to navigate. I think I might get a bike light for future trips at night, especially when I'm alone. but never did I feel at risk for personal safety. I was just hoping that I wouldn't have to spend the rest of the night looking for my car! And I did find it, and packed up and head out for home. I think I'm ready for Australia!!