I am really not sure where to begin with the Oyster Run this year. My son and I went and it was, as it always is, a lot of fun. We saw many, many unique and interesting bikes and an even greater quantity of more unique and more interesting people. I am not sure which is more entertaining; looking at the bikes or watching the people.
Our day started early as we rode South to Conway to meet up with a group of VTX owners from VTXOA. Departing Conway we took back roads to Anacortes. The ride was, for the most part, uneventful. At one point our group had become split up due to a car in the left lane and vintage BMW in the ride. Instead of being patient and letting the traffic sort itself out, one of our group blasted around me and the BMW on the right shoulder of Highway 20. Not cool and I told him so when we arrived in Anacortes.
We arrived in Anacortes at around 9:00 and, although we had arrived earlier than my previous Oyster Runs, the street was surprisingly empty. I suspect that the morning fog might have caused some to wait until later to make the trip. My son and I enjoyed the uncrowded sidewalks and vendors. I bought him a proper riding jacket from Love’s and walked the length of Commercial Avenue looking at bikes and watching a steady stream of riders arrive.
Having completed one loop, the boy was hungry so we stopped for brunch. A 40 minute wait found us at a window table observing the sidewalk traffic and parade of arriving bikes. Another 40 minutes found us tucking into a nice brunch.
By the time we got out of the restaurants at about 11:30 things had definitely picked up. The boy wanted to see the Seattle Cossacks show so we shuffled our way down the crowded sidewalks to 5th Street and found a spot on the curb. On the opposite curb a photographer was setting up a photo shoot with a scantily-clad (PG-13) model. Guys were lined up two-deep within minutes.
The Cossacks put on their usual great show, after which I talked the boy into sitting on one of the Cossack bikes for a photo. I guess he’s starting to get a little too old for such things but he humored Dad anyway and I got a nice shot.
By now we were ready to get out of town. My son wanted to make the loop up and down Commercial on our way out so we saddled up and I practiced my low speed maneuvering and pedestrian avoidance skills for about 30 minutes to go down and back on Commercial.
So it was a nice day. The weather certainly cooperated and I did not see nor hear of any disturbances. Unfortunately two riders were killed in accidents on roads in the region.