Budding Tripping Director

The first organized trip I can clearly remember directing was with a group of friends when I was junior high school-age. It was a summer bike ride to Johnson Park in Racine. I think about eight or nine kids from our neighborhood joined me on the trip. Included were two of my younger brothers, Joe and Bill, and a bunch of our friends (maybe Jim, Mark D., Tommy, Mark L., Klink, Pem, Diane P., Patty and Jodi) made up the group. We packed our fishing gear and lunch and departed in the morning. The distance to the park was about five miles, but it seemed twice that far away. Most of the route was along one back road that had little traffic (at the time). I don't recall any memories of anyone having any trouble making it to the park or on the return. I do remember the front wheel of my bike, a green Schwinn Stingray 5-Speed with a stick-shift and banana seat, popping free from my fork when I popped a wheelie while riding up and over the shoulder of a grassy field that was along the side of the park road. The wheel did not go far and I had packed some tools, so after a good laugh I put the wheel back on. I remember the fishing was slow, but we did see some large goldfish in one of the ponds. Funny, about five years later my family would move from our house on Roosevelt Avenue to a house in a subdivision just east of the park. Today there is a new sub-division adjacent to the park. Cutting through the sub-division is a short cut to my parents home. Going to visit my parents I'd drive past the park's entrance and a little bit down memory lane.

Mike and Joe playing on home street Roosevelt Avenue circa 1973 (our home not in picture).