bay to breakers 2009

i can only report on what i observed on my corner of the race route, but i think yesterday's bay to breakers race went off pretty well. i blogged earlier in the year about all of the rule changes to the event, many of which i was unhappy about. as someone who lives on the race route, i can appreciate the uproar about some of the issues of public drunkenness. i am not a fan of folks using my driveway, house, and car as a toilet, for sure. however, i was not in favor of stripping the event completely of it's originality by outlawing floats, costumes, nudity and alcohol. not to mention the fact that it is absurd to think that the authorities would be able to keep 65,000+ participants in check. 

the addition of more portable toilets along the route was a huge help, at least at my corner, in curbing some of the problems of the past. it was an amazing day in san francisco - sunny and about 90 degrees (not a high we crack very often).  as an observer and photographer, i was kind of bummed about the loss of the floats. one of the things i love about living in this city is that people go all out when it comes to creative pursuits, even if they are really just a cover for transporting kegs through the city! i was at least glad to see that many people still went all-out with their costumes.

and in my mind, it shows some real commitment to dress up in full suits as secret service and push a presidential podium complete with keg up the hayes hill in the kind of heat we had yesterday. i think if you are willing to put that much effort into it, you should get to keep your keg! but, hey, i don't make the rules. the guys in the top picture were pretty good sports when the police ejected their keg. they went and dropped it at a friend's house and then came back to join the party, er, race. 

overall, in my small corner of the world, i'd call the day a success. of course, there are other reports, but i'm keeping my fingers crossed that in the future compromises can continue to be made to help keep some of the spirit and originality of san francisco intact.