“Toward the Unknown” – Chapter 1: Crash

Posted on March 5, 2024April 4, 2024 by Dave Bone

Note: This post is an excerpt from a forthcoming novel by Dave Bone.

“Toward The Unknown”

Chapter 1: Crash

Sitting on the curb in a daze, Lemmy noticed something shimmering on the other side of Willow Street and realized it was his dollar store sunglasses, or at least one of the lenses that used to be press fit into the black plastic frame. Leaning against the curb off to the side was the helmet that had been hanging from the rear rack. “Shit,” he thought, “the one time I don’t wear the damn thing…”

He raised the back of his hand to wipe the sweat from his brow and the knuckles came down streaked red with blood. He could also feel a drip from his bottom lip, but neither added up to much, so Lemmy wasn’t alarmed, but the driver of the SUV had a worried look in his eyes. Lemmy chuckled to himself and wondered if maybe the guy had no insurance. Nah, it was a late model Subaru, and he was dressed pretty well. He leaned his head back and tried to remember whether the whole thing had been his fault, anyway, or if the driver had done something wrong.

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The Gosling Incident

Posted on September 2, 2019January 31, 2021 by Dave Bone

Trauma On The Trail

Along the trails where I ride around Philadelphia, there is a surprising amount of wildlife. One evening last week, I saw groundhogs, big snapping turtles, and a racoon. Then, nearing home on the canal trail in the neighborhood of Manayunk, I turned a corner to find a doe with a pair of fawns. It feels good to know they’re there, doing OK, right on the outskirts of this big metropolis.

Spring, though, brings a whole new level of human-animal interaction. Geese arrive in droves and stay near the water to begin raising their young. There are ducks as well, but the geese really take control of the place. They have few, if any, predators, especially in the parks along the trail. There is some interest in reducing their numbers, but it seems unlikely, especially considering the legal protections afforded to the migratory members of the species.

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Lessons from a Stolen BMX

Posted on May 3, 2019January 31, 2021 by Dave Bone

I HAD A DREAM

At 12 years old, I had pretty well worn out the bike I got for First Holy Communion, which was a classic 70’s cruiser with a banana seat and sissy bar. By the late 70’s, that style was falling out of fashion anyway. The cool new thing was BMX bikes, with mag wheels and bar/frame crash pads.

Even then, I liked to know all my options. My mother, with remarkable patience, drove me to all the bike shops in the area to check out the Haro’s, Huffy’s, Mongooses, and Redlines. But the one that caught my eye was a Schwinn Scrambler. I remember it being described as Candyapple Red, but that doesn’t match the old ads I see now. They only offered it in a few colors: Spicy Chestnut, Frosty Silver, and Cardinal Red. In any case, it was sweet. Schwinn’s were special back then, like Surly’s and Salsa’s now. The tag said $200, which was a lot of money in 1978. I started saving.

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