Life @ 15 MPH

Dunkirk NY – The evening is cool. Today there was the faintest hint of the coming autumn. Since closing my last show, I have begun to ride my electric bike more and more as a form of exercise in an attempt to lose some weight. My ebike allows me to take rides of 20+ miles without becoming completely exhausted. My long ride is a 17.5 mile trip to Lake Erie State Park and back along Route 5. My short ride goes from home to Point Gratiot Park to Wright Park and back home, a 7.5 mile circuit. I have managed to find a combination of gearing and electric assist that allows me to maintain a steady cadence at 15 MPH. It’s been wonderful.

Lake Erie State Park is a little gem of a park that has campsites, a beach, various playgrounds, and some easy hiking trails. In the winter, when there is no snow on the ground, I drive out there to walk the trails. Right now the park is a nice bike ride from home. I pack water and a snack, take my break along the bluffs by the lake’s edge, and ride home along the mostly flat terrain that makes up the ride along the shoreline road that is Rt. 5. The park itself has no particularly outstanding features or attractions other than the beach and the bluffs, and that’s great, because it is not overrun with people. There are also a number of nice cabins. Being able to bike there now is a small joy.

When I take my short rides through the city’s two parks, I am amazed at all the activity I see. It has made me realize that most summers I have been either away from home or busy locally doing summer theatre. In 30 years I have never truly realized how busy the city parks are. During today’s ride I went through the parks during sunset. At Point Gratiot there were people on the beach and along the shoreline, taking pictures of the setting sun. A couple of large family gatherings were taking place, one right at the shoreline complete with candles on the tables. Older couples mingled with family groups enjoying the sunset. Almost every bench along the bluffline was occupied, but not all of them. That’s a nice combination – a sense of busyness while still being able to grab an empty bench when you get there.

Leaving the park you pass the Dunkirk Lighthouse and the state fish hatchery, as well as a stretch of beach that is almost always unoccupied. It sits next to the defunct NRG power plant, a memorial now to a time when Dunkirk had many more blue collar jobs. No one quite knows what to do with the plant now that it’s closed and several unsuccessful attempts have been made to re-start it. It’s location as a prime piece of real estate on the Lake Erie shore is unquestionable, and it will take some large thinking and investment to re-claim this stretch of land.

A little green space called Memorial Park sits along the west section of the Dunkirk Harbor. Both the Conservation Club and the Dunkirk Yacht Club were busy with social activities. Demitri’s On The Lake, the local Greek restaurant that has been here forever, had a band going on its outdoor patio, with senior citizens coupling and shuffling on the dance floor. The brand-spanking new pier looked great, and it was the first time I had gotten a look at it. I’ve no idea why anyone is complaining about this project. Grandfather and grandson fishing, lovers at the farthest-most benches softly talking, a bit of car cruising, and some joggers made up the scene.

Lake Front Blvd. is a street that runs along the eastern side of the city’s border with the lake. A long seawall/sidewalk/bike path runs along it. The view looks across the lake to the north. By the time I got there this evening, the sun had just disappeared behind the horizon, streaking the clouds with a pink glow. All sorts of people lined the sidewalk taking pictures: gaggles of teens enjoying their final days of summer freedom, families with small children, a women with her two small chihuahuas, and maybe a dozen cars at the eastern end of the road parked for sunset viewing. The ball fields were, alas, empty of action.

I don’t think I’ve ever really taken the time to appreciate all this activity and beauty in my home town. It has really come as a surprise to me how much summer activity there is here, and how the people in this city take advantage of what the parks and the lake offer them. I’ve always been too busy with summer theatre, either being away in Wisconsin or commuting to Buffalo. I’ve been used to living my life in the fast lane, at 72 MPH. This week of bike riding has let me see that life @ 15 MPH can be pretty good, especially in a place that, despite its summertime attractions, remains fairly undiscovered. I hope we can keep it that way for a few more years.  -twl