Day 1 - September 28, 2010

Oakmore, Dimond, Upper Dimond

Day Miles: 18.7(J) / 18.8(S)
Cumulative Miles: 18.7(J) / 18.8(S)
Day Hours: 1:30(J) / 1:32(S)
Cumulative Hours: 1:30(J) / 1:32(S)

Our bicycle tour of Oakland rightfully began in the neighborhood where Joel and I grew up.  Officially it's called "Oakmore Highlands", but to us it was "C-Town" (for Clemens Street).  The teenagers living on the block (and those drawn there to socialize) took on the C-Town moniker.  At one point, 20 or so kids came around to ride bikes and show off their muscle cars on summer evenings.  C-Town had a moment of infamy in the 80s when a fire at our high school was blamed on our group.  The newspaper described C-Town as a "loosely-knit group of youths with the common denominator that they all ride skateboards."  Joel and I grew up on the same physical city block, Joel on Clemens Road and I on Lyman Road, and knew each other from an early age.  The light pole below used to be littered with stickers when we were teenagers.

 

Also, here's a map link if you're curious where in Oakland we grew up: Shimon and Joel's Boyhood Homes.  Note how close our houses were to the Dimond Canyon Park Greenway, and to the adjacent Montclair Golf Course.  We spent many hours roaming the canyons, climbing under the Leimert Blvd. Bridge, collecting golf balls (and selling them back to the club house), and riding our bikes on the fire trail that connects all these areas.  Quite the child's paradise!

The area has changed a lot.  One of our good friends, Al, the C-Town "Archivist" (for all his nostalgic photos and video of the neighborhood) still lives on the block, and we still make it by to socialize.  No teenagers on the street these days.  Joel's house was purchased by an Eastern European family and my old house is now a 3-unit compound owned by a lesbian family from Israel.

This turned out to be one of the hottest days of the year - not the most auspicious day to start our Tour de Oakland.  Plus, I forgot water!

Cheers,
1970