Rollerblading Along the Bay Trail

Cassius and I were out rollerblading along the Bay Trail in Foster City

the other day when we ran across a statue of the Indian deity Ganesh.

I have no idea why the statue was placed along the trail, but suspect it was to bring good fortune to the many feral cats who live along the trail in the rocks.

We're always on the look-out for the cats because they can be a dangerous distraction. They sometimes make a game of dashing across the trail, perhaps to taunt the dogs, and I'm afraid Cassius isn't perfectly trained to ignore them quite yet;-)

Perhaps the statue was placed along the trail to protect the unassuming bikers, runners and rollerbladers from being startled by the cats, who knows? I do know that rollerblading with my buddy is a fun way to get both of us some good exercise. Also, we stop a lot less to smell and spray than we do when we walk, which is ok by me!

Some people look at me like I'm a nutter for blading with my dog, and I can only imagine what they're thinking. I assume it's something along the lines of "dangerous for the dog", or "annoying speed hazard", but I have been rollerblading for 20 years, I keep Cassius's collar loose in case of spills, we practice releasing and voice commands in case I need to let go and keep him with me, and I do wear a lot of padding.

There is only so much I can do though to protect us from accidents. You never know what the other trail users will do to cause a spill, which is why I'm always vigilant when I rollerblade. The normal issues we run across are the dog walkers who wear headphones and don't hear or heed my warning "passing with dog on your left", and the bikers who don't offer us any warning and use us as drive cones and startle the beans out of us both.

The worst "traffic offense" occured when were only a few blocks from home. We approached 2 adults walking a 3 month old lab, on leash. They were in the grass and there seemed to be no reason to avoid them because there was plenty of space (if space is a concern, I either stop and walk Cassius around the obstacle, or divert into the road). When the couple saw us coming they unleashed their puppy and encouraged her to come after us! Cassius threw the puppy on her back once she pounced on him, probably out of shock, but not trying to hurt her. I spun around yet managed to stay on my feet and keep ahold of Cassius. The owner then ran up to Cassius, grabbed at him and nearly punched him for "attacking" his dog. Absolute chaos, all thanks to stupid human tricks. Thankfully, most of the dog owners in my town are much smarter than that lab's owner.