Sewer Sliding
By Mel Stoutsenberger
26 Dec 2009
It's 1975 in Pacific Palisades, California. Nestled in the quiet residential streets well off the arterial roads used by commuter's lies a secret and unfamiliar adventure zone where the admission is free for those lucky enough to find it. To participate, all you need are some good friends, some extra clothes to ware, a helmet, a bottle of liquid dish soap, an open mind to all things unknown and a thrill seekers - fear nothing attitude. It may also help if you're not claustrophobic. Trash can lids and helmet lights are cool but optional.
A small wooded bridge spans the concrete storm wash where the activities take place. Looking to the right as you pass you get your first glimpse of the "the tube" bisecting the wash wall at a very acute angle that almost looks intentional by design. No crowd, some interested and concerned locals looming.
"Park the van here" JP instructs Rick, "this is the place!"
At first I thought Johnny was jerkin' us but he remained serious and went right to work making the preparations. Before we knew it Marvin, David and I were pulling on extra clothing over ours described to us as "Protection", as we were directed. I was laughing the whole time in an attempt to hide my obvious fear. "And don't forget your helmet!" JP beckons. What in the hell am I letting him talk me into this time?
Rick is first on camera duty and has the first aid kit handy. "Looks like we are doing this guys!" Staged at the mouth of the pipe and ready to begin the quarter mile climb to the jump zone. JP takes the lead as usual.
"If you didn't have a light, it's hard to explain, you go up, but don't really feel any of the turns or the incline in the dark, as you go up. Doing it all in the dark the first time is a real trip, A+ ticket ride for sure..."
It's true, first time up the tube is really strange and kind of scary because you can't see a thing. JP is dispensing the soap and our job is to splash water on the sides of the walls to make the run as fast as possible. When you get to the top flat section it's time for a rest and stretch, there is a manhole letting some light in but it's still very cramped. I think it was Marvin that decided to go first, JP pushes him off with his legs. The sound of someone moving down that slippery tube is hard to describe but my thoughts turned to figuring out a way to pop that manhole cover and walk away from the whole damn thing!
It's fast...Really fast! You can feel the sharp turns and steep drops as you descend. You get air! To this day I'd swear I did a couple of 360's. I thought I had my eyes closed but I did see the circle of light at the end. Seconds later I was hydroplaning across the open storm channel. It felt like getting thrown through the air and skimming like a rock in a pond. I hit the bank on the other side and came to a stop in a sunny spot. All I could do was lie there and laugh...My heart was beating fast and I was a soapy muddy mess.
Just another reason to be happy growing up in the "ghetto by the sea"...
Shot on Kodak Plus-X 35mm film with a Minolta SRT 102, scanned with a Nikon Coolscan V and processed with Photoshop CS2.
Thanks for taking the time to check it out.
