50 + 15 points
Journey to the End of the Night Minnesota by Will O
September 14th, 2008 6:18 AMThe city spreads out before you. Rushing from point to point, lit by the slow strobe of fluorescent buses and dark streets. Stumbling into situations for a stranger's signature. Fleeing unknown pursuers, breathing hard, admiring the landscape and the multitude of worlds hidden in it.
For one night, drop your relations, your work and leisure activities, and all your usual motives for movement and action, and let yourself be drawn by the attractions of the chase and the encounters you find there.
After you participate in Journey Minnesota, please post your adventure in detail here! Tell the world how awesome you became in your transit of our fair city. How the city became ours again. How you tasted the sweet kiss of concrete beneath your feet, your heart in your throat, your chest a white flame.
50 points suggested
This being my first 'Journey' event I wasn't sure quite what to expect. Then as the time got closer I found out that there were new rules being added it made for an interestnig adventure. I have no photos because this was a running event and since I couldn't figure out how to not potentially break a camera in the process I will have to skip the pictures. (I did get an image of the play area and traced my route. Check points are approximate since my manifest was taken during the game. Blue are areas I was a runner in, pink is when I was a chaser, green is when I was returning to my car.)
All in all it seems the trip was about 7-8 miles considering backtracking and that was skipping two of the check points near Loring park.
Starting out at the north end of the stone arch bridge. The first check point seemed like simple walk to campus. I got cased out onto the Cedar Avenue bridge which was the wrong direction but is was one of my best options at the time.
Coming back across the bridge to the north side of the river I got tagged by a chaser. Fair enough. The surprise for him is that I was given a ressurection runner band. Instead of just changing me into a chaser he got changed into a runner.
Dang. I didn't want to get tagged so soon. Ok so what's my plan. I went to steak out the Washington Ave bridge. Got to chase a couple people but without a tag. Eventually someone didn't see me and I was able to run up behind them. It happened to be the guy that taged me so I was back to being a runner. The unfortunate part is that neither of us ready the instructions that closely so we didn't swap our maps and manifests.
So I headed back to checkpoint one. No problems but I arrived about 3 minutes too late for a sign off. Being so far north already, and figuring it was safer, I went back to the Cedar Ave. brige and crossed the river. No sign of chasers anywhere. Ya, they probably figured out that the check point would be closing and wanted to head people off at other locations.
I headed south on Cedar to check point 2. I was given a warning that there were several chasers in the area. The check point was going to close in 10 minutes, but already feeling a little worn from being tagged, backtracking and missing the check point I decided to approach it directly.
No problems. Got my first signature and saw another group getting ready to leave. Humm? Safety in numbers? It was nice to have some other people around since getting scattered from my initial group back during the first ten minutes of the game.
We hit a bounus checkpoint and then made our way downtown for checkpoint 3 just before it closed. Three more to go and I was beginning to really feel this. Walking and occasional running on pavement is very different than an eliptical or bare earth. We got scattered from another chaser.
Working my way down to checkpoint 4 at the edge of Loring Park I got caught. this person was more familiar with the rules of the ressurection runner and took my map/manifest per the instructions. I found myself as a chaser without a map and a little sore from the nights activities.
Knowing that I had a long walk back beyond Saint Anthony Main to get to my car I decided to quit. It was a long walk back, longer than I imagined. When I got back to my car and sat down the pain in my hips was what struck me most. I didn't know they would do that.
Things I've learned from this experience; I had decent shoes but they are really your best friend. Hydration is key. Taking the indirect routes can greatly benefit my progress. I need to learn the transit system if I would do this again. (Even without finishing the game I put on 7-8 miles.)
All in all it seems the trip was about 7-8 miles considering backtracking and that was skipping two of the check points near Loring park.
Starting out at the north end of the stone arch bridge. The first check point seemed like simple walk to campus. I got cased out onto the Cedar Avenue bridge which was the wrong direction but is was one of my best options at the time.
Coming back across the bridge to the north side of the river I got tagged by a chaser. Fair enough. The surprise for him is that I was given a ressurection runner band. Instead of just changing me into a chaser he got changed into a runner.
Dang. I didn't want to get tagged so soon. Ok so what's my plan. I went to steak out the Washington Ave bridge. Got to chase a couple people but without a tag. Eventually someone didn't see me and I was able to run up behind them. It happened to be the guy that taged me so I was back to being a runner. The unfortunate part is that neither of us ready the instructions that closely so we didn't swap our maps and manifests.
So I headed back to checkpoint one. No problems but I arrived about 3 minutes too late for a sign off. Being so far north already, and figuring it was safer, I went back to the Cedar Ave. brige and crossed the river. No sign of chasers anywhere. Ya, they probably figured out that the check point would be closing and wanted to head people off at other locations.
I headed south on Cedar to check point 2. I was given a warning that there were several chasers in the area. The check point was going to close in 10 minutes, but already feeling a little worn from being tagged, backtracking and missing the check point I decided to approach it directly.
No problems. Got my first signature and saw another group getting ready to leave. Humm? Safety in numbers? It was nice to have some other people around since getting scattered from my initial group back during the first ten minutes of the game.
We hit a bounus checkpoint and then made our way downtown for checkpoint 3 just before it closed. Three more to go and I was beginning to really feel this. Walking and occasional running on pavement is very different than an eliptical or bare earth. We got scattered from another chaser.
Working my way down to checkpoint 4 at the edge of Loring Park I got caught. this person was more familiar with the rules of the ressurection runner and took my map/manifest per the instructions. I found myself as a chaser without a map and a little sore from the nights activities.
Knowing that I had a long walk back beyond Saint Anthony Main to get to my car I decided to quit. It was a long walk back, longer than I imagined. When I got back to my car and sat down the pain in my hips was what struck me most. I didn't know they would do that.
Things I've learned from this experience; I had decent shoes but they are really your best friend. Hydration is key. Taking the indirect routes can greatly benefit my progress. I need to learn the transit system if I would do this again. (Even without finishing the game I put on 7-8 miles.)
The list of lessons learned is a good one - I know I also wasn't staying hydrated enough (I had a far longer trip than I anticipated thanks to the resurrect ribbons and stopped for a drink at a gas station at one point with some fellow chasers). And yes, the transit system had a lot of potential provided you could get on it safely.
Glad you enjoyed it!