Some context
The idea to rollerski every street in St. Paul came to me while
under shelter-in-place orders during the Covid-19 pandemic. In light of reduced car traffic and encouragement
from our state government to stay close to home, it seemed like a solid way to
have an adventure and get some exercise!
Why do this?
I could say that this is to
promote an active lifestyle (which would be great), that I’d like to raise the
profile of Nordic skiing (objectively the best sport but also in danger of
extinction due to our changing climate), to stand up against car-centrism, or
simply to say I did it (I’d be lying if I told you this project is free of
ego).
While these are undoubtedly
factors, it all boils down to a desire to turn off autopilot (by experiencing
new routes) and to live fearlessly (by sharing the road with heavy metal objects
that want to kill me on planks of metal with wheels and no brakes).
“We are here to laugh at the odds and live our lives so well that Death
will tremble to take us.” -Bukowski
The current crisis stokes mass uncertainty
and fear. This is my way of staring that fear down while also
having a good ol’ fashioned adventure – discovering and experiencing the natural,
architectural, and cultural beauty and blemishes contained within my hometown,
all via an absurd mode of transportation - rollerskiing!
Yee haw!
Throughout this project, I will
be able to provide a (as far as I know) unique perspective on the streets of
St. Paul, MN. With this in mind I will
keep a tally on a few things that amuse me, including: 1) the best (and worst)
streets, 2) the most common reactions to observing an urban rollerskiier, 3)
the number of car horns (with an attempt to discern toots of encouragement from
those of jerks), and 4) the number of times I fall down.
The rules
Rollerski all public roads on
which doing so is legal (i.e., interstates and other controlled access
highways are out), excluding alleyways and including off-street paths (e.g., Bruce
Vento and Gateway trails). This is a human-powered
project; I plan to cover the entire distance without using a car.
According to the MN DOT, there are 861 miles of qualifying roadways
in St. Paul. While I will undoubtedly
repeat significant amounts of this distance, I hope to finish this project
before ice appears on the road, before the end of 2020.
I
started raster scanning through my neighborhood about two weeks ago. I
plan to keep track of progress in Google Earth (see map below this
post); as of today (5/12/2020), I've covered 79 miles. I'll keep ya
posted as regularly as I can!
Happy trails,
Alan
 |
| Map of St. Paul, MN with districts color coded and progress overlain in
red. Long way to go! |
 |
| Zoomed in view of western St. Paul (not West St. Paul!). Guess where I
live! |
