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Alaska Notebook: Splashdown! 

When I headed to Little Campbell Lake in Kincaid Park one evening, aiming to give the family dog relief from the heat, I expected the usual crowd: some sunbathers, a picnic group or two, a few swimmers, some folks with fishing poles, and plenty of dog owners like me, letting their pooches run around and get wet. I didn’t expect the BMX bikers to bring their jump ramp and set it up on the end of the dock.

The first rider, a lean, shirtless guy about 20 years old, wowed the crowd by roaring onto the dock, vaulting off the ramp, dropping the bike into the water and executing a graceful head-first dive way out into the lake.

“That was a TEN” shouted one of two young men who spent the evening just hanging out in the lake, treading water.

The jumper grabbed his bike, kept afloat by red air pillows on the handle bars, and paddled back to the dock.

His next run wasn’t nearly as spectacular, but it was better than many who borrowed his bike and followed him. A heavy-set guy didn’t build up nearly enough speed and barely made it off the ramp. He did well to wiggle off to the side so he didn’t smack into the bike on his way into the water.

“That was a FOUR” shouted the fellow treading water.

A shapely, tan young woman in a gold bikini took a turn. She hit the ramp too slow and half-jumped off the bike as she plunged awkwardly into the water.

“That was a TEN!” shouted the water-treading judge, with a big laugh. (Style points for the bikini and the tan, apparently.)

More tricks from more riders ensued, including a couple of backward flips and a sideways 360 spin that ended with the rider astride the bike as it splashed down.

Nobody got hurt, but my dog Sandy got progressively more agitated as the show went on. After hearing the latest commotion, he’d bolt out onto the dock, as if to check on the crazy person who hurled himself in the water and see if he needed some assistance.

Since Sandy was wet and tired, and the bugs were starting to bug me, we headed home, as the bikers continued launching themselves into the water.     

Contributed by Matt Zencey. This essay first appeared in the Anchorage Daily News, adn.com. Reprinted with permission.