Despite desperate street tests by several intrepid fathers, the surprising snowstorm puts the kibosh on the awards night bike plans. Not to be denied the evening, the Spaniel powers up the truck and we plow on to the Vendetta, picking up the mannish boy on the way. The table waits with a clean sheen and a reservation sign. Not enough thanks for Shaun for this one. We start drinking away our tab and get on with our 09 farewell. Zulu, The Chairman, The Leech, and the PR man arrive in short order. The Foz is stuck in the drift and cannot attend. Play begins with the Snipper schooling Scrappy on the clean, fast plank. He then teams up with the Liza Torelli to put away Metrofiets and the Spaniel. It was then that the scene changed. Zulu and Scrappy team up and string together 5 straight wins. Amidst the streak, Kong arrives (on bicycle!) and buys a round of whiskeys. From here forward, those that buy the round in such expensive fashion can proudly proclaim: “My name is Kong!”. Back on the table, it takes the last end heroics by the reunited Farmers to eke out a streak-ending, 15-14 victory. Our shuffling done for the night, the award ceremony begins. Laughs abound, with addendums and qualifiers thrown in for good measure. The Golden Hammer is ceremonially passed from SA to the EBMB, the winner’s name sharpied on the handle. The fine evening closes with some plowing on to Chez Snipper for a nightcap and some streamed media. Plastic Bertrand reprise at 2 a.m.. Back into the truck and then home. Quite a night. Happy Birthday, Mr. Leech. Another full year under the belt. Goodnight 2009.
Miscellaneous Stats:
Total TF combined cycling miles – 3059
Bars most frequented – Vendetta (17); Goodfoot (12); Rumpus Room (11); Tiga (11); Food Carts (10)
Most venues visited in one night – 5 (on 2 occasions)
# of different venues visited – 38
New venues for TFC in 2009:
Glisan St. Pub, 21st Ave, Duke’s, Space Room, Zach’s Shack, Blitz (Ladd), Old Market Pub, The Ship, Matchbox, Legin, Hot Cake House, Da’Hui, Moloko, Hawthorne Food Carts, Night Light, Green Dragon, The Slammer, The Florida Room, Spare Room, Leisure, Duke’s, Roadside Attraction, Swift Lounge
General Awards:
Ride of the Year – Tramapalooza! Tram up, circle over and down through SF-style Corbett run into John’s Landing. Meet Anna & the Slammer. Foz gets really drunk. Whiskey, pints, and the garlic hurricane at the GF.
Best New Bar – Roadside Attraction
Night of the Year – Tricentennial! All good things end at the Hot Cake House at 3 a.m.
Rookie of the Year – Fosbury. Glisan St. and 30-mile cycle debut. 400 miles logged on 16 cycle trips = 25 mile average.
Quote of the Year – “I feel so confident” – Janush, rushing off into the woods near Stark.
Smell of the Year – Plume from “Bad Santa’s” nethers at Glisan St. Pub.
Best Late Night Eats – Legin.
Heroic Endeavor – SA – 3/31/09 Tricentennial. 2000 points
The Chronic (Best Attendance) – EBMB 52, Scrappy 50, Kong 44.
Golden Wheel (Outstanding Achievement in Cycling) – Scrappy 707.7. EBMB 679.2 (first to 600).
Shuffleboard Awards:
Hammer’s Eve (Best Single Evening Shuffleboard Performance) – SA (6-1, 3 shutouts – Black Cat 11/3/09) There were several undefeated nights during the year, but this dominant performance, coming on the tail of an unprecedented run of dominance through October, was the stuff of dreams.
Dr. Blankenstien (Oustanding Achievement in Shutouts): SA. EBMB 16 , but SA 12 (in many less games) + 3 SO night.
Hangman (Outstanding Achievement in Hangers): Statty 34, EBMB 25; Single Night: 4 (EBMB, 3/11/09, Statty 10/20/09, SA 12/22/09); 3 (Statty, 4 times); Double Hanger by EBMB (1/6/09, Rumpus)
Kielbasa-Nostra – Fosbury 2, Scrappy 1
High end –10 (EBMB 1/12 Glisan St.) (all-time record); 9 (SA 1/6, EBMB 10/13); 8 (EBMB 11/3, flood on last end)
Longest winning streak of the year –14 (SA, 10/6-10/20); 10 (Statty 1/20-2/3); 9 (EBMB 12/1-12/8; SA 10/27-11/3)
Stag (Singles Player of the Year) – SA
Uber Ally (Doubles Player of the Year) – EBMB
Century Award (100 Wins) – EBMB, Statty
Golden Hammer (Shuffler of the Year) – EBMB