Speed

Minneapolis was a speed bump. Straight through was the most direct, and would ultimately save me time and miles, but city traffic effects bikes just like other vehicles. When I'm riding in conjestion, I position myself as if I was a car. Riding on sidewalks would be crazy, if it were legal, since pedestrians are much more unpredictable than drivers.
Before leaving Minneapolis I was treated to a couple of sights of interest. The first was an obvious drug deal going down from the window of a car I passed. The second was a blocked street. The reason the street was impassable was that the police were frisking a couple of young men they had stopped right in the middle. I assumed they were police even though they were wearing fatigue-style uniforms. A crowd had gathered, and I slowly rolled up to the front. After waiting a moment I noticed the sidewalk was clear, so I continued on. As I passed the bust, I also passed another officer and couldn't help but notice he was carring not a handgun, but a high-powered rifle. At the end of the block some people were yelling at each other that the street was closed, and incoming cars would have to turn around. I took an unplanned right, and a left at the next block. Within moments I was
passing artsy cafes. This scizophrenia seemed to be typical of Minneapolis. One moment an art gallery, another, a gun shop.