Tips About the San Francisco Olympic Torch March

Yesterday, my faithful sidekick B and I made a recon trip of the torch relay route. Here are some tips for you out-of-towners and locals.

1. The Embarcadero is a two way street separated by an island and trolley lines. I don't know if the center island/trolley lines will be accessible to "spectators". So if you are on southbound Embarcadero watching the relay going northbound, you may be very far away from the action (the street is very wide).

2. Given what happened in Paris today, the farther you stand from the start line, the less likely you'll see the torch pass by, as I would imagine demonstrators would try to disrupt the torch right when it gets out of SBC Park.

3. The western stretch from Beach Street to Bay Street is semi-steep. The relay will slow down here a lot. If you want to yell behind the barriers and keep pace with the relay, you should be in decent shape. The rest of the route is as flat as Kansas.

4. Be respectful to the cops. They are only doing their jobs. Give them a break.

5. Get there early. The relay starts at 1 p.m. But if you want to stand right behind the barriers, you should get to your spot by 10 a.m. at the latest.

6. Bring a sweatshirt. It will be cool. Plus, sunscreen, snacks, water, and a good book to read won't hurt either.

7. Figure out what you are going to say to the media ahead of time. Nothing hurts your cause more than incoherency or the appearance of irrationality. Those in America's Red States are expecting whacky liberals. Prove them wrong.

8. Expect the unexpected. The route may change, the start time may change, the route may be shortened, etc. Print this map as a reference.

I expect to see the following groups: Tibetan protesters, Uyghur protesters, Falun Gong people, Burmese supporters, Darfur people, torch bearers, Chinese goons in blue track suits, SFPD, media, the lone Southern Mongolia independence supporter, human rights activists, AIDS activists, Red China supporters, and a handful of Taiwan independence people. I will report back on what I see.

Have fun and be safe!

CKY