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30th Annual Mooning of Amtrak
4th Annual Mooning of Metrolink
Saturday, July 11, 2009 in Laguna Niguel, Orange County, California
A southbound Amtrak California train passes the mooners at 12:08pm.
Last year traffic and parking was a nightmare. This year we got on the Metrolink at the Orange, California station and rode the train to the Laguna Niguel station. As a bonus, we got to see the mooners from the train’s point of view.
When we arrived in Laguna Niguel this morning, there were literally more cops than there were mooners. By the time we left in the afternoon I would guess that the mooners outnumbered the cops by a 3-to-1 ratio. I wonder how much money (i.e., your tax dollars) the city and county spent on policing the event. Maybe they’ll tell us in the newspapers tomorrow.
In the first hour after we got home this evening, we’ve seen coverage of the event on CBS Channel 2 and ABC Channel 7 (both are Los Angeles stations), and Fox News (national).
More photos to come. I’m too tired now and going to bed.
More information:
www.moonamtrak.org/
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An article from last week’s Orange County Register . . .
Laguna Niguel Cracks Down on Train Mooners
City officials look to eclipse annual Mooning of Amtrak.
By Lindsey Baguio, The Orange County Register
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Laguna Niguel, California – There’s the Harvest Moon. There’s the Blue Moon. And there’s the bare-bottom moon.
That time of year approaches when thousands of people come into Laguna Niguel to shake their derrieres at the passenger trains that pass through a typically quiet business district in the southeast end of the city.
Attendance hit an all-time high last year when 9,000 people partook in the festivities. This year city officials hope new ordinances and a big police presence at this Saturday’s event will keep the crowds low and discourage outsiders.
It all began thirty years ago when the annual Mooning of Amtrak was born from an impromptu dare among a group of bar patrons at Mugs Away Saloon. According to bar lore, K.T. Smith vowed to buy a drink for anyone who would join him mooning the train across the street. A handful did and a tradition was born.
Since then, every second Saturday of July, thousands of bare bottoms are on exhibit to passengers on Amtrak and Metrolink trains as they pass through the desolate strip of tracks in front of the Mugs Away Saloon.
In April the City Council approved new ordinances that prohibit drinking alcoholic beverages, urination, and defecation in public. The City Council also agreed to pay a public relations firm about ,500 to help dissuade any potential mooners. The outfit — Waters & Company — plans to use Twitter to monitor events, and communicate with potential participants.
A no-parking zone on both sides of the street at the north end of Camino Capistrano begins Thursday morning, said City Manager Tim Casey. By Friday morning that restriction will apply up to the southern city limits on Camino Capistrano.
Mayor Robert Ming said the city’s top concern is public safety.
Last year officers from four departments used riot gear, shot guns and a helicopter to ensure the crown [sic] left peacefully.
"Having 10,000 people on a dead-end street is not a smart move, especially after they have been drinking all day," Ming said.
"We’re figuring 80 to 90 percent of those who come in are from out of town and in the mood for a rowdy time," he said. "It’s not worth coming this year. It’s not going to be fun and not the wild party it was last year."
Those caught violating the city’s public drinking, nudity, or urination law face up to a ,000 fine and/or a year in jail, said the city’s Chief of Police Services Lt. Andy Ferguson.
Orange County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Jim Amormino said last year deputies witnessed sex acts and complete nudity.
"Our intention is not to wreck anybody’s clean fun but to crack down on illegal activities," Amormino said.
So how do people even hear about it? Thousands who participate have come to learn of the event through word of mouth and the Internet.
Rebecca Shahan, 34, a bartender at Mugs Away, said though the bar does not organize the event, calls from radio stations and people across the country have poured in.
"Anyone who calls we’re letting them know there will be a heavy police presence," Shahan said. "We don’t organize it. We just happen to be the bar it happens in front of."
The event, she said, has gotten out of hand.
"Last year was a circus with all the vendors, mom and pop sellers with coolers," Shahan said. "It used to be people came out to moon and have a drink. It wasn’t a big deal."
Even some patrons at the bar said they plan to avoid the event.
"I’m neutral," said Talia Dibelo, 28, of San Juan Capistrano. "Personally I stay out. I don’t like big groups of people — that’s why I come here. The reason why this place makes a profit is because it’s quaint and quiet."
Baguio, Lindsey. "Laguna Niguel Cracks Down on Train Mooners." The Orange County Register. 4 Jul. 2009. <http://www.ocregister.com/articles/year-city-people-2483931-bar-event>
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