It all started in the woods of Vashon Island around 2004. Individuals with a passion for mountain biking would explore the trails of Island Center Forest on Vashon Island and Dockton Forest on Maury Island. Back then, before the Geezers were formed, Geezer Rob and his girlfriend Julie would bike together in Island Center Forest. Geezer Larry would ride both Island Center Forest and Dockton Forest with Geezer Casey who preferred to ride a genuine Vashon-engineered, green, single speed klunker. During this same time frame, Geezer John would occasionally grace the Dockton Forest with his presence.
So what was the uniting force that brought all of these geezers together? It was, and still is for many of them, a shared passion for vintage motorcycles. A larger group of Vashon-based motorcycle enthusiasts would meet regularly at what is known as the “Transportation Committee Meetings” off of Reddings Beach Loop.
The Gasping Geezers origins stem from the Transportation Committee Meetings. As Geezer John, a former triathlete, said:
I noticed that a lot of the members of the Transportation Committee meetings were over-drinking and not getting enough exercise and I proposed that the group start mountain biking regularly together so we could be healthier and more physically fit.
Geezer John
The quest for a more healthier lifestyle resulted in Geezers John, Rob, Larry, and Sofie (The Best Trail Dog Ever) meeting weekly, on Wednesdays, at Island Center Forest to mountain bike the trails. Soon others started to regularly attend the Wednesday riding sessions all were riding on their admittedly “shitty” bikes. The Wednesday rides grew in popularity, but those who had day jobs requested that the communal mountain biking day be moved to Sunday, and thus was born the precursor to The Gasping Geezers; “The Church of Later Day Cranks”.
The congregation of The Church of Later Day Cranks continued to increase in numbers and the members felt that Sunday rides were not enough, and wanted to expand the communal rides to include Saturdays and Sundays. Around 2014 the group expanded its communal riding days and also renamed itself to “The Gasping Geezers” in an attempt to be inclusive of all riders regardless of religious affiliation.
The two-day-a-week communal ride tradition continues today where The Gasping Geezers meet on Saturdays at Island Center Forest and Sundays at the Dockton Forest. The Geezers welcome all to ride with them as long as the Geezer Code is followed.
Geezer Code For Mountain Biking
When riding as a community we do not discuss politics, we do not discuss religion
Gasping Geezers
If ever want to get to know the under documented mountain biking trails on Vashon, you could learn a lot from the Geezers.
