Chapter 13: The Water Taxi
The boys continued their Hemisfair 68 odyssey. They went to the river and found Javier. Dave said, “Hey Javier, we need a boat. What do you have?”
There were twelve boats as Javier slowly turned around and sarcastically said in his best Mexican accent, “Oh, so sorry. All the boats are broken. When they get fixed, they’re all rented, so thank you for dropping by.”
The boys were making money and could afford to pay Javier. He deserved it so Dave said, “How about we give you two dollars for one hour. That sound good?”
Javier immediately walked over to Dave, “Up front?”
Dave nodded slowly as he brought two one dollar bills out of his pocket. Dave smiled as he handed the bills to Javier, “There you go. Paid up front.”
Javier had a big smile on his face as he said, “Step right this way gentlemen. I suggest boat number twelve or boat number two is also a good choice.”
The boys unhitched boat twelve and jumped on. They paddled off waving at Javier and for the first time in a long time Javier was smiling and waving back as he put the two dollars in his pocket.
The boys paddled towards the Casa Rio which was the opposite way from the bushes. Nobody had mentioned the bushes lately. They were going to see what the tourist situation looked like. Maybe they could give some directions and make their money back for paying Javier. They paddled for a few minutes and went past the Casa Rio. Dave was looking for a mark. The crowd on the river was small. Not a lot of people. The boys turned around and inevitably paddled towards the bushes. As they approached, Debbie appeared, and her face lit up. She clapped as she jumped up and down. The other girls came out of the bushes. It was a grand reunion. Joe went with Debbie, Dave was with Gloria, and Mike went with Missy. The girls always made a big deal about the boys showing up. They all went into the bushes and talked for a while. After a short time, it got quiet. Minutes later the moaning began. After a short recovery time for the boys the talking started again. The boys genuinely cared for the girls and the girls cared for them. Gloria said, “Why don’t you boys go get us some business.”
All three boys had a big smile and Dave said, “We’re going to bug out and send some business this way.”
All the boys were nodding in approval as they jumped on the boat and headed back. They paddled past Javier, and he was still in a good mood waving as they cruised by. Joe said, “Shouldn’t we go up to street level and find the airmen?”
Dave said, “It’s a light crowd today. There might be something going on at the air base and not as many guys are here as usual. We’ll cruise here a minute and maybe go up to street level.”
The boys paddled to the end of the business district and turned around. So far, nothing. As they paddled back towards the Casa Rio and Javier’s boat dock Dave saw an airman. He turned the boat towards him. The guy was walking alone which was unusual. As the boat got close Dave yelled, “Hey you want a good time? I know some girls.”
The guy stopped and smiled, “What do you know?”
Dave told the guy about the girls and prices. As Dave was giving directions the guy pulled out a five dollar bill and jumped on the boat. A paddleboat capacity was three people. The boys didn’t know what to do. The airman was standing on the pontoon, but it seemed to work. He gave the five dollar bill to Joe and the boys paddled away towards the girls. The boys paddled towards the bushes, but they had to pass Javier. As they approached, Javier still had the big smile. The smile quickly dissipated. Javier is now waving his arms and yelling, “Hey, what are you doing? The boat is for three people. You can’t have anybody riding on the pontoon!”
The boys all smiled and waved as they passed Javier. He was still yelling when they rounded the curve towards the Arneson River Theater and the bushes. As they went under the bridge towards the bushes Missy came out and saw them. She was shocked but smiled and waved the boys over. When they got close Dave said to the airman, “Tell your buddies about us. They give us five bucks and we’ll bring them here.”
The airman had a big smile on his face as he jumped off the boat and the other girls came out of the bushes. The guy waved as the three girls walked him over into the bushes. The boys turned around and headed back. On their way back Dave said, “I think we found a new way to make money. That guy will tell other guys to look for us. We paid two dollars to rent this boat and just made five. We each get a dollar!”
The boys were feeling good about their new income stream. Their hour was about up, and they headed back to turn in the boat. As they approached Javier was waiting there with his hands on his hips. He did not look happy, “What was that! You’re giving people rides on my boat!”
Joe said, “Now Javier, we gave that guy a ride. He was having trouble finding his way around the river. He just jumped on it for a second. Everything’s fine.”
Javier walked up to Dave with a smile, “You took that guy to bushes didn’t you!”
Dave meekly replied while staring at the ground, “We dropped him off in the area.”
Javier’s face contorted as his eyes bulged, “Y’all are making money taking those guys to the girls in the bushes! You haven’t cut me in on any of it. I ought to start charging y’all ten dollars an hour to take those boats out. No more boats for you!”
The boys were busted. Joe said, “Look, Javier, we’ll cut you in when we get something going. This was a fluke today, but we were thinking we could make some money. How about this, we rent the boat for a dollar an hour and when you see us with an extra guy on our boat, we’ll give you another dollar. That sound good?”
Javier looked at Joe skeptically, “Okay, but I want the first dollar up front. The second dollar comes after you take him up the river. I’ll do that.”
Joe glanced at Mike and Dave. They seemed to approve so Joe said, “It’s a deal. We can all make some money.” Joe gave Javier a wink and the deal was done.
As Joe thought about the river taxi, Ryan and the boys came running in, bringing him back to the present. They all had big smiles and Ryan said, “Hey dad, that Hemisfair park is a fun place. We had a great time, thanks.”
As they ran out Joe sat there smiling. He was wondering what they would think if they could see what he and his buddies had done back in the day. Now, Hemisfair 68 is gone. The river walk is crowded to the point where you almost can’t have a pleasant walk anymore. The crowded river walk and San Antonio’s population explosion is because of Hemisfair. The fair put San Antonio on the map and the tourist business boomed. Normally San Antonio had good tourist business in the spring and summer. After Hemisfair, San Antonio was a year round destination. With its mild temperatures in the winter, businesses began scheduling company seminars in the city. Major businesses began re-locating in San Antonio. It was crazy growth.
There are no more paddle boats, which was the highlight of going to the river for the boys. Then again, you can’t make progress without losing something. Hemisfair threw San Antonio onto the national scene but lost the magic and charm of the river. Joe was so thankful he got to enjoy the river when he was young. He reclined in his chair and closed his eyes to see if he could go back again.
