The transition from winter to spring on the road to fun

Backyard mudding a Maine rite of spring

Sun, 05/03/2015 - 10:00pm

ROCKLAND — There are a variety ways to celebrate spring. For some, it’s a simply doing a little gardening; for others, there are more unique ways to expend that pent-up winter energy.

Ryan Maloney, of Cushing, and his friend, Owen Winchenbach, of Thomaston, figured it out. They decided to take Maloney’s car for a spin around the backyard — through the mud.

“I decided I would go for a drive in back of the house in a mud hole,” said Maloney. “I think I left the sunroof open while I did it. I need to clean the car at some point today. I knocked the muffler off and had to get that fixed this morning before I could do anything else with it.”

After fixing the muffler, he and Winchenbach did what anyone else would do after a hard spell of mudding. They headed for the Chinese Buffet in Rockland.

Besides being covered in mud, the car had a large stick protruding from under the headlight and the front bumper looked as if it was hanging on by a prayer.

The car was in the parking lot and it looked so out of place with other cars sporting fresh wash jobs, an inquiry was in order. One had to laugh, and then find out who’s car it was.

Inside the restaurant, sedately enjoying a meal, the two were jovial about their exploits. Relaxed and conversational, the mudding experience was just what a pair of young men needed after a long, hard winter.