It's easy to get lost sometimes in 23,000 square feet of caves but it's even harder to find somebody. Working at the winery requires a lot of teamwork and communication. There's always some question that you have to ask somebody in particular. Has the Petit Verdot been punched down yet today? Have you seen the alcohol spray bottle? Are you done using the air pump outside? Have you seen the alcohol spray bottle? Can you move these barrels with the forklift? Have you seen the alcohol spray bottle?!?! The cave has two entrances and there's been many-a-times when I've played a game of cat and rat - You go in one end looking for Ryan and he comes out the other looking for you, going round and round till one of you gives up and that's when you end up finding each other. And those caves are BIG! It takes a few minutes to walk all the way to the back of the cave and make a full loop. The cave sometimes seems like it has a personality; a very mischievous and playful personality. It loves to play tricks on you. When you call out somebody's name, their answer occasionally bounces off the walls in such a way that it seems to come from the opposite direction. Or it loves to change the quality of people's voices so that you think you're closing in on your target but in fact, when you round the corner, it's somebody else entirely waiting for you. During the hustle and bustle of harvest time is a precious commodity and I decided that if I could just get around the cave faster maybe (just maybe) we could get the job done before dark.

Hmmm.... What wheeled personal transportation device could I use to get around the smooth even surfaces of the cave? Aha! A skateboard seems like such a contraption! Except I didn't really know how to ride a skateboard very well... At first I managed quite well with the small exception that I couldn't turn left. But after a month of practice I became a full-fledged ambi-turner and the only rat I know on wheels. It sounds funny but it really is the best way to travel - I could get to and from a work area quickly and find people in a flash (No more games of cat and rat because I could overtake somebody looking for me). The only thing is that the floor gets wet so I have to be careful not to skate through any puddles. I bought a skate board with griptape that looks like caution tape so that I remember whenever I ride it that I'm in a work zone! What's next - a skate park in a wine cave? Stranger things have happened!