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One early spring morning, Friendly awoke to the sound of something crinkling quite close to him. He opened his eyes and found himself staring at Lightning McQueen's tail end."Hey, what are you doing, Timothy?" asked the fox, yawning widely."I... I put my shorts under the duvet for today and now I can't find them!" came Timothy's muffled voice, as he fidgeted under the duvet.Friendly chuckled as Timothy's Pull-ups wiggled in the air, crinkling as the raccoon searched for his missing shorts. He put his paw on the seat of Timothy's training pants and chuckled when he felt how squishy they were."Come on, Timothy. You don't need to wiggle your butt in my face""Oh, sorry" said Timothy, turning around and emerging from under the covers."Look, we can find your shorts when we strip the duvet off" said the fox, snuggling with his young raccoon friend and chattering contently.Friendly gently rubbed the seat of Timothy's Pull-ups and listened as Timothy began to trill."Hey, you know what today is, don't you?" said Friendly."We're going camping today with Jake!" replied Timothy."That's right!" Friendly smiled, "You're not just a squishypants after all"Timothy giggled a little but still looked a little upset about his missing favorite shorts."Come on, I'll help you out of those" said the fox, emerging from the duvet and clambering out of bed. Helping Timothy to his feet, they made their way to the bathroom together. Friendly picked up a new pair of Pull-ups for Timothy, as well as his blue t-shirt.After helping Timothy to find his shorts and dress and with a change of training pants, the two friends were ready to bike down to Jake's house. Friendly slung his backpack over his shoulder once he had packed everything he could into it and went outside to fetch his bike with Timothy."Bye boys! Have fun!" said Friendly's mom, kissing her son on his cheek and giving Timothy a little hug."It's gonna be so much fun! We might even make a few new friends while we're there""We can take our bikes, right?" asked Timothy"Uh-huh! We'll be staying in a tent in the woods""Uh... in the woods?" Timothy squeaked, anxiously. "I've never camped in the woods before, it seems scary"Timothy trembled a little bit. Friendly saw this and was quick to comfort him."Hey, there's no need to be frightened, we'll all be there. You know what they say - safety in numbers""I thought that was just for going to school or to the park" Timothy frowned."Of course it isn't, it applies to most things, silly 'coon" chuckled the fox, playfully rubbing his friend's headfur. "Besides, Jake's mom's gonna be with us and she's a police officer!"After breakfast, the two friends made their way down to Jake's house. Timothy rode his little red bike along the sidewalk, the raccoon's training wheels making a dull rattling noise as he rode along. Friendly rode his bigger bike

behind, just in case a pothole or rut should decide to halt Timothy's progress.Once or twice Timothy's bike found a small rut that made his back wheel leave the ground, or a significant bump in the path hung up his training wheels and left his back wheel just spinning helplessly. Fortunately all it took was a gentle push from Friendly to get him going again."We're bound to run into some mud where we're going camping, Timothy. You might want to think about trying to ride without your training wheels" suggested Friendly."No thanks" said Timothy, "I like riding with my training wheels""Even when you get stuck and have to cry for help?" asked Friendly, though he was a little anxious to say so.Timothy didn't answer, he just kept on riding.It wasn't long before they arrived at the old fashioned, green wooden house that Jake and his parents lived in."Hey! There you are!" yapped an excited looking German Shepherd, running over to his friends. "I thought you'd never come. You remembered everything, right?""I brought the essentials in my back-pack" said Friendly, gesturing towards the large black and blue backpack he had slung over his shoulder."You remembered my spare Pull-ups, right Friendly?" squeaked Timothy."Yep, I did" smiled the fox, glancing at the training pants peeking out of Timothy's shorts."Alright boys. I've put the tent, food, drinks and sleeping bags in the car, let's get your bikes in and then we can go!""Yay!" squeaked Timothy, riding his training-wheeled bike up to the minivan and dismounting."Still got your training wheels on, Timothy? That's okay - Jake took a while to learn how to ride as well""I wanna keep my training wheels on, I'm not ready to ride without them""It's all good, sweetie pie" replied Jake's mom, gently stroking his headfur after she put his bike in. "Come on you two!""I wish dad could come with us" sighed Jake."He wanted to, but he couldn't get the time off. At least I got a few days off work to take you though""Yeah, I guess" replied Jake, waving a forlorn goodbye to his dad as the minivan began to move. His dad looked on as the minivan departed, waving to his son and wife and leaving for the day's work ahead - getting into his red 1984 Nissan pickup.In another neighborhood, on a secluded farm called "Barnster Dairy Farm," A young nine year old Beagle named Travis Barnster was also preparing to go camping at the same campground. Right now he was making sure he had everything he needed in his backpack."Flashlight, check!" he said, "Batteries, check! Book, check! Toothbrush and paste, check! Swimsuit, check! And last but not least, camera, check! That's everything." Travis zipped up his bag and carried it downstairs and outside where his father, Trevor Barnster, was throwing some more stuff in the back of his blue 1966 GMC pickup truck. "Hey, dad!" he said, "I'm all packed!""Great!" said

Trevor, "Just throw it in the back and we'll be good!" Travis placed his bag in the bed of the truck and stepped back to look at it. He and his dad had already packed their bikes, their clothes, a waterproof tent, and another waterproof tent that could be erected right on the back of the truck. They were prepared to spend the weekend camping."I'm really excited about this, dad," said Travis, "I've been looking forward to doing this for weeks!""I know what you mean, son," said Trevor, "I'm pretty excited myself. I don't remember the last time I went camping.""Well this trip should definitely be something to remember." said Travis; he was really looking forward to spending a whole weekend with his dad. Trevor owned the farm with his father, Henry Barnster, and worked a ton of hours, so he rarely got to spend any quality time with Travis. Travis knew that long hours and loneliness was all a part of farm life. It probably would have been better if he had a mother too, but he didn't. Still, he never complained; he had two wonderful friends that he hung out with when he needed some company. Speaking of whom, here they came! A young German Shepard and Greyhound came riding up the long dirt driveway and parked their bikes in front of the truck."Hi, Sam!" said Travis, "Hi, Hurricane!""Morning, boys!" added Trevor."G'morning, Mr. Barnster." said the Greyhound, who was Hurricane."Hi, Travis!" said the Shepard, who was Sam, "Are we ready to go?""Well we are," said Trevor, with a smile "But you might want to answer that question for yourself, boys.""Of course we're ready," said Hurricane, "We've been planning this for a month, haven't we?""We sure have," said Travis, "and I say it's time to stop planning and start doing!""Right you are, son!" said Trevor, "Okay boys; those backpacks all you've got?""Yes, sir!" Hurricane and Sam both answered."Alright!" said Trevor, "Lemme put your bikes in the back of the truck, and your bags in the utility boxes and we'll be all good. Hop in, boys!" With that, Trevor set to work loading the bikes into the truck bed and fastening them down, and Travis, Sam, and Hurricane got into the truck's cab. They all had excited looks on their faces as they buckled in. Sam and Hurricane were Travis's best friends; they had met in first grade and had been friends ever since. Sam was an interesting character; his father was a junkman and his mother was a preschool teacher. He also had an older sister named Brandy, and to be honest, he was kinda annoyed by her sometimes. Sam himself was a real individual; he was eight years old, free spirited, and not one to follow the crowd; he played by his own rules and had dedicated his life to having fun whenever he could. Hurricane on the other hand was a big softie. His father was an Olympic track star and his mother a computer programmer. Hurricane at ten years old was physically strong, able to lift 100 pounds with ease,

but emotionally weak; certain things such as movies scenes, music, or even pictures in books, could cause him to start crying. But Travis and Sam didn't look down on him for it, in fact, they admired him for it; they thought that Hurricane's sensitivity made him great with younger kids and a great friend. A minute later, Trevor joined the boys in the truck said, "Okay, seatbelts, everyone!" As the boys fastened their seatbelts, an older Beagle came out of the farmhouse and up to the truck window. This was Henry, Travis's grandfather."Off already, boys?" he asked with a smile."We sure are, grandpa," said Travis, "Hope you don't mind being left here alone.""Not at all," said Henry, "I've got plenty of work to keep me busy with you boys gone.""Are you sure you can handle it, dad?" asked Trevor."Of course I can, son." said Henry, "Don't worry, you boys have a good time." Then he became very serious and said, "But remember, while camping can be fun, there's a lot of things that have to be done absolutely right in order to be safe. So remember, whatever you do, don't get cocky.""Don't worry, dad," said Trevor, "These are some fine young men I've got with me. They know all about keeping safety first.""I was talking to you." Henry said firmly. At this, Sam burst into laughter and Hurricane gave a small chuckle. Trevor looked plenty embarrassed. Travis patted his father's shoulder and said,"Don't worry, dad. I know you're a safe camper." Trevor smiled and put his arm around the young Beagle."Thanks, son," he said, "I'm glad somebody thinks so." He then looked at Sam and Hurricane and said, "Okay, boys, are you ready?""Yeah!" all three boys answered. "Okay!" said Trevor as he started the truck's engine and shifted into gear. "Right, now hold tight!" The truck drove off down the driveway, turned onto the road, and set off."Have fun, boys." said Henry as he watched the truck drive out of sight. Then he turned around and headed back into the farmhouse.A couple of hours later, a minivan arrived at the campground. Friendly was the first to disembark from the vehicle, followed by Jake and then Timothy."Here we are, boys... Jake! Don't wipe that on your sleeve!""Aw, mom!" groaned Jake, as he fidgeted to take a tissue from his shorts' pocket and wipe his nose properly."Well, we ought to set up camp unless we fancy sleeping in the van" said Friendly, "Let's get the tent out""Can we ride our bikes afterwards?" suggested Timothy"Hehe, that sounds like a good idea" agreed Friendly, "Then we can explore this campground and park a bit quicker than walking""That is if Timothy's training wheels don't get snagged by tree roots and mud" said Jake."I hope not" said Timothy, "My poor bike always gets stuck""We could try to teach you to ride without them... pull-ups" Jake said, chuckling as he noticed Timothy's training pants were peeking out so

much that Lightning McQueen's tail end was totally visible."Wha...? Oh" Timothy tried to pull his shorts up to cover his training pants, but they just kept slipping back down again, leaving Lightning McQueen's tail end fully peeking out of his shorts. Friendly couldn't help chuckling as he watched Timothy struggling to conceal his Pull-ups."It's okay Timothy, I think you look cute with your training pants peeking out like that"Timothy blushed a little but said nothing. Friendly gave him a reassuring smile before turning to Jake."Well, let's get this tent up!"About thirty minutes later, the tent has been successfully erected. The boys didn't take much time to admire their accomplishment with the tent, they quickly went and unloaded their bikes from the back of the minivan."I'll have some sausages and beans ready for you in a few hours, be back before dark!" called Jake's mom. "I'm going to take a little hike up that hill over yonder""Alright mom, see you later!" called Jake."I'll bring them back, don't worry" said Friendly, smiling to Jake's mom and waving as he mounted his big, blue mountain bike. Timothy mounted his small red and black bike and rode off, his training wheels rattling on the tarmac as he rode off after Jake, towards the dirt trail.Jake's mom waved back and set off towards the hill, making sure that the minivan was locked and nothing of value was visible - she was a police officer after all and knew how to deter most thieves.No sooner had Friendly and the group ridden off down the trail than a rustic pickup truck turned into the campsite. It was Travis and his group."Looks like someone's already here." said Hurricane."It does indeed," said Trevor as he wheeled the truck around and backed into the parking space, "I sure hope they don't mind us being here.""Well this is a double parking spot," said Sam, "I wonder why they even built this thing in the first place.""You've got me, Sam," said Travis, "I guess we'll just have to make the best of it if they're not friendly.""Yeesh!" said Sam, "Just like the stereotypical older sibling, you stay on your side of the room and I stay on mine.""Let's not jump to conclusions, boys," said Trevor, "For all we know, they might even be the friendliest people we've ever met.""I sure hope so," said Hurricane, "I certainly wouldn't want to impose on anybody.""Don't worry, Hurricane," said Travis as he put his arm around his friend, "We'll see what they're like when they get here, and make the most of it." Hurricane smiled back at Travis."Well, boys," said Trevor, "How 'bout we quit yappin' and get ourselves set up?""Alright!" the boys answered in unison. With that, they set to work setting up camp. Trevor unloaded the bikes from the truck bed, moved the bags to the cab, and with Hurricane's help, pitched one of the tents on the back of the truck. Travis and Sam on the other hand,

set up the other tent right in front of the truck so they would be close by. Then Trevor set up two sleeping bags in the truck bed, and Travis set up two more in the other tent while Sam and Hurricane set up the chairs. Finally the four dogs stepped back and admired their handiwork."You boys did a fine job," said Trevor, "A troop to be proud of!""Thanks, dad," said Travis, "I think it looks great!""It sure does," said Sam."Better than most, look - there aren't many tents, most of the parking spots have RVs and pick-ups with trailers" continued Sam."Alright Sam, everyone has different tastes""One moment," said Hurricane, "We're all set up, but who's going to sleep where?" Everyone looked at each other and pondered for a minute; they hadn't thought of that.""Well..." said Trevor, "We can work out bedding arrangements later; right now, I say we have some fun!""What should we do first?" asked Travis. When no one answered, he said, "Could we go for a bike ride? I'd like to check this place out.""That sound's fun!" said Sam, excitedly."I think that's a great idea!" agreed Hurricane."It's unanimous!" cried Trevor, "A bike ride it shall be!" So he and the boys grabbed their helmets from the truck's cab and brought their bikes around from the other side. As they put their helmets on and mounted their bikes, Trevor said, "Remember, boys, the trail is very narrow in some places, so we need to stay in a single file line and stay together; we don't want to get lost out there. Hurricane, you be the leader.""Yes, sir!" said Hurricane. Travis and Sam weren't worried, they knew they'd all get a chance to be the leader over the course of the weekend. Hurricane pedaled forward a bit to allow the others to fall in behind him. "Ready, everyone?" he asked."Ready!" Travis, Sam, and Trevor all answered. Hurricane faced forward again and said,"Forward, HO!!" And he pedaled off out of the campsite followed by Sam, Travis, and Trevor bringing up the rear.Just a little bit back down the trail, Hurricane, Sam, Travis, and Trevor were biking along with no problems. "Man, this place is great!" said Sam, "I can't wait to tell Brandy all about it!""I know what you mean," said Trevor, "I wish dad was here. He could use a dose of the great outdoors." Travis just smiled; it felt so good to be out having fun with his father and his best friends. He couldn't think of anything that could ruin the weekend for them, when suddenly Hurricane said, "Oh dear...""What's going on?" asked Travis."I think there's some trouble up ahead!" said Hurricane, "Maybe we'd better stop!""Let me see" said Trevor. Hurricane applied the brakes and brought the bike convoy to a stop while Trevor looked ahead. He then called out:"Excuse me! You folks need some help!?""What's wrong?" asked Travis."I think there's a younger rider who's having some trouble with his bike. Come

and look" said Trevor, getting off his bike and walking it.Trevor and the boys came across a large patch of mud. In the very middle of it was a young Raccoon on a bike with training wheels, he was pedaling as fast as his little legs could but the back wheel of his bike was just spinning, spraying mud all over his blue t-shirt and his orange shorts, with white and blue flames."We tried getting him out, but the mud's too sticky for us!" barked a German Shepherd, wearing a green t-shirt and a pair of black and grey shorts."Can you offer us a hand?" asked a fox, somewhat older than both the Raccoon and the German Shepherd.The three young pups and Trevor all looked sorry for Timothy as his bike struggled in the mud. Among them, Trevor looked the most sympathetic of all."We'll try our best" he announced, reaching into his pack for a bungy cord. "I have a couple of these so we can pull him out with a bike, but we'll try pushing him first alright?"Trevor and the three pups all waded into the mud and put their paws on the seat of Timothy's bike once he had stopped pedalling."Ready boys? One, two, three - PUSH!"All four dogs pushed as hard as they could, and Timothy's bike budged - but only a few feet into even deeper, sloppier mud. Timothy tried turning his pedals again, but his back wheel just slipped and spun in the mud, spraying Trevor and the pups with mud."Hey, don't splash us!" yelped Hurricane, attempting to shield himself from the onslaught of mud with his paws."Sorry" sniffled Timothy."Hmmm, I think this is going to need some additional help" said Trevor, reaching into his pack for the other bungy cord and handing them to the fox and German Shepherd. "Here, attach these to the seatposts of your bikes and I'll attach them to your friend's handlebars. Then you can pull as we push""Goody!" said Jake, taking the bungy cord and attaching it to his blue bike."If you have gears, you'll need to be in low-gear to tow him" added Trevor."I don't" Jake quickly replied."Alright" said Friendly, setting his bike into the lowest gear and riding it a few feet forward so his gears shifted before attempting to tow Timothy.Trevor and the pups all stood behind Timothy as Jake and Friendly prepared to tow him free. Sam glanced down at Timothy's muddy shorts and saw the Lightning McQueen Pull-ups peeking out."This kid is wearing a diaper?" thought Sam, uttering a nervous chuckle but not loud enough for anyone to hear."We're ready!" called Friendly, as both the bungy-cords went taught."One, Two, Three!" called Trevor, beginning to push Timothy's bike again. Friendly and Jake turned their pedals slowly, trying hard to stay balanced with their efforts to pull their friend out of the muddy mess he was stuck in. Sam, Hurricane and Travis all pushed the raccoon's bike, and Timothy's bike began to move! It took a few minutes, but Timothy was soon free of the

mud."Thank you! Thank you very much!" exclaimed Timothy, beaming happily as he turned his pedals and his back wheel no longer spun helplessly.Once everyone had recovered from the exertion of helping Timothy free of the mud, the boys all introduced themselves and they were all excited to hear that they were sharing the double parking spot."Wow! It'll be so cool if my mom lets us sleep where we like" yapped Jake."That'd be real nice!" agreed Hurricane"Yeah!" piped up Sam."Now hold on boys, we can't all sleep in the same tent" said Trevor, "Though it would be kinda cool""I'm sure we can agree on sleeping places when we get back. You can ride with us if you'd like, we're exploring these trails""So are we, it'd be a pleasure to ride with you""Then we can help your little friend if his bike has any trouble with the mud again" said Sam, giving a small smile to Timothy and noticing the raccoon's Pull-ups were still peeking out of his shorts."Yeah, the mud likes to tease him a lot" said Friendly."It's his training wheels. I used to get stuck too, but I don't need them now!" yapped Jake."Yep, I remember seeing both of you stuck in a big puddle once. You both had a lot of fun though" chuckled Friendly, covering his mouth with his paw to try and stifle it a bit.Everyone chuckled."We never had training wheels on our bikes, we learned how to ride right away without them" said Travis. "I've seen other kids with them on though""Well I had unhappy memories with my training wheels, I'd get stuck all the time and the other kids would all make fun of me because I couldn't ride like they could" said Trevor, "I didn't want you boys to have those unhappy memories I did""I had training wheels for a short time, but my parents wanted me off them quickly too" said Hurricane, sitting next to Timothy. "I can help you learn to ride without them if you want, Timothy""No thanks, I like my training wheels" said Timothy, simply."Okay then, I'll be riding right behind you should you get stuck again, little buddy" replied Hurricane, smiling at the chubby young raccoon.A few hours later after they had explored some of the forest trails - and having found a lake at the end of one of them, they all rode back to the parking spot together. Timothy and Hurricane fell behind since the little raccoon's training wheels often got hung up on bumps and tree roots so his rear wheel just spun helplessly in the air, or they got bogged down in some sloppy mud and halted Timothy's progress. Hurricane was always there to push him free though and at one point they even caught up with the main group again.After what seemed like an eternity for Timothy and Hurricane, they arrived with the others at the parking spot."What happened to you?" asked Travis."Poor Timothy got stuck a lot. Mud, tree roots, puddles, even the grassy area had him stuck with his back wheel spinning.

Poor little guy" said Hurricane, resting his paw on Timothy's shoulder."Oh dear" chuckled Sam."Supper's ready, boys!" called Jake's mom."Yay!" squeaked Timothy, deserting his bike and half-running, half-waddling over to the barbeque."I could have lit a campfire, it would have saved your propane" offered Trevor."Thanks, but I do like a good barbeque. Tell you what, we can do the campfire thing tomorrow night after the boys get back from their swim""Sounds like a plan" smiled Trevor, closing his eyes and inhaling deeply. "Mmmmm, that does smell mighty good""Uh-uh! Little ones first, starting with Timothy" grinned Jake's mom, gently tapping Trevor's nose."No fair!" moaned Trevor, playfully."Dad!" giggled Travis, falling onto his back with his feet folded over and flailing with laughter.As soon as everybody had been fed, Jake's mom was insistent on them heading to bed since it was getting dark."I don't want anybody getting lost, so it's bedtime for you all now!""Does that go for me too?" smiled Trevor."No, you can stay up for a bit and keep me company while I keep watch. I just want to make sure there's nothing dangerous around"The boys all went over to the tents to pick their sleeping places."Did you hear that? There might be wild animals like bears or cougars or... or... wolves around!" sniffled Timothy."Shhh, don't worry Timothy" said Friendly, pulling him close in a hug."I don't know about you, but I feel ridiculously safe with you mom around, Jake""She's a police officer, and a damn good one. My dad is too""Wow! Both of your parents are cops?" exclaimed Travis."Yep" grinned Jake, gently wagging his tail."Alright, let's pick where we're going to sleep" said Friendly."I wish we could all sleep together" pouted Sam."Well, we can't. Now, I can go in this one, wanna join me Travis?""I'll sleep with Sam!" Jake piped up.Timothy looked a little upset that his best friend was going to sleep with somebody else, but then Hurricane leaned over."I'll keep you safe, Timothy" whispered Hurricane, "Nobody will get past me""Thank you Hurricane" smiled Timothy.By nine o'clock that evening, all of the boys were asleep. Timothy with Hurricane, Jake with Sam, and Travis with Friendly. The only two awake were Trevor and Jake's mom."So, what's your name?" asked Trevor, pouring her a glass of wine. "It'd be a bit awkward if I had to address you as 'officer', or ma'am""My name's Zoey" came her reply."Well, Zoey. Now there's a sweet name if I ever heard one" smiled Trevor - obviously a little star struck."Flattery won't work with me, buddy" Zoey said, raising her eyebrown and smiling as she took a sip from her wine glass. "Thanks"With that, Trevor began to pour his own glass of wine, but only a dribble came from the bottle."Oh!" he groaned. "Zoey! This wine bottle's

empty""Awww" smiled Zoey, "Then why don't you get another bottle and pour yourself a drink?"Trevor chuckled and went over to his pickup truck. "I did bring a bottle, we make this ourselves from our vineyard on our farm""Nice" said Zoey, as she continued sipping her glass of wine.After a few more drinks had been shared by the two adults, the only sound that could be heard from them was giggling. After several moments of giggling and talking together, they decided they'd better go to bed. Zoey went into the tent and found her son and Sam asleep together. She shrugged and went into the sleeping bag next to them.Trevor went into the tent and found Friendly and Travis asleep - though in separate sleeping bags. He too could only shrug and got into the sleeping bag next to Travis."Sweet dreams, my little guy" he whispered and licked his son behind the ear before falling asleep beside him.The End