Normally, getting on a strange boat when it’s dark outside is a bad idea.  It typically means you’ve been Shanghaied by gold rush era sailors or worse, tricked into going crab fishing.  But if you’re like me, and you’re looking around at San Francisco and wondering ‘where did all the weird shit go?’  You suck it up, and you walk up that plank.

People were taking like, amazing pictures

Day Breaker, or as the kids call it ‘dybrkr’, is a party that starts at 730am on a week day.  It’s usually at a dance club or a similar venue that can accommodate hundreds of pre-dawn ravers and provide enough electronic music to wake the dead.

This particular daybreakers was on a large boat on the San Francisco Bay.  So I put on my warmest clothes, wrote Stuart a shabby ‘I’ll be late to work’ email and took a train down to the waterfront.

unicorn, octopus, tigers, rabbits, all native to the san francisco party scene

On board, at 7am, there was a yoga class finishing up.  A hundred glowing bodies in spandex smiling out at the water.  Start-ups with juice tables and granola stands line the perimeter of the 2nd floor, giving away free breakfisty product samples that say things like ‘gluten free’, and ‘I probably taste like bird seed,” but the packaging had us all convinced it was very healthy.  Now onto the actual party.

A storm trooper played sax, an Pharaoh played bongos…and they were great

On the top deck, the music starts, and the costumed, brightly colored, dancing go-getters of San Francisco hit the dance floor.  Dusty Rhino is hosting, so it’s house music and its quality, DJ Alvaro Bravo is holding court in a rainbow mohawk.  It’s morning, and has to be at work in an hour, but the boat floats gently on, and the atmosphere might remind you a bit of a sober trash fence sunrise.  Isolated from the rest of the world, if only briefly, and surrounded by uninhibited, smiling, revelers.  It’s friendly, gracious, and it feels pretty damn good to shake up your morning routine.

After lightly sweating with beautiful strangers for a couple hours you feel oddly invigorated.  When we got back to port I said goodbye to my new shipmates and began walking up Market Street during the 9am work rush.  I soon ran into two friends coming off Bart, holding coffees and hurrying towards their offices.  We chatted, I explained what I had done that morning, and why I (without coffee) was so wide eyed and bushy tailed.  And like that, two more morning day breakers were recruited.

UP NEXT

This month’s DayBreaker SF Winter White Party is January 19th.  And to make it extra dope they are taking donations for the Project Homeless Connect SF. Please bring a pair of new white crew socks (men’s), a pair of new underwear (men’s), or a toothbrush to donate!  “These items can help our homeless neighbors take care of themselves and take steps toward stability.”

For the party: “adorn yourselves in your most decadent whites and git down under the black lights. Taj Turner will be delivering the soulful house beats, Lysee J will be unleashing her sweet vocal melodies, fresh coffee, juice, and breakfast treats are on the house, and a flurry of white surprises awaits.”

DayBreaker SF Winter White Party
Tuesday, January 19th
City Nights
715 Harrison St, San Francisco, California 94107

Jump in for pre-dance yoga from 6:30-7:30am (bring your own mat) or just come for the boogie from 7:30-9:30am