KYLE GREEN | The Roanoke Times

A participant in the Big Wheel race holds his Big Wheel and its loose wheel aloft as he reaches the finish line at a downtown parking garage.

JARED SOARES | The Roanoke Times

Isha Devine spins Judah Hunter-Frick during Saturday's public pillow fight at the Century Plaza in downtown Roanoke.

KYLE GREEN | The Roanoke Times

A Big Wheel racer prepares Sunday to ride down the Church Avenue parking garage ramp.

KYLE GREEN | The Roanoke Times

Participants in the race barrel down the parking garage ramp.

The merrymakers occupied the municipal parking garage shortly before 2 p.m. Sunday in a successful first phase of their guerrilla operation to have fun in the town that some say can't have fun.

"Man your vehicles," the announcer said at Church Avenue garage in downtown Roanoke.

Go.

Sixteen people aboard nonmotorized three-wheelers took off in the Easter Sunday Big Wheel Race. It was a rapid descent from near the top of the nine-story city parking garage to the bottom via the exit ramp, which race supporters closed to other vehicles with small orange cones.

No, they didn't have the city's permission to do that, but that was part of the fun. A Roanoke group that calls itself Playing in Traffic staged the race in the spirit of making a spectacle out of themselves for fun. The group is the Roanoke chapter or affiliate of Improv Everywhere, a New York-based group whose followers strive to cause "scenes of chaos and joy in public places," the Web site says.

Sunday's race had that aim, and everyone had fun, though it didn't appear to stop traffic. Although a few pedestrians looked amused, Church Avenue was virtually devoid of cars like much of downtown on the holiday afternoon. But, since the last thing the group wanted was a police officer showing up and asking questions about their staging a potentially dangerous stunt on public property, a lower-key event may have been better this time around.

Web users checking the right sites (Facebook, MySpace, Improveverywhere.com and myscoper.com) knew to gather at the top of the parking garage by the down ramp. Some 30 people were there by race time. After a costume check, the whistle was blown.

Far from making a jackrabbit start, the racers pushed and pulled themselves forward until gravity caught, and then the fun began. As the racers disappeared into the first turn, spectators ran for the staircase to try to spot the fast-moving pack on floors below.

Cranked up by furiously peddling legs, the three-wheelers roared loudly in the echoey concrete racecourse, which spirals downward like a giant, upright rotini. The racers rode for perhaps half a minute and then came out at the bottom, exhausted and joyous.

Spectators clapped and took pictures as awards for speed and costume were handed out from beside the payment booth, which happened to be closed.

Improv Everywhere, operating almost seven years and based in New York, calls recruits "undercover agents."

While Playing in Traffic staged a pillow fight Saturday on Kirk Avenue downtown and the race Sunday, stunts in major cities include setting up desktop computers -- monitors, processors and keyboards -- in a New York Starbucks.

In Shanghai, 50 conspirators froze in place in a crowded pedestrian area.

Back in New York, one group rode the subway without pants, while another dressed up in Best Buy employee colors (blue top, khakis) and went into a Best Buy store and stood around.

In Roanoke, participants describe themselves as a small group of everyday folks who slip periodically into the mode of zany merrymakers with the objective of having fun while making scenes. They have created temporary public art exhibits and staged several public, spontaneous dance performances, said a member who goes by "Agent Blabbermouth," a Roanoke artist.

But if you haven't seen or heard of Playing in Traffic, that's because their adventures have been relatively short-lived, had-to-be-there type events. More activities are planned for 2008, Blabbermouth said.

"I love it that people can be silly and act like a kid and nobody thinks bad about it," said Johnny Etter, father of a racer. "Everybody's laughing and happy."

His daughter, Dorian, a Franklin County High School teacher, won a costume prize that consisted of a Peeps Bubble Blower. "It's better than a trophy," her dad said.

Also in the winner's circle was River Laker, who also earned a costume prize, as his racing was problematic.

"I fell off two times pretty bad," said Laker, eying a crimson elbow and scuffed calf. "It went so fast you couldn't control it."

Another rider, Tom McKinnon, came in last on foot, carrying his Big Wheel and one wheel that came loose.

"I just felt the back get away from me and it was all over," he said. "I had a great time."

Playing in Traffic is made up of seven registered members listed -- by pseudonym -- on the Improv Everywhere site. The seven form the center of a larger circle of observers and supporters -- people like B.B. Rierson of Roanoke, a musician, instrument repairer and driver making a living in the music industry. He watched Sunday's race.

"It's about getting in touch with the inner child," he said.

While some say there's nothing to do in Roanoke, Playing in Traffic says otherwise, Rierson said.

"This is about making something happen."