Moonnites

Who would have guessed that quiet, conservative Orange County has housed an annual mooning tradition for nearly the past three decades? And all in Laguna Niguel!

Every July at Mugs Away Saloon, people of all ages come out to show off their nice- (and sometimes not-so-nice-) looking asses to the passengers on the Amtrak and Metrolink trains that pass by the saloon—just for the hell of it.

The "Moon Show," as it's called on the official Moon Amtrak website, got its start in 1979, when a man named K.T. Smith said he would buy his friends a round of drinks if they ran out to the train tracks and dropped their pants for the next passing train. And as the story goes, there were a few who took him up on the offer.

Ever since then, the tradition has continued—sans the free alcohol. (Sorry.) But, of course, there will be plenty of vendors selling cold, non-alcoholic (sorry) beverages, food and souvenirs accompanied by two live bands playing outside Mugs Away Saloon from midday until midnight. The mooning starts as early as 7:35 a.m. and goes as late as 11 p.m. And, if you're too shy to moon with the rest of the crowd, you can always be a bystander and watch others have fun or humiliate themselves.

Whichever.

The 28th Annual Mooning of Amtrak and Second Annual Mooning of Metrolink at Mugs Away Saloon, 27324 Camino Capistrano, Ste. 102, Laguna Niguel, (949) 582-9716; www.moonamtrak.org . Sat., 7:35 a.m.-11 p.m. Free.