High school, 1955-6: High school, college, Art Center 1957-60: There was a '41 Ford with a hot flattie, but no pictures. After I got married in '62, it was mostly OT rides for the next 30 years.
The first time I saw that coupe was in 1966 up at Crestline up by Big Bear I was standing on the corner win it drove by bitchen coupe with with a good looking blonde girl friend I was 16
Hello, If you have ever been on a drive up the coast from LA to Santa Barbara, you have witnessed one of the best all time drives. If you have taken this drive before 1970, you have passed our favorite restaurant site many times over. It is gone now, but when you get to the Seacliff Drive exit, it was right here on the coastal shoreline. The oil companies were greedy and would not allow the freeway to go onto their property. So, the interchange got moved closer the ocean shoreline and Stanley’s Diner was torn down. We used to stop here on our way up to surf Rincon and elsewhere up the coast. The reef made such a great break and it was a venue for all of the locals inside the restaurant to “check out the surfers.” The waves were outstanding and ones to remember. The food at the restaurant was also very good. This was the first of many mandatory stops on the way to Rincon on this part of the coast. First it was Stanley’s, then Mussel Shoals and the motel, (there were two sets of oil piers, but they got removed later.) Finally, Rincon.. One time during one of our 1967 drives up to San Francisco, we stopped for a sunset dinner. If you have never seen a Santa Barbara “evening glass -off” with a good swell running. I am sorry, but, as the saying goes… "you missed it." The steaks and sides made this a perfect early dinner venue. Even in the late night, you could see the waves breaking outside coming toward the diner. The surf was never the same again as tons of rocks were dumped on the break for the freeway off ramp. So, the next time you cruise north up to Santa Barbara or Ventura to the south for the hot rod gatherings, please remember Stanley’s Diner… Jnaki
Hello, Big Bear? We were lucky to be able to live in an area of So Cal that allowed us to drive to the Big Bear/Snow Summit area to ski and mess around. Where we lived also allowed us to surf in the morning during the winter and drive up to Big Bear all in the same day to go skiing. When we were in high school, it was a tradition to drive up to Big Bear on the day after Christmas for a week’s long party and cruise. The groups from all over Long Beach would rent cabins and motel rooms for the week long stay and sometimes through New Year’s Day. Our parents were ok with teenagers coming together up here, because there had to be at least one parent staying in the cabin as chaperones. There were still rocking out parties and late night get togethers everywhere. It was the old tradition of the…”gathering of the tribes.” Talk about cars and hot rods, from every corner of the Long Beach area, high schoolers drove their cars up there. Sure, there were match races on those long empty tree lined roads away from the cabins, but there was one thing happening that no one could overcome. The altitude played havoc on our tune ups. Down by the beach, our cars were tuned to the max for the weekend drag races and weekly match racing. But, the altitude up in Big Bear/Snow Summit (ranged from 6700’ to 9000’) was so thin that everyone’s motors ran like crap. On the way up the winding road, it started when you wanted to accelerate, so something needed to get done. Every car up there had the old hissing sound when the air cleaners were removed. That helped somewhat, but the cars still would not run well. If you adjusted your carb/carbs for high altitude running, you were the top gun in the match racing. You could tell who was new on the cruise down the main drag, their cars just did not run well and when they revved up their motors, there was nothing there. But, if you forgot to reset the adjustment when you got back down the mountain, your car ran like crap again. But, despite all of these troubles, there was plenty of fun to be had at the get togethers and parties. What did the chaperones do when the parties were going on inside the cabins?...they partied, too. That is why we always knew who to ask to be our chaperones, even the girls knew who to ask. Those were some great times to be a teenager in So Cal. Cars, girls, parties, super locations, and don’t forget, outstanding chaperones…ahhh yes… Jnaki
Ilived in Bloomington,ca Pulled weeds at colton, {Morrow} drag strip, still Own 40 ford, 3/8 flatie then street raced a lot. Blew it up, next chev.
Hello, In 1968-72, this is all we could afford, $140 a month for a 700 sq ft. apartment with our garage for our 1965 El Camino. There were two tiny bedrooms, a small kitchen, a small living room and a bathroom that was so small that you could sit in the shower and brush your teeth in the sink. The shower stall was a joke, it was so small that a 6 footer could not stand up to take a shower, that is why a tile bench was built into the wall. Actually, it could be called a tiled cave. But, at the time, we really did not care, it was living together that was important. Since I was doing all of my own photo developing work and I had not made my darkroom in the garage yet, I put in a red light in this small bathroom. It was eerie when used normally… as I was too lazy to set up a dual bulb system for normal use… or to change out the red bulb for a normal one after each darkroom usage. When we first moved in, there was a dingy couch in the living room area. It was bad…so measuring it told us that it would not go out of the front door. My wife said that had to go immediately…so, I took apart the wooden window frame in the picture and got my saw out to cut up the old couch. It fit perfectly out of the window to the outside and a trip to the dump. The walkway/stairway to the front door was so narrow that when we bought a new couch, brought it home in the back of the 1965 El Camino, struggled up the narrowed staircase, it would not fit in the doorway… So, back it went and we made those huge pillows for our couches at 1/4 of the cost of the couch. We found salvaged hatchcovers that we resurfaced for shelving, homemade 6 x 4 feet long pillows for our main living room seating area and our ancient stereo plus tons of LP’s we purchased in Los Angeles’s discount record shops. Since we lived near the beach, the salt air did wonders on our cars, even in the garage, I had to wash and wax almost weekly. The metal items in the small apartment also rusted if not cleaned and waxed weekly. As the saying goes…”rust never sleeps…” Those were the times,,, Jnaki
I hope they do restore it. A good example is the Richmond gas station on Foothill BLVD (route 66) in Rancho Cheese (Cucamonga)
Wow... I don't recall ever seeing it before and I lived in Isla Vista, outside of Goletta, back in the very early '60s! Refugio State Park was one of my fathers and mine favorite week end get aways, we did a lot of surf fishing there.
Hello, Back in 1962, we just happened to be on one of our northern surf trips. We went into Refugio State Beach and saw this little point break at the north end of the park. The swell was just right and it was a fast wave with holding power. (just up the coast is the Nirvana of surf spots only accessible by boat. Refugio was the launching spot) But, many years later, we again camped at the park and noticed that there were tiny little balls of gooey stuff on the beach. It also got on our feet, etc. Just about nothing would take that gooey stuff off of our hands and feet. By this time, I had a bottle of Amway Cleaner handy and it worked like magic on all of the black goo. We were giving out little squirts of the cleaner to everyone in the campground...If I had a car load of that Amway Cleaner, I could have made a fortune. This was very mild and safe, compared to gasoline to take off that gooey stuff. I don't know about you guys, but in the middle of the night, it seemed like the local freight train would come roaring right through the campgrounds and our tent!...(about a block away) It was always startling for those of us used to quiet nights in So Cal. Another lesson learned from a well meaning SB local...it is RE FOOF FIO, NOT RE FUGEE O Jnaki
I camped at Refugio a couple of times with some buddies in the '50s. Don't remember the tar balls, but the trains in the night are sure familiar!
We camped at Carpintria beach all in the 50's what a great place for young guys, Reggies Bait & tackle shop - hobby shop - Hobo campground - pier & surf fishing - seeing all the sea life at low tide And the Very Cool Daylight train each day and the other steam locomotives too Smashing pennies under the hopper cars wheels while un-loading sugar beets on the siding rails DND
Hello, Driving down the coast from Long Beach to all points south on PCH, there are many historic spots for stopping during an day or evening cruise. One of our favorite North Orange County spots was this old, tiny, beach themed restaurant that was hard to miss on this drive. (Noel’s) It was located just below the huge wooden water tank marking the location at Surfside, CA. Back then, the tall tower was actually a water tank. Today, it is a vacation rental place with a commanding 360 degree view of the ocean and the ammo dump just north/inland. The restaurant was family run and had amazing “seafod” (seafood) the locals had this thing about the place. Originally the sign said SEAFOD, which drew a lot of comments and jokes. But eventually the sign was altered to say a modified,..”seafood.” I guess the owners got fed up with all of the questions about the sign. But, was that intentional just to draw in customers wanting to know about the place? Interesting marketing technique if it was. The food, by the way, was outstanding. Anything on the menu was perfect for a great meal. The atmosphere was totally ocean/marine, etc. We were introduced to this place because the surf (just a block away) was pretty good and secluded. (inside of gate guarded entrances) Also, you could not miss this place because it sat right at a curve in the road which put your headlights right on the sign and restaurant. It’s competition was directly across the street in the huge Sam’s Seafood Restaurant. For us locals, there was no comparison…the food was just better at Noel’s Seafod restaurant. Today, it is a Taco Surf restaurant and across the street is called Don the Beachcomber. Jnaki
1966 today Hello, The water tower that stood out for miles on those long coastal cruise days turned into a 360 degree view home. It certainly is interesting that it pops up on the horizon from miles away. It sold for 1.5 million just a few weeks ago. As you drive over the tall bridge leading into the Huntington Harbor waterways on one side and ocean (secret surf spot only a few times a year) plus the Navy Ammo loading harbor on the other, this view of the tall water tower is unmistakable. This is all part of the cool coastal cruise from Long Beach down to Laguna Beach and southward to San Diego on coastal route 1. The smell of salt in the air, the sight of the blue/green ocean, and the sounds of your hot rod making burbling noises, what more could you ask for in cruising? Noel's seafood restaurant is right in front and below the tower. Jnaki
My father in law was a Lynwood fireman for decades. One of the guys he worked with who later became the Chief of the Lynwood FDP bought that water tower back in the 90s after it was converted into a home and the elevator was installed. We're going to eat at Capt. Jacks tonight taking our future in laws out to dinner, our son's getting marred next week. Jacks is just down PCH from Don's.
My grandmother used to talk about going to Lick Pier and seeing big bands (and Lawrence Welk) at the Aragon Ballroom. She grew up in Culver City (both grandparents did). Or trips further north.
I have an original passbook to the Pike. It has 7 tickets for "A major ride" @ 50 cents each. I loved going to the Pike when I lived in So Cal, but it could be a scary place at night. Mick
Hello, Living in Long Beach most of our formidable years gave us an unsual look at forms of entertainment. We had the ocean, Marineland, ferries, mountains nearby, suspension bridges, Los Angeles/Hollywood just minutes away, etc. Our city was divided and named into 4 sections, just like a compass. But, the city had one of the most unsual places in California. The Pike. It was an old amusement place that incorporated various old buildings in Long Beach along the shoreline. It had a huge indoor pool called the Plunge. There was the famous Rotor that showed the effects of centrifugal force and the millions of shooting games. The big “Y” cage lift for those great 360 degree views of the whole So Cal cities. There were so many things to see and games to play. The main attraction was the world’s famous Cyclone Racer Roller Coaster ride. Of all of the years growing up in Long Beach up until the (the Cyclone Racer got torn down in late 68) whole Pike got torn down in late 1979, I only rode the Cyclone Racer one time. That was enough for me. As much as I like things that go fast and be exciting, this ride was fast, but not to my liking…It was wood, sways with the cars going by fast, and always seemed like it was going to fall over with the next combination of wind and the centrifugal action of the cars. I rode it as a teenager with a bunch of friends. Out of 12 kids, 7 girls and 5 boys, I was the only boy that sat out more than one ride. There were two girls that did not want to ride more than once, too. The cars were open, had no modern safety bars, and the possiblilty of getting flung out was always on people’s minds. Yes, there were real accidents as well as the local folklore. This amusement place was full of different things to do, but at the far western end of the whole complex, it melded into some old multistory buildings. At this end of the park, there was a street that ran inbeween the buildings and one “alley” that was also famous. For teenagers with cars that sounded rather loud and powerful, “the alley” made our cars sound like we were at Lions Dragstrip. We obviously disturbed people when driving down this “alley” idling and sometimes a “rev up” or two. That was the whole point to cruising down this “alley.” We were not friends of the local sailors on shore leave. Rowdy teenagers with loud and fast cars...what a combo. Thanks, Jnaki 1968 an International Beauty Pageant Parade in 1960 with the big "Y" and Cyclone Racer in the background. The "alley" was to the right and below Ocean Ave, down a steep incline to the alley below.
Hello, My wife and I were messing around very early in the morning in August 1968 at the deserted Pike, taking photos and waiting for the 8:00 am draft board meeting that was going to take place just up the road. It was a scary time and very hectic in the world in 1968. Jnaki It was a cool "beachy" morning and the Pike gave off an eerie feeling while walking around. (only left over trash, a couple of maintenance workers and us) But, afterwards, we had a great vacation drive up the California coast to San Francisco and through the mid valley.
I rode on the "Cyclone Racer" with my older brother, I'm guessing that it must have been 1959 or so. Rode it once, that was enough for me! Went to the "New Pike" a several times as a teen.
I stumbled into Berts ( Not sure that is what it is called today) in 1967 with a bunch of Frat brothers. Maybe there will be a 50th anniversary add on coming soon......
Grew up in Inglewood, cruised from A&W to the Wich Stand thru High School, worked at the Big Donut (Randy's today) went to El Camino JC, worked the oil fields on Stocker in Baldwin Hills. Wife was pregnant with our son when we went to the Golden Bear (one of many times) to see the Paul Butterfield Blues Band; kid kicked for 2 weeks after that night. Moved from Torrance to the big OC in 71. Enjoy the Bears menu.
Hello, That menu brings back memories...But, $3.00 for a steak dinner and $.95 for a hamburger? That was something...We had to order something when we went to see Janis Joplin w/Big Brother and the Holding Company in 68, but could not remember those prices... also...great save... Jnaki
If I remember correctly, that's located in Seal Beach. My sister lived in Long Beach from 1969 to 1987, so every summer, I would stay at her house. I took a Red Cross swimming class at Belmont Shores. She lived close to Bellflower Blvd, so we would down Bellflower until we hit PCH, and then head out to Seal Beach pier. So, I remember that water tank really well. It's been years since I've been that way, because there's just too many damn people. Too crowded. I prefer the Central Coast now days.
That must be from the last days of the Pike, because I remember using those little "carnival" tickets that were connected to each other (I'm not sure the proper name for them) and each ride would require a certain number of tickets. I remember once, we were leaving and as we were walking to the car, we found a bunch of tickets on the ground of the parking lot. They were in between the cars, so we ended up spending the rest of the night there. I never went on those roller coasters, I didn't trust them. I liked the fun houses and those "haunted" rides.
The Jalopy Journal
