| Author | Message | ||
     Jerry_haughton |
 Denise and Glenn (Unibear) under the "Bakersfield" sign next to Buck Owens' Crystal Palace on Buck Owens Boulevard, Bakersfield, California. it's Thursday, July 7th, 2005 and WE'RE ON OUR WAY TO MOTOGP AT LAGUNA SECA!!! at this point me 'n D had been on the road for an hour already, had just spent another hour having a leisurely breakfast with Unibear at the Dennys up the street, and the sun is only just now coming up. it's COOL when you get a jump on the day.  (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 we took 58 thru McKittrick, up thru some DIVINE twisties, and popped out on the barren yet beautiful Carrizo Plain. in a bit we turned north across the plain, toward Shandon, and in spite of the road being pretty sh*tty (literally, from a VERY recent cattle drive), we enjoyed ourselves immensely. this little store on the prairie is out in the middle of nowhere. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
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| Jerry_haughton |
 our best guess is that it was called the Greenburg General Store. in its time i bet it was a happening little place. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 i'm not huge into visiting where people died, especially if their death was violent, but made an exception to visit Cholame, CA, where James Dean was killed in a car crash exactly fifty years ago this September. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 i spent a glorious day with JB2 exploring Fairmount, Indiana -- James Dean's birthplace -- last September during the "Out of Words" ride, and the folks who run the family museum back there asked if i'd ever visited this spot. once before, i said. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 it seemed appropriate then, on the 50th anniversary of Dean's death, to visit this place again, to bookend the day i'd spent last year getting to know where James Dean BEGAN his life. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 the intersection where the crash occurred is about a mile up the road. we stopped there but saw no marker or other indication of the exact spot. for that i'm glad. Dean's memorial in Cholame, lovingly created by an ardent Japanese fan, has been shamelessly vandalized over the years, a fact that the proprietors of the family museum back in Fairmount are painfully aware of. i almost felt like apologizing to them at the time. James Dean is buried in a small, beautiful cemetery right on the edge of Fairmount, and i'm glad for the family that he is where he belongs, not here. still, it WAS peaceful here this morning, and i hope it is of some comfort for Dean's relatives to know that people still stop here to pay their respects. ride in peace, James Byron Dean (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 busy place, Parkfield, California.  (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 Unibear, looking all red, white and Buell. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 what's shakin'? (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
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| Jerry_haughton |
 the Parkfield Inn. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
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| Jerry_haughton |
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| Jerry_haughton |
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| Jerry_haughton |
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| Jerry_haughton |
 a wise person would be buying up land in Parkfield NOW, before the prices go up. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 D 'n FB, swingin' at the Inn. photo by Unibear. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on January 10, 2009) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 the Gathering Room at the Parkfield Inn. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 ditto. VERY cool place. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 just north of San Miguel, California. i HAD to get this shot. this young farm worker, doing his rounds on a motorcycle instead of four-wheeler, who spoke not a lick of English, at first refused to be photographed. i had to actually dig out my camera, show it to him, and pantomime taking his pic before he consented, as up to that point he hadn't a clue as to my intentions in spite of my polite yet awkward requests. i took two photos -- this is the better of the two -- then showed him the images on the display screen, which produced a shy grin. he was cautious yet courteous, as was i. "Gracias," i said. he simply smiled in reply. the whole affair took less than a minute, and altho the photo is not technically very good, it's one of my favorites from the weekend. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 a glimpse of the road and scenery after one pops out the west side of Fort Hunter Ligget on the way to the coast. this road is as unique and fun as they come, and warrants WAY more in the way of photos than i have to offer. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
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| Jerry_haughton |
 same road, and our first view of the Pacific Ocean. spectacularity. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 a little closer to the ocean. look carefully and you can see bits and pieces of the narrow little road we're riding. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 it was a last minute decision on Unibear's part to do Laguna with us. he's a single dad, and he's good at it. luckily, things worked out on the home front and he was able to come. in this pic i think he's conveying what all THREE of us were feeling at this point. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 a great place to be flora OR fauna. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 that's Highway 1 you can see below, justifiably legendary. off in the distance, through the clouds and around about five thousand corners, is Monterey, California. this is, indeed, the Right Stuff. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on July 14, 2005) |
