{"id":292,"date":"2015-03-30T10:38:21","date_gmt":"2015-03-30T17:38:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lennysride.com\/recent\/?p=292"},"modified":"2021-11-29T04:42:50","modified_gmt":"2021-11-29T12:42:50","slug":"forever-young-march-2015","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lennysride.com\/recent\/?p=292","title":{"rendered":"Forever Young – March 2015"},"content":{"rendered":"

James Dean died in September 1955; he was just 24 years old.\u00a0 He was on his way from L.A. to Salinas to compete in an auto race.\u00a0 The car was supposed to be taken up on a trailer but it was felt that the engine needed more break-in time before it got tested on the track so James and his mechanic hopped into the Porsche 550 Spider “Little Bastard” and headed north.\u00a0 Hoping to escape Mr. Dean’s fate, Robin and I hopped on the motorcycle intent on following (roughly) the route that sent this young actor straight into immortality.<\/p>\n

It was a beautiful day here and although there are many things that I do not <\/strong>like about California, the weather isn’t one of them.\u00a0 It’s still too cold to take some of the less traveled routes over the mountains (motorcycles don’t last long on icy roads) so after taking the back roads through Fillmore, we got on the Interstate for a few miles. Between Bakersfield and Los Angeles the Golden State Freeway climbs sharply over the Tehachapi Mountains; <\/span>maximum elevation at the Tejon Pass is 4,185 feet.\u00a0 This steep climb is called “The Grapevine” not for the steep winding road, but because of the canyon it passes through has wild grapes that still grow along the original road.\u00a0 Before the road was straightened and widened, The Grapevine was the bane truckers due to the high accident rate and challenging driving conditions caused by steep grades on both sides of the mountain.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

All of that twisty roads stuff is just music to a motorcycle riders ear though so other than being down right cold at the top, we cruised up and down that 40 mile stretch of road with no problem at all.\u00a0 We left the interstate just after we got down the grade and headed down hwy 166 to Taft.\u00a0 This area is mostly citrus orchards and you can tell it’s spring time out here – those trees are fragrant!!\u00a0 It reminded me of our house in Phoenix, we had 3 citrus trees in the back yard and when those things bloomed – your nose knew it.<\/p>\n

\"JD<\/a><\/p>\n

At Taft we headed north on hwy 33 (mostly oil wells on this stretch of road) and stopped at Blackwell’s Corner at the intersection of hwy 33 and hwy 46.\u00a0 This corner gas station and store is reported to be James Dean’s last stop, fuel and a little something to eat before getting back on the road.\u00a0 Today, Blackwell’s Corner is a gas station, store and fifties style diner that is a makeshift memorial\/museum to Dean and a couple more celebrities that died before their time.\u00a0 There are several murals painted on the walls; one includes Dean, Elvis, Marilyn Monroe, and Ritchie Valens – out of respect to those people I am not sharing a picture of the mural….cough, cough.\u00a0 We got there close to lunch time and based on the line to order food, the fare at the Forever Young restaurant is quite good.\u00a0 On our way out, we successfully resisted the temptations offered at the East of Eden homemade fudge counter, and were headed for our next stop, 26 miles down the Paso Robles Highway – James Dean Memorial Junction.<\/p>\n

\"On<\/a>

On exhibit at Blackwell’s Corner. A truck from the dust bowl in the 1930’s.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Where<\/a>

Where the Spider came to rest after the accident.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"These<\/a>

These days, a call box is conveniently located near the intersection, just in case…<\/p><\/div>\n

The intersection of Hwy 46 and Hwy 41 is a Y intersection.\u00a0 The other vehicle involved in the accident, a 1950 Ford Tudor, was driven by Donald Turnupseed.\u00a0 This accident has been the subject of many independent investigations and research studies over the years.\u00a0 The generally accepted conclusion is that Turnupseed did not see the oncoming low profile Porsche, and when he turned in front of Dean there was no time for either driver to prevent the impact; no charges were ever filed.<\/p>\n