Crazy mad run around California

[CalScot]

Anybody fancy a run around California?
I'm off for a wee run Thurdsday. Probably leave SoCal about 5am and head north to Oregon. I expect to be back in SoCal Monday. Figure 500-600mls per day.  Nice hotels along the way and no schedule.
PM me if your up for it.

[dp35]

The CMRAC!  Sounds great.  I assume you'll take the coastal route?  I really like the southern Oregon coastal area, much more than the far northern California coast.  Towns like Florence are great.

I'll be at Thunderhill all weekend, racing the wee Miata with SCCA.  If you feel like stopping by I can offer a cold beverage, and a gaurantee that you'll need it (supposed to be 95+ all weekend).

[DarthChicken]

If for some odd reason you make it to northern oregon....

[CalScot]

Got home after a shorter trip than I thought I would do. Cranked on 1,251 miles door to door in 2 1/2 days.


On the way up I stopped inn Malibu. On the North side at Zuma Beach. Spoke to this "racing guy" named Chad for over an hour. He was really nice and had some great stories. Shortly after meeting him an older guy in his 70's came by and joined the conversation. They both were all about cars and racing. Both had brilliant stories about racing at all the great tracks. I heard about Silverstone, Fuji, Spa, Laguna Seca, Daytona, Monza, Nurbugring and it was clear they were the real deal. Chad invited me to come visit him and go for a drive in the Malibu canyons and I had to just guess what car he was thinking of driving. Just as they were about to split up the older guy said to Chad, "hey, I finally found that picture of you and your Dad"! So he rummages through the back of his car an pulls out this 1960's edition of Road & Track. Opens up the magazine to a full-page picture of a man and his 5-year-old son on the beach in Malibu in 1965. The dad was Steve McQueen. I had NO idea who he was until he was taking off. It was a cool moment. I'm not the "star struck" type but Steve McQueen was pretty damn cool!


So I headed off up the coast. Inspired at what unknown adventures lay ahead. The Atom was running like a jet. Weather was coastal cool but very nice as I knew less than one-mile inland it was baking hot. Life was as it should be.

I was late getting out the door and my Malibu “Atom chat” was longer than normal but I made it up the coast to Lucia Lodge and spent the night in small cliff face cottage overlooking the crashing coastline. The drive up was fantastic. The MotoGP racing this weekend had hundreds of hardcore bikers traveling up PCH to Laguna Seca. All fodder for my Atom as I ripped up the coastal highway. I had several groups stop and talk to me as I stopped for pictures to ask what the hell was it that passed them so fast and disappeared around the turns in front.

Friday, I headed north. I planned on going all the way up PCH until late Friday night. Traffic was brutal though as the weekenders got out in full force. I made Santa Cruz and thought “no more traffic” and headed towards the Sierras to the east. I got over to Modesto but the heat was unbearable and I was getting cooked. I turned back west to the coast for salvation. I meandered back over to King City on the 101 and took the Naciemento Ferguson road over the mountains back to PCH south of Big Sur. This road is an adventure all by itself and not for the faint of heart. I will do it again but very slowly and carefully and with somebody else in tow because you could easily die there and nobody would ever find your body or the remains of the Atom, for years!

When I got back onto southbound PCH, it was a massive relief to be in one piece with clear blue skies and plenty daylight left. It was also bliss to finally open the Atom up and feel the cool air reach places that needed it way more than I care to describe.


All in all, a fantastic drive so far and as usual met some great people in the wildest of circumstances. Memorable moments on that subject would be the 75 yr old grannie getting stuck in the Atom at midnight encouraged to get in by her 80 year old husband who rather than help her just laughed. They were both "happy" after a bottle or two of vino. Met them in the "Sea Chest", in what has to be one of the better seafood restaurants on the California Coast in Cambria. Just found it by chance next to my hotel for the Friday night.

I took the long road home. PCH south to Santa Maria then 166 east to the 33, south to Ojai. A truly epic drive is Hwy 33. Worth doing again and very soon I hope. Then back onto PCH down to Malibu. As I passed Decker Canyon, I figured what the heck so ran up it from PCH.


I could go on an on and on. The end of the run was crap LA traffic and from Malibu pier to my home, it took 4 hours of horrible traffic to finish what took me about an hour and a half going up.

[macpdx]

Sounds like an excellent drive.
Pictures?

[dp35]

Awesome!  Thanks a lot for sharing that with us.

[fiestycolumbian]

Great write-up Calscot! I am glad that your Atom is running flawlessly.
Every time I read such stories I think to myself how lucky we are to travel different places in such a ridiculous crazy car!

fiesty

[Gage]

I want to go every time! 

[FourFather]

Cool stuff, Dude!

Thank you for taking the time to relay it to us so we can enjoy it also!

Eddie