other dog

maybe it's just me- but i've felt from the start that they're up to SOMETHING, just don't know what yet.

I watched another video about dead man's curve in the related videos. The guy in the video walked down to what they call "the junk yard" because there's still cars down there that didn't make the curve and went over the edge.

I believe it said in the book, or maybe it was one of those videos, that it used to take 12 hours to run 64 miles. I don't remember now if that was to run the old ridge route or if it was all the way from L.A. to Bakersfield. That's an average speed of slightly more than 5mph. any way you look at it.

OK, one more-

Yes, the original ridge route, built in 1915. They opened rt. 99, the "ridge route alternate", in 1933. They thought it would be a much safer highway, but that turned out to not be the case. It had higher speeds, was 3 lanes, the center lane was for passing but it was open for both directions, and there were even more runaway trucks than on the old road. A good part of what was rt. 99 is under what is now I-5. I've been to California a few times, but never drove the grapevine. Old roads and abandoned places are fascinating to me, the book I got shows pictures of old hotels, gas stations, and garages all the way across the old road, but now all that's left of them are just the foundations for the most part.

Yep, that's what it sounds like! The speed limit on the old ridge route was only 15 mph, 12 mph for trucks. Trucks would descend the grade in 2nd. gear. Probably climbed in 2nd. too so they were probably only doing 3 or 4 mph. most of the time. This was a little bit before my time, but I learned all this from this great book I got from Amazon-

When he first gets on the old road and starts climbing I'm wondering if he's ever going to get to the top! That road was opened in 1915, I can't imagine driving down it loaded in 1915 in a truck with mechanical brakes, or whatever they had then. Or a model T either for that matter. My research told me that there were many crashes on the road, and if you went over the side it was bad news. Seems a lot were caused by either not enough brakes, or impatient motorists trying to pass a slow moving truck on a blind curve.

This is the video I was trying to to post the link to, on my phone, but I was watching the other one on TV at the time. Anyhow, I thought this was good, part 1 and part 2. https://youtu.be/hjY_XPY88Is?si=MW_EeVA-T5roBoiM

I watched a video about "Dead Man's Curve" on YouTube a while back, and in the "related videos" I saw several videos about the "old ridge route". Highly interesting! I just watched this one today, and it's just neat to watch- driving the whole route, as much of it as you can drive anyway. It's sped up so it doesn't take all day, but unlike a sped up video of rt. 33 from Harrisonburg, VA. to Elkins, WV that I once watched, it's not all blurry and grainy, it's like you're there. Very cool, hope you don't get car sick easily. I fast forwarded through the beginning, until they get out of town and start up the old road. https://youtu.be/NCLB5HkM6Xg?si=Nq0xaXbpyRzhlzAr

https://www.facebook.com/share/19atigjtY4/ Not mine, just saw it on marketplace. I also saw it at the ATHS show in Clear Brook, VA. in September, beautiful truck.

https://www.facebook.com/share/1D8PJvaA9y/ Not mine, it's a bit out of my price range, but it's a beautiful truck. I've seen it many times at truck shows.

And that's a shame. I used to go to Richmond Dragway a lot in the 70's and I said it many times- I could watch cars like this- ...all day long, but watching top fuel and funny cars just does not interest me at all.

I remember going to the dragstrip in Suffolk, Va. in the 70's. The track was on an airport runway, and I think the dragstrip is closed now and the airport is open again. But then they had big time national events at Suffolk Dragway, unlike the track we usually went to in Richmond where it was mostly just locals and "run what you brung". Still a good time though, they had some fine cars at Richmond Dragway, great looking and fast too. Suffolk was the first time I had seen really fast 6 cylinder cars. I always liked the '66 and '67 Chevy II Novas, it's one of my favorite body styles. And there was 2 of them in Suffolk running in the 11's with 6 cylinder engines. I was blown away, as the saying goes. But the fastest 6 cylinder there was a black Corvette with the big GMC truck motor in it. Seems to me it ran low 10's, maybe high 9's. It was 50 years ago, so I don't remember exactly. I do remember the big tall snorkel scoop on the hood because it looked so odd sitting off to one side instead of being in the center.

yes indeed, it's a great car!

You should drive mines, it's a powerhouse!.. No, but seriously it does have plenty of power, goes when you mash the gas too! At least to me it does. I have no idea what rear is in it. Probably geared pretty low because it's a 4 wheel drive. I should sell it because I hardly ever use it anyway and we don't really need it. I do like that 8' bed though, the Nissan only has a 5 1/2' bed.

Yep, same here, everybody used to just burn the leaves. Not so much anymore, of course it's been so dry around here I'd be afraid to light a pile of leaves now.

I just happened to run across a picture of the leaves in the yard when I lived in Gladys. That's the big "wall of leaves" at the edge of the from yard. Leaves on the ground, and the gas powered leaf relocation device.

My Ford pickup has a 300 in it and a 4 speed. It runs great too, but it's not quite that fast. I don't think, I've never taken it to the track. When I was young, many years ago, I could run a quarter of a mile in under a minute, so the pickup could probably do it in less than half that time.🤣

I used to run Hawk's Nest a lot, because I just liked it. Even after I-64 was finished between Sam Black Church and the West Virginia Turnpike I would still go that way a lot. It was a "piece of cake" to me then because I had "a big motor and a Jake Brake" as compared to going across there in an F model with a 300/5 speed. Went across there many times in that F model with an almost 50,000 lb. load of coils out of Armco in Middletown going to either Modine in Buena Vista or Walker Muffler in Harrisonburg. I used to run up rt. 60 to Charmco, then rt. 20 to rt. 39 at Nettie, then 39 over to rt. 19 at Summerville, and 19 north to I-79 all the time too when I was going to Erie or the Pittsburgh area. If I was going north on I-81 I'd get off at the Broadway exit a lot and take rt. 259 to 48 to 50 to 220 to 68. I'd come back that way too, I'd take 51 out of Pittsburgh down to Uniontown, then rt. 40 to Keyser's Ridge. Man, there's some steep hills across there- most not that long, but really steep. I mean low side of the transmission with a 550 Cat steep. Then 219 and 560 back to 50, to 93, 220, 259 and back to Lynchburg. According to my log book it always to me 5 hours to get to Harrisonburg, I'd take a 30 minute break there, then drive 2 more hours to Lynchburg. ...and then somebody came up with this e-log thing and put a stop to all that. Ran the Pa. Pike up and back after that, at great expense to everyone except the Pa. Pike. 🤣