As I sit eating a mediocre Mexican lunch, a guy walks up and start inquiring about the MZ. Having worked for Warner Bros. handling noisy machinery and firing machine guns (!) and the like, David is hard of hearing, so I tell him everything thrice. Satisfied with all the MZ info I provide, he then offers to guide me to the Nethercutt car collection nearby, a museum that doesn't advertise and charges no admission. Established by a man in the cosmetics industri, it houses and impressive collection of drivable classic cars, mainly from the 1920s and 1930s. Cosmetics must have been good to him, considering the number of Rolls-Royces, Bugattis, Pierce Arrows, pre-war Mercedes and whatever grandiose cars are present, because across the street a warehouse stores even more, albeit is open for guided tours only. "That's where the really interesting stuff is", says David.
David in front of museum entrance.
1911 Oldsmobile in original and unrestored condition. Note helmet next to rear wheel for scale - the tyres' outside diameter is 43 inches.
Old style jukebox with a selection of music on cylinders instead of on records. One could choose from those below:
Another sort of mechanical music machine.
One could tour the museum for the hood ornaments alone. The French 1923 Voisin on which it is mounted belonged to silent movie star Rudolph Valentino, and was a gift from fellow actor Douglas Fairbanks. Aside from all those mounted on cars, there were a number of display cases full of them.
1948 Tucker, an unconventional US car with a rear mounted engine. Only 51 were made before the company was forced out of business by government lawsuits.
Satisfied with what I have seen and anxious to get going, I continue north. Slowly the LA freeway system is loosening its grip on me, and I decide to reach Mohave by the time the sun sets. That won't happen, because as soon I get off the freeway and onto the old main road running parallel to it, there are more interesting things to see, and to take pictures of. Like these:
All along the way I pass trailer parks, and out where the desert begins, the occasional worn out camper or trailer home. They're not even placed not even on public lands, but whoever owns the land probably don't know or care about the people living on it. The junked homes here will hopefully never be used again.
Note cellphone tower in the background, disguised to look like a tree.
Moments later another train came by, with four locomotives pulling no less than 109 large cars. I was more impressed with them then, than I would be some hours later.
Polish couple on their way bicycling around the world.
Of all those many things the custom car shop of Gene Winfield stands out. Seeing a number of famous movie cars from films like 'Damnation Alley, 'American Graffitti' or 'Robocop' behind a fence I turn around, and eventually Jimmy, one of the shop's employees, opens the gate to let me in. He and his colleague Lindsey end up talking for a couple of hours, I get the tour of the place seeing all their future project cars, but eventually twilight sets, it's time to saddle up and ride on. Btw, Gene W. himself is 90 years old, but still runs the shop, and hasn't even grown white haired...
Jimmy specialized in electrics - pretty good, since he introduces himself to people with "I'm Gene Winfield's legally blind, colorblind electrician and sometime photographer". Impressive guy, really.
Connoisseurs of tacky sci fi movies may recognize some of these cars. At least I did....
The winds have picked up, so half the time the MZ struggles to do even 40 mph, and all of the time I'm really fighting to keep the poor thing in a straight line. But I do make it to Mohave, find a restaurant with chopsticks, and talk for a while to a woman who rode in on her large modern Harley trike (if you read this, send me your name; I'm really bad with names...). All is well and good until I discover that the rear tyre of the MZ has gone flat. Well, better here than 15 miles out of town, in darkness. So I walk it - engine running, 1st gear, using the clutch - to a Motel 6 across the road, and try writing this blog entry while nodding off. This place isn't the best of motels, in part because the strong winds blow right into the room, and in large part because all night long freight trains pass through town, and blast their f******* horns four times for each visit.
That's a great post and all the pictures are also beautiful. Thanks! best park and fly deals
SvarSlet