Tuesday, September 12, 2023. The Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles has a special exhibit of motorcycles from the Barber Museum outside of Birmingham, Alabama. I’ve been to the Barber, but since there are some 900 bikes on display I wasn’t able to look carefully at each one, and I thought that with a smaller selection of bikes at the Petersen, I would be able examine them at my leisure.
I didn’t leave San Francisco until 11 in the morning and rode 101 straight to Los Alamos (south of Santa Maria). I was on the Harley and enjoyed the pleasant day and just rumbling along the 101. I stopped for gas in Gilroy and for lunch in King City but otherwise went straight to Los Alamos where I stayed at the Alamo Motel, which seems to have been thoughtfully upgraded with a couple of exceptions.
The room was pleasant but spare with a sort of bunkhouse vibe to the furniture. The only real problem was the lack of lighting. The light in the bathroom was bright enough, but the lighting in the room - two sconces on either side of the bed and a central ceiling light - was very dim. The bulbs were decorative rather than useful. The lone table was next to the window and as long as it was daylight I could read or use the iPad, but once the sun went down not so much. I joined our Taco Tuesday group for an hour, and then went across the street to a Mexican food vendor outside a winery and wine tasting room. There was a temporary screened shelter and the cook was busy as was the woman taking orders and assisting the chef. Everyone seemed to be locals and they all knew each other and the food vendor. I took my order back to the room and picked up a soft drink at the motel bar, which was a small building near the road with screened windows on three sides.
Wednesday, September 13. I was up early and walked to a nearby Chevron for coffee and a slice of banana bread to get me going. There is a bakery in town and there were people inside working, but it didn’t open until 8. The town consists of the winery, a couple of art galleries, antique shops, and two gas stations. I was on the road a little after 8 and went south on 101 to the turnoff for Highway 154 which goes over San Marcos pass and into Santa Barbara. It is a shortcut if you are heading south on 101 and there was some traffic, although it mostly moved along over the speed limit. I did see one Sheriff’s car looking for speeders..
In Ventura I followed the GPS to the Hill St. Cafe, which is near a complex of public buildings. In a few minutes my nephew, Andre, joined me for a late breakfast. He works in the Public Defenders office nearby and I enjoyed talking with him and catching up with what is happening with his family.
Back on the road I followed the GPS to downtown LA and the Petersen Museum on Wiltshire Blvd. Traffic was heavy with inexplicable jams every now and then, and I took advantage of lane-splitting and the express lanes (motorcycles can use the express lanes.). The museum garage is very convenient and secure, and I parked, locked up my gear and went in. The museum wasn’t crowded, and I found the motorcycle exhibit, which consisted of only 20 or so bikes - probably chosen to give an overall view of the history of motorcycles.
The Munch Mammut (mammoth) was the brainchild of German mechanic and tuner, Friedl Munch, who in 1966 released the NSU powered machine that bears his name. The bike used a four cylinder, air-cooled engine of 1000cc capacity which later grew to 1200cc. It was heavy at well over 600 pounds, but the engine was powerful and very smooth. They were produced in very small numbers, and I would like to know the story of the the bike in the picture below. (Unfortunate lighting due to the bike being placed in front of a window.) The bikes were heavy sporting machines, but the one here has a small fairing and windscreen, spotlights, and a large sissy bar with a luggage rack - all popular accessories of the time, but out of place on this bike.
The racy Indian Scout and Triumph bobber catch the eye.
The Benelli Sei (six) preceded the Honda six by a couple of years, although, like the Honda, it never achieved great success in the marketplace.
Parilla made small (175cc - 250cc) motorcycles that were successful in racing and also quite beautiful.
This BMW R69 looks a bit stodgy among the other bikes, but it had good performance, reliability, and comfort.
An early Harley Davidson and a later Excelsior Super-X, both powered by V-twin engines, and both in olive green.
Finally, a very nice MV Augusta. MVs were famous for their racing machines, but they also produced stylish, small-capacity street machines.
I visited the Petersen Museum a couple of years ago, but I took a quick tour of a gallery with a special Porsche exhibit and also the "Splendor and Speed" exhibit. This Mercer Raceabout was the hottest thing going in 1913, and was once owned by world champion racer (and all around good guy) Phil Hill.
This 1925 Rolls Royce was fitted with a new, fashionable aerodynamic body in 1934 which completely changed the look of the car.
The 1937 French Delage D-8 Aerosport Coupe represented the French Government at the 1939 New York World’s Fair.
The 1939 Bugatti was a gift from the French Government to Mohammed Rena Pahlavi, the future Shah of Iran, on the occasion of his first wedding.
The Jaguar XK-SS was the street version of the Le Mans winning D-Type. Only 16 were produced before a fire destroyed the workshop and the dies for the car. Steve McQueen owned this car and did much of the work on it himself. This has to be the sexiest car ever made, with the possible exception of the 1958 Ferrari Testarossa with the Scaglietti “pontoon fender” body.
The 1947 Cisitalia by Pinin Farina is powered by a small Fiat engine but has good performance due to its low weight. It was featured in the 1951 New York Museum of Modern Art show entitled “8 Automobiles.”
The 1953 Ghia-bodied Cadillac (one of only 2 made) was a gift from Prince Ali Khan to his then-wife, actress Rita Hayworth.
In the early 1950s Virgil Exner had a hand in the design of several "idea cars" for Chrysler and Dodge, such as the Dodge Firearrow and Chrysler l'Elegance. The design was completed by Carrozzeria Ghia in Turin, Italy using a standard Dodge chassis. The cars were "drivers" with working windows, leather adjustable seats, and working turn signals and lights. Plymouth had their own dream car - the Plymouth Explorer pictured below, which is the only one ever made (several Firearrows were made). It has a standard Plymouth chassis with Plymouth's modest six cylinder, flathead engine. In 1955 Chrysler Corp. made the Firebomb, a further development of the Firearrow, intending to produce it in limited numbers to compete with the Corvette, Thunderbird, and Continental. In the end Chrysler decided against production, but the design was purchased by Dual Motors Corporation in Detroit as the basis of their Dual-Ghia, which was built on a modified Dodge chassis and used the potent Dodge 315 cubic inch hemi engine. The chassis and drive train were shipped to Ghia in Turin where the body and interior were fabricated, the partially assembled cars were then shipped back to Dual in Detroit where the car was completed. Only around 100 Dual-Ghias were ever made and they were never profitable. Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin both owned Dual-Ghias, as well as then Vice President Richard Nixon. Ronald Reagan did also, until he lost it to Lyndon Johnson in a poker game. (Or so the story goes - it may be apocryphal. I did a little research, and the story only appears in articles about the Dual-Ghia. This supposedly occurred 10 years before Reagan's first term as Governor of California.)
A classic hot rod and a Tucker Torpedo.
Apparently, famed conductor Herbert Von Karajan was also a car enthusiast. He owned this 1967 Ford GT40 Mark III, which was the street version of the Le Mans winning Ford GT40.
The Bugatti is too pretty not to include and the Porsche is just…weird.
The Nash Healey was produced in small numbers in the mid-1950s and consisted of a Healey-designed body on a Nash chassis.
This mildly customized 1950 Mercury was Sylvester Stallone’s ride in the movie, Cobra. He kept the car when the movie was completed.
Finally, three very early Porsches.
There is much more to see at the Petersen museum, but I’d been there just a couple of years ago and I wanted to avoid what traffic I could, so I left the museum at about 2:15 and followed the GPS through downtown to the 405 Freeway towards San Diego. Even in mid-afternoon traffic was heavy with periodic slowdowns and jams, but I took advantage of lane-splitting and the Express lane and kept moving, although at a slow pace. The GPS had me exit at CA-19 and then Lakewood Blvd., and then onto the Pacific Coast Highway where I pulled into the Hotel Current at about 3:20. I checked in, unpacked, and texted Andrew after 3:30 (when he gets off work) and he said to come on over.
Andrew and I talked for awhile, his cats inspected me, and I looked at the changes he'd made to his place since I was there last year. Andrew's friend, Michael, came over from his apartment nearby and we walked to an Italian restaurant in the neighborhood, La Parolaccia Osteria, where we sat outside and had an early dinner (Pizza Margherita, Lasagna, and Ravioli with lobster and shrimp). On the way there I spotted this scooter customized in 1960s British Mod fashion with multiple lights and mirrors and a period helmet.
Back at Andrew's apartment, Michael's wife, Olivia, joined us after her Yoga on the Beach class (it's a Southern California thing) and we all discussed the latest entertainment news. Both Andrew and I had an early start the next day, so I left around 8 PM and followed the GPS back to the Hotel Current where I parked right in front of my first floor room. The room was large, everything worked, and I'd stay there again.
Thursday, September 14: This morning I was up before 6 only to discover that there wasn't fresh coffee in the lobby, so I went back to the room and stretched for 20 minutes before returning to the lobby to pick up coffee to drink with a Clif bar to get me going. I left the motel a little after 8 and followed the GPS through heavy morning traffic on the 710 and 10 and 5 to Lancers Family Restaurant in Burbank where I had a real breakfast. After breakfast I talked for awhile with a guy in the parking lot who had an Audi TT and also a Harley. Back on I-5 I went over the Grapevine and stopped in Gorman for gas, then back on I-5 to Route 166 west to Maricopa and 33 north through Taft and then west on CA 58 in McKittrick. California 58 is a winding and hilly road through ranch and grass land that starts off with smooth pavement, then rougher paving with tar snakes and occasional gravel in the corners - in other words a lot of fun. Two BMW GSs went by in the opposite direction, and later a sport bike - all three were going faster than I was on my cruiser, although the Harley is a lot of fun even though the 680 pound weight gives me a workout in the tight corners. After about 70 miles the fun was over and I followed the GPS on Creston Ave. through residential Paso Robles to Highway 46 which becomes 24th Street at Highway 101. Margie's Diner is a favorite stop in Paso Robles and I ordered my usual - a grilled chicken sandwich with melted Swiss cheese and Ortega Chiles.
After lunch I stopped for gas at the nearby Chevron station, then back on 101 north. A hundred miles later there was slow traffic through Salinas, then on to Gilroy where I stopped for gas, then back on 101 to 85 to I-280 and home, arriving a little before 6:30.
I was glad that at my last service I had a cruise control installed on the bike, along with a cigarette lighter outlet on the handlebar. My hands cramp on cool mornings, and the cruise control lets me flex my throttle hand. The power outlet means that I can use the GPS without having to run a wire back to the seat. (455 miles)
