Rockwall, TX
After 30 years in Texas, I began to think that perhaps I would never find my way to California. You grow up seeing it in movies and on television, you feel like it's a place you have been without ever having gone there. The palm trees, the ocean, the Hollywood sign. You expect LA to be like an episode of Saved by the Bell or Encino Man. Not exactly the case.
Professionally I am a marketing & social media expert. I handle design, PR, media and web responsibilities at different levels for a multitude of clients big and small. One of my clients is actually a race car driver, Alec Udell. Alex is only 18, but he has been racing since he was a small child. At the age of 15 he became the youngest driver in history to join the ranks of the Pirelli World Challenge. At 18, he is now a formidable contender for the race towards a series podium. As a part of the Motorsports Development Group, sponsored by Watson Racing, he helms a Ford Mustang BOSS 302 race car in the GTS class. He is an outstanding person on and off the track.
The Pirelli World Challenge hold races all around the nation, the foremost of these is arguably the Long Beach Grand Prix in southern California. The weather, the scenery, the large amount of spectators and overall carnival atmosphere of this race among others makes it a standout event every year. Due to liability reasons, Alec has not been allowed to race in this event until now since he is finally 18. An invitation was extended to me as Alec's web and marketing manager to attend the race to see the operations up close. I realized that this would finally be my first trip to California. I began to get very excited.
People in places like New York or Los Angeles might take it for granted. The rest of us grow up seeing just about every movie or show take place in these locations. Its embedded into our childhood memories. The little logo on the side of the motorcycles in the show CHIPS... the people on skateboards on sidewalks along side a beach. They are images in your head of a place you have never seen... never actually witnessed. With this trip, I was about to witness it.
I arrived in California at 7am on Thursday April 10th 2014. Outside waiting for me was my friend Jason Ybarra. Jason came to Dallas for the Epic Party with his incredible TMNT van and suits. He actually was 1 of the 4 turtles who appeared on stage with Vanilla Ice. This time he had another trick up his sleeve, picking me up from LAX in a 1986 Toyota Van than had been done up as "Ratchet" the autobot from the original Transformers Cartoon show. I am sure many people around town would be very confused to see this van, maybe mistaking it for a Japanese ambulance. Much like his TMNT van, a toy collector and nerd like me immediately recognized it as the lifesize version of the old G1 series toy from the mid 80's. Far out.
Now inside of a life size Transformer toy, I began my trip in Southern California.
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As we cruised along to Santa Monica pier, I quickly realized something. The weather. Oh my, this weather was glorious. It was incredible. It was amazing. I must have picked a good day to come? No... I was told the weather is like this more or less constantly. Imagine if there were a place on earth that the temperatures were always between 60-75 degrees. Well, that is Southern California. Through out my trip the weather remained consistently amazing, and this is easily the #1 selling point of this region of the state. Say what you want about southern California, you cannot argue that the weather is absolutely amazing.
Pulling up to the world famous Sana Monica pier, I saw my first glimpse of the Pacific Ocean. This huge ocean, filled with history and the ghosts of WW2. It was a emotional moment for me. I am sure many of you will think I am a wuss for being caught up in the emotion of the moment, but to me it was bigger than just the water, it was the overwhelming thought of everything that has taken place in the water. It was amazing. Along the beach people were doing yoga, working out, running along, and generally being active. This was my first glimpse at the southern California fascination with physical appearance, working out and beauty. Its an ongoing theme, as nearly anywhere we went, even in the city, people were working out, running around, and being physically active. I would assume that this is because in part the weather allows for such constant outside activity, but I think its also a part of the southern California culture to look good. Being a large, overweight Texan I realized that amongst these sun tanned and chiseled people I was an obvious tourist.
The pier itself was basically a tourist trap, but of interest to me was the fact that there was a long standing arcade there, as well as the fact that this exact pier is in fact the END to the world famous Route 66. Yep, starting in Chicago the mother-road crosses the nation to end up right here... in the Pacific Ocean... at the Santa Monica pier. That was also an amazing moment for me to realize where I was standing and think a little about how many had come before me.
I could not help myself but to take a look inside the pier arcade, and it was a sad sight. I was happy to see many classic and vintage games, presumably still doing their jobs in their original location for more than 30 years, but also saddened to see the state of the pinball machines there. The machines were not maintained, working well, or clean. They were a sad excuse for spending money, and no doubt serve to embed the idea in peoples heads that pinball machines are not fun and are old antiques. Thankfully, later in my trip I would find the opposite.
We left the pier and headed to the downtown Tar Pits. You may have seen the tar pits in movies like "Last Action Hero" or "Volcano" but it was amazing to see them in person. There were tourists everywhere, so I felt a smidge more comfortable here. We visited the small museum here, but it was overall a forgettable experience.
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After the tar pits we checked out Hollywood. I got to see the walk of fame, the Chinese theater and the Hollywood sign. What they dont tell you on TV is that this area is not nearly as nice as you might think. The area was overall run down, full of tourists, and people trying to sell things. The smell of weed filled the air, which was a common occurrence in many cities that I visited, including at the actual Grand Prix race itself. I am convinced that southern California and Marijuana are something that are hand in hand. It kind of is what it is.
Jason took me to Universal Studios, where his employee pass permitted us to park for free. We got out to take a quick shot of the Universal Globe, and by accident I walked on to the set of EXTRA. There 20 feet from me was Mario Lopez, the host, whom you might remember as AC Slater in the TV Show "Saved by the Bell". That was cool to see him in person. Wow, has he aged at all?
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We left Universal and headed to Long Beach for me to meet up with the race team. This was my first encounter with the world famous southern California traffic. What should have been a 30 minute drive ended up being nearly 2 hours. This is ridiculous, but I am told its a part of the life here. As we stopped and went on the highway, I was able to take good looks at the amount of Graffiti, trash and homeless people along the highways and roads. Truly, downtown LA is a very dirty place. The only place I could think to compare it to in terms of litter and graffiti is Paris France.
We pulled up in Long Beach and I was able to find the race team inside of the convention center. Alec had a PR event out in the street on Pine, so I stayed with him through out this event. It was really cool to see how the race promoter used the cars to get the public excited about the event and pull in crowds. This was also a cool chance to get pictures of people all around the car, which honestly does not happen often due to the places the car is generally parked.
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After the event Jason and I had dinner at a place in Long Beach called "Agaves" which promised to be 100% authentic southern California Mexican food. I was not impressed, and realized that southern California style and TEX-MEX style are totally different. If you like guacamole though, southern California is the place to be!
The team got me a hotel room at the Double Tree next to the Queen Mary, where I stayed during my trip. The queen Mary was MASSIVE to see in person. I did not get a chance to go into it. Of higher interest to me, was the large DOME next to it. I knew from my history that this dome was actually created by legendary aviator Howard Hugues for launch of the world famous "Spruce Goose" the largest water plane ever made and the biggest wing-span of any aircraft in history. Being so close to this dome was a cool feeling, even though I was about 70 years too late for the party.
Friday came and I checked the race schedule. For Alec, the entire day was very uneventful. Only a small practice session late in the afternoon was his obligation. I would not be needed with the team this day.
My friend Andrick Zeen picked me up at the hotel, and offered to be my guide. Andrick is a race car driver and instructor who lives in Huntington Beach, just south of Long Beach. Andrick and I have hung out several times in Dallas, Orlando and Los Vegas, but obviously never in California. I was thankful to have another local willing to take care of me and show me around.
Andrick took me to lunch at a place in Compton. Eatalian Cafe. This place was incredible. Its a LARGE place inside of a old warehouse. The story is that the owner is from Italy, and was not happy with any of the local ingredients and processes. At tremendous personal expense, he imported all of the machinery and things needed to make all he needed right there in Compton. His own cheese, his own noodles, his own meat. His own bread, his own espresso, his own gelato. Truly, 100% of everything you eat in this place is made in this place. It was a very authentic experience and I am happy to have come there!
After lunch I insisted on traveling the entire length of Compton east to west from the 110 to the 605. Although some of the areas looked rough, it did not appear to me that it was a hardcore place. Of course, this could have been because I didnt stop, and we were on a main road. All the same, I can now say that I went to Compton, made the W with my hand and yelled WEST SIDE! Tupac would have been proud. Or embarrassed. lol
We went to Huntington Beach, and I saw Andricks home. Remarkably, it does not have any air conditioning. This was baffling to me being a Texan. I asked "What would you do if it got hot?". He replied "It wont". Equally baffling was the fact that door and windows were open. "Wont the bugs get in?" I wondered aloud. "What bugs, lol?" he replied. Wow, I was beginning to understand why people put up with the problems of southern California ... because the benefits balance them out.
Downtown Huntington beach was amazing. If Billabong, Hurley, Hobie, Reef Gear and Don Jon all had a place to call home, it would certainly be Huntington Beach. It was as if the gadzooks or zumiez at your local mall turned into an entire city on a beach. Skateboards, Long Boards, Surf Boards. Girls wearing next to nothing... guys without shirts, dirty blonde hair, backwards hats with bent bills, dogs with bandannas. When the beach boys were talking about "Surfing Safari" they must have been talking about visiting Huntington Beach. Here I also had my first ever Pacific Fish taco... and my friends... it was life changing. It was the perfect mix of fish, cilantro, cabbage and sauce. It ruined me. I will never be able to enjoy a fish taco in Texas ever again.
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Andrick took me further down to Newport to check out the exotic car dealerships and homes. This entire area in Orange County was amazing.
From here we went to a Fast and Furious movie scene search. We were able to find the statues from the scene in the 1st movie where the green eclipse was blown up by machine guns. We were able to find the market which was the home of "Torrettos" where Brian first declares that he loves the tuna fish. I actually bought some tunafish from the lady there too, and made sure they had sandwiches for sale. Sure enough, there they were in a case... no crust! Why the owner insists on calling this place "Bobs" is beyond me, a simple name change could make this a huge tourist destination. We also found "the house" from the movie, where Brian is told he can have any beer he wants as long as it's a corona. With a little imagination you could believe that Torretto still lived in there, and was having a party as I took my pictures outside in the dark. It was very cool to see.
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We check out Korean town, had amazing BBQ, and waited 2 hours to get it. Homeless were everywhere, even pitching tents on the street! Truly I have never seen homeless so established and widespread as I have in central LA.
Finally we made it to a new place called "82". 82 is a "bar-cade" in LA that features classic arcade machines as well as 16 pinball machines. The machines are maintained and curated by a famous local pinball personality known as "Pinball Molly" or just Molly. He previous venture called "Pins & Needles" was a big part of getting pinball desirable again in LA, and my initial plans to visit this place were in vain as I learned it had been shut down... well... put on hiatus. I am not actually sure what the status is, but the games I expected to find at Pins and Needles were in fact at 82... as was Molly herself. So as far as I am concerned, the pinball side of 82 is the current incarnation of Pins and Needles, but I may very well be mistaken.
The machines were in superb shape. A couple of new Sterns, some old sold states, even a few EM games. Overall the games were in fantastic condition, playing great, and fully quipped with the ever handy pin gulps. On the other side of the arcade were scores of classic arcade games, all in fine condition. They had wired up the Street Fighter machine to project the game onto the walls, only further escalating demand for the game. Quarters were lined up on the screen with a massive crowd around the game. It was amazing to see, I had not seen a scene like that since the early 90's!!
82 is doing amazing work. I was told by Molly that all of the machines were performing well beyond the expectations of the owners. "If I owned that Street Fighter I could put my kids through college!" she quipped. It was truly inspiring to see so many locals and casual players embracing pinball again... embracing classic arcade games.
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Saturday arrived and took the boat from the hotel to the convention center. Now I can say I have been in a boat in the pacific! Inside Alec was due up to sign autographs, which is something I wanted to capture on film. He did great, and the fans like him due to his outstanding personality. The only other thing on the schedule for the day was qualifying which would be a total of 18 minutes. I asked the team chief Stewart what the plan was for after than, he said "Sleep". The team was dead set on the race, and honestly me just standing there was taking up space.
Andrick met up with me again and we headed off to East LA to find the mythical 5lb burrito.
El Tepeyac #1 is famous for its 80oz burrito, aka, 5lbs. This burrito has been featured on MAN VS FOOD and has been seen around the world. As such, there was a wait to get in and eat. Being the proud Texan that I am, I decided that I would have to eat the Burrito and claim victory over Mexico yet again! WRONG. This burrito was a true monster, devoid of flavor, dry, and eventually... foul. My head churned... I sweated... I got dizzy. I made it 80-85% of the way... before I could go no more! I tried my best... but there was no way this man could do it.. I accept defeat.
We checked out little Tokyo and their odd shops and eateries, The mix of people here were equally genuine Japanese people, tourists, and local teenage nerds dressed up like Anime characters. It was a very odd place!
After was will become a legendary trip to the bathroom, we headed up to the Griffith Observatory. To get to it you have to drive through a tunnel which is oddly familiar! It was used in the movies "Back to the Future" and "Who framed Roger Rabbit". I was so excited to drive though this little tunnel, but was saddened to find that it was much shorter than shown on film, and also did not lead to the amazing toontoon. Admission to the Observatory is free... if you can find a place to park. We trudged up the hill towards the place, a reminder than people in California love to be outdoors and to walk everywhere. I was wondering where the escalator might be?
Once in front of this legendary building it was a sight to behold, the view of LA from here was unparallelled. Just amazing to see in person. They had great exhibits inside, and a fantastic planetarium show for $7. Well worth the price for the show, the narrator gave a audible performance worthy of an Oscar, never reading from a script! This was a very memorable experience for me, and I think that everyone should take the trip to this place at least once.
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Leaving the mountain we headed towards a secret place. Well, I have to say it is secret because the owner would rather me not tell you all where it was or exactly what was in it. Here is what I can say. Someone reached out to me on a pinball owners message board and offered to let me come and play his collection. His collection is massive... larger than I could count, with more than 50 games on legs and ready to play. It was inside of a private place... with no sign or indicator where it was. If you were not invited to be here... you would never know it was here. He had every type of game from DMD moderns to actual PIN ball games from the 30's. There was LED up-lighting on the walls... classic toys and other amazing things I wont mention. It was a sight to behold... but I was asked not to take any pictures. Andrick and I played pinball with about 8 other guests, all of whom where extremely friendly and kind. I am very thankful to this person for the hospitality and invitation to come play their machines. I have never, ever seen anything like it.
Sunday came, and it was my last day in LA! I packed up all of my things and left the hotel and got back on the boat for the convention center. Alec was going to hit the track at 4:30pm, so I wanted to be in position early. I grabbed lunch at a restaurant on the grounds, ordering fish tacos again, but they were no match to the ones I had had previously on the beach.
Alec fought hard, ultimately finishing in 5th place in a class of 20.
My flight left at 7pm, so I had to cut out around 5:15 to get back to LAX by 5:50pm. I got there just in time, got all checked in, ready to go. It was a 4 day trip that went way, way too fast.
I am so thankful to my friends for driving me around, picking me up and dropping me off. To Jason and to Andrick. I am thankful to my client and friend Alec Udell for making the trip possible and allowing me to see him race in the best circuit of the series. I am thankful to the SOCAL pinball community for coming out to play at the "Secret Place" and being invited to come there at all.
Southern California is a very special place. Its unique in culture, sight, smell and feel, The care-free surfer attitude meets the business of a massive city, and they mix together to make a beautiful place. The weather is amazing, the traffic is terrible, and the fish tacos are life changing. I only got to see a little, but I hope to return someday soon with my wife and continue the adventure.
Until then....
I'm jealous BTW. Sounds like you had fun.
Sunshine
