Places that are gone.......but were there in your youth.

[mbrown2]

I was thinking when I was driving home last weekend from the river via Rice; these places use to be open when I was a kid. I remembered that Rice had a gas station and Desert Center was open. Then the Randsburg thread caused me to think again why. Why did these things/places close? Was it the river or desert lost its losing its luster with the new generation? Is it that cars get better mileage, so they don't need to stop as often? Was it that these towns were created from commerce long ago? For DC and Rice there were barracks out there during the war so there was a lot of coming/going.

Either way it's sad to see places go away. What other notable places are gone? What are your thoughts on why they go away?

 

[Luvnlife]

New freeways were built that didn’t pass by some of those places. Think the movie Cars. Federal government made it so a car would have to have a fuel tank big enough for minimum miles. I think they set it at 200.

 

[Sleek-Jet]

Rice was a huge USAAF base during WWII, and was there only because it resembled North Africa and there wasn't anything to hit but mountains.

The base was closed before the end of the war and surplused not long after. I imagine Rice Rd was a main highway to the River until I-10 was completed. A few businesses probably held on till either the owners retired or the money ran out.

 

[timstoy]

Saddleback park in Irvine. Rode there the first weekend it opened until it closed. Indian dunes, Escape county, Bay Mare, Corona Speedway, Elsinore Speedway, Ascot Park. The list is long.

 

[LOBOATOMY]

The Idle Spur in Barstow, family went there regularly when pops worked for JPL and went to Goldstone weekly.
And the Sinclair gas stations with .23 gas!!

 

[rivrrts429]

Saddleback park in Irvine. Rode there the first weekend it opened until it closed. Indian dunes, Escape county, Bay Mare, Corona Speedway, Elsinore Speedway, Ascot Park. The list is long.

I remember riding/racing at DeAnza Park east of Moreno Valley as a kid.

 

[2Driver]

Cartilage in my knees and shoulders

 

[Bpracing1127]

irvine lake

 

[JayBreww]

So how long till chiroco summit is a ghost town?

 

[COCA COLA COWBOY]

So how long till chiroco summit is a ghost town?

They will have to make it a charging station soon. Apparently, the fed wants everyone to drive an EV. None of want to though.

 

[Yldboyz]

Highway 39 drive in, Saddleback Park, and El Toro Air Base to name a few.

 

[Your ad here]

The Villa in Dana Point.

 

[PlumLoco]

RIP RIR

Riverside International Raceway was epic. Bikes, cars, offroad, drag strip . . . Whatever you wanted to run they had an event for it.
And of course OCIR too. So many Wednesday nights, so many missed first periods in high school on Thursday.

 

[timstoy]

Circle Boat racing at Puddingstone, Bluewater, Ski Land, Long Beach Marine Stadium, Red Bluff, Castiac, Big Bear, San Diego and sadly probably Lake Ming with all houses being built near the lake.

 

[dirtslinger2]

Ascot

Skateboard World in Torrance

Hermosa Beach dive bars

Affordable homes

 

[Nanu/Nanu]

Metro center mall Phoenix. Watched hockey games as a really young guy, played video games there when I was I still young and then watched some people tear it up as vans skate park as a teenager.

Bill and Ted's excellent adventure was even filmed there too!

 

[Hydroman55]

So how long till chiroco summit is a ghost town?

Heck I remember when it was a ghost town in the 70s the only electricity was a generator, a small building, couple gas pumps and at least a 100 abandoned cars behind the building.

 

[Rajobigguy]

P.O.P.

 

[timstoy]

RIP RIR

Riverside International Raceway was epic. Bikes, cars, offroad, drag strip . . . Whatever you wanted to run they had an event for it.
And of course OCIR too. So many Wednesday nights, so many missed first periods in high school on Thursday.

Also Lions, Santa Ana, San Gabriel,Termial Island,and the original Irwindale drag strip. Dam the list is huge!

 

[timstoy]

Long Beach Pike and Marine Land.

 

[Cousineddy]

The Big O in Orange

 

[mbrown2]

Saddleback park in Irvine. Rode there the first weekend it opened until it closed. Indian dunes, Escape county, Bay Mare, Corona Speedway, Elsinore Speedway, Ascot Park. The list is long.

Yeah...still like to pull youtube of those places...always rode at Indian Dunes and Escape country....odd we never made it to Saddleback...

 

[mbrown2]

Ascot

Skateboard World in Torrance

Hermosa Beach dive bars

Affordable homes

 

[mbrown2]

How about Claude Osteen's cycle park in what is now Phillips Ranch.... Heck I remember Corona MX where they had the BMX track downhill... raced the Big Momma Mother's Day race there...

 

[dirtslinger2]

View attachment 1146832

They lost me when they started calling it the "The Deck" around the sametime that asshole that owned Killer Shrimp took over the Mermaid

 

[DRYHEAT]

YELLOW FRONT

 

[RitcheyRch]

GEMCO
FEDCO
Malibu Grand Prix
Farrells Icecream
SAMBOS Restaurant
Pup N Taco
Montgomery Ward
Sears

 

[boatnam2]

Yeah...still like to pull youtube of those places...always rode at Indian Dunes and Escape country....odd we never made it to Saddleback...

I loved Indian dunes, friday night races were fun, i was young when i raced escape country but liked it. I was never a fan of saddleback either, guess it was to rough for me lol. Also Irwindale for night racing.

 

[TeamGreene]

Ascot racetrack
OC drag strip
Tijuana Inn restaurant in Gardena
Woolworth dept store
Riverside raceway
White Front
Loves BBQ

 

[stephenkatsea]

Passing thru Hell CA on the way to The River.

 

[timstoy]

Yeah...still like to pull youtube of those places...always rode at Indian Dunes and Escape country....odd we never made it to Saddleback...

The first time I watched the Europeans race the Americans in moto cross was the first Trans AMA series at Saddleback Park. I would read about the European riders and race tracks in my weekly Cycle News. I was star struck to meet a few of the European riders including Roger De Coster, Torsten Hallman and Joel Robert. The factory vans were mostly U Haul rentals, a far cry to the factory semis of today. The Europeans were far superior to our American riders that day but I think the factorys seen a new outlet as moto cross really took off in America. I took a bunch of pictures that day of all the racers that day for a school project. I still have them!

 

[Havasu blue label]

Pupand taco in Whittier

 

[Havasu blue label]

White front in pacoma

 

[Havasu blue label]

Used to hangout on rincon street

 

[JL95]

Plowboys Market fountain valley
Nordstrom tyler mall

 

[ltbaney1]

the greasy spoon across from the gas station at Rice Rd & 10. My dad always stopped and let us kids get ice cream. Badenochs, had breakfast every morning when we were at the river. Orange BMX track. and even though i never got to see it with my own eyes, Lions drag strip.

 

[ltbaney1]

Plowboys Market fountain valley
Nordstrom tyler mall

Plowboys was good, towards the end it was just sad.

 

[pixrthis]

You obviously grew up in SFV, I’d guess so here in the middle or north end.

GEMCO
FEDCO
Malibu Grand Prix
Farrells Icecream
SAMBOS Restaurant
Pup N Taco
Montgomery Ward
Sears

 

[BTR]

Pipeline Skate Park in Upland.

 

[monkeyswrench]

Bob's Big Boy, Barstow for the river trips when I started going to the river, Eastland mall as a kid.

Geno's Pizza in Studio City(I think?)
Carmen's in Azusa
Super Shops
Car Custom

 

[C-Ya]

Cruising Hermosa Beach/Redondo on a Friday or Saturday night……. It would be packed!

 

[KenJoeBob]

Concrete Wave in Anaheim

 

[mjc]

Super shops.

 

[RitcheyRch]

A few places that I went to on a weekly basis to watch my Mom race:
Lions Drag Strip
San Fernando Drag Strip

 

[Outdrive1]

Yellow Front
Dairy Queen in Parker
Bobs Big Boy
Badenochs
Radio Shacks


These are just places I miss off the top of my head.

 

[PlumLoco]

Did anybody here race MX for their high school? I remember following the results, knowing I was better than most of those guys, but tiny little Notre Dame didn't have an MX team.
We did have crazy Kevin McNeil who won a national BMX title at the time. Dude was one crazy mofo.

 

[shintoooo]

Malibu Grand Prix in Northridge.

NORTHRIDGE : Malibu Grand Prix Site Nears End of Road

Malibu Grand Prix, where kids rode miniature race cars and businessmen slapped pinball machines on their lunch hour for more than 20 years, closes for good Sunday after losing its lease.

www.latimes.com

 

[shintoooo]

Skateland

 

[mbrown2]

Yellow Front
Dairy Queen in Parker
Bobs Big Boy
Badenochs
Radio Shacks


These are just places I miss off the top of my head.

A&W in Parker...

 

[mbrown2]

Rafters - Mammoth