One of the coolest races of them all was Hopetown, aka Corriganville just outside of Hollywood in Simi Valley, California. It probably was the perfect spot, smack dab in the middle of the So Cal motorcycle racing scene. The course was nestled in the foothills on property that was an actual working movie set where many great early westerns were filmed. The property was originally owned by actor/stuntman Crash Corrigan and was later purchased by Bob Hope. But it was the Dirt Diggers Annual Grand Prix that the ranch was most known for. The course was incredible, winding in and around huge bolders and canyons and through the infamous mud hole where the crowds loved to gather.

The Hopetown GP was so popular that many classes sold out the day entries opened. For seventeen years, 1958 to 1975, it was the biggest party in town drawing crowds of 30,000 and more. It was so cool that in ’67 some of Europe’s fastest racers came to do battle with the California local boys.

The race was filmed by legendary Bruce Brown and featured on Wide World of Sports for the nation to experience and enjoy. The new word in town was motocross. The exceptional few who got to experience first hand the epic event called Hopetown, have indelible memories that may never be duplicated. It was a time when rules were few and racing unrestrained. It’s called “the good old days.”