No helmets, a cig hanging out of the mouth, they raced on fire roads and dirt trails in the Santa Monica Mountains. With Malibu on one side and the San Fernando Valley on the other they rode with abandon, unhampered by regulations or restrictions, and not an environmentalist in sight. Mountains, valleys, and deserts were running wild.

It was a good time to be a motorcycle fanatic! On most weekends you’d see hundreds of motorcycles roaring down Ventura Blvd. on their way to a Field Meet in Crater Camp - lcaoted near Mulholland Drive and Malibu Creek State Park. They rode their bikes there, raced all day, then rode home – these were the days before your bike traveled in the back of a pickup. Crater Camp would draw crowds of 1500 to 2000, it was the hot spot to challenge your buddies and show off for the ladies.

And it was during this period the, ‘40s and ‘50s, that Hollywood noticed these daredevils on bikes and the enormous appeal that had to the men and women who showed up to watch their often death defying performances on the rugged courses. Early films like “The Pace that Thrills”, “Motorcycle Gang”, and “The Wild One”, elevated these rebel rousers to hero status. These guys lived it to the max with no rules, no fears, no limits and they were still the essence of cool. That’s a pretty good foundation to build on, don’t you think?