Death Valley Days...

Death Valley Days…

Do you remember that show?

Death Valley Days first aired on radio way back in 1930, and then it made the jump to television in 1954, where it remained until 1970.

I watched Death Valley Days all the time when I was a kid. In fact, some of you might remember a young fellow named Ronald Reagan who hosted and sometimes acted in the series (it was Reagan’s last acting job before he entered politics).

I loved that show, and Death Valley held a special place in my mind for decades. Living here in southern California I was only a couple of hundred miles away from it, but it wasn’t until a few years ago that I actually visited the place. It was all I hoped it would be and more. Magnificent scenery, great roads, and great riding.

It took me awhile to actually get around to visiting Death Valley. I saw signs on the 395 and the 15 pointing toward it, but I never actually got out there until Brown’s BMW dealership sponsored a ride, and then I went on my KLR (I was the lone el cheapo KLR in a sea of uber-expensive BMWs, and that was fun all by itself). It was an awesome ride. Then another opportunity emerged when MSILSF ran the Hell’s Loop Endurance Rally. TK, Arlene, and I rode that event through Death Valley on our California Scooters. That ride was even more awesome (you can read about it here).

Opportunity struck again when Motorcycle Classics magazine asked me to do a piece on Death Valley for their “Destinations” column. Interestingly, that article has been picked up as a reference for other works on this magnificent place. Suddenly, I went from knowing about Death Valley only through the television show to becoming a cited expert on the place. Truth is stranger than fiction sometimes.

What got me to thinking about Death Valley all over again was a super cool note and a couple of photos I recently received from our high mileage California Scooter pilot (and good buddy) Nevada Howard…

Joe…

I did a banzai run through Death Valley last week. Here are a couple of pics I thought you might like. First is from Dante’s View, overlooking Bad Water. And a panoramic shot of Scottie’s Castle…