Results 1 to 9 of 9

Thread: I was really looking forward to seafood for dinner.

  1. #1
    Senior Member jar's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2012
    Location
    Deep South Texas
    Posts
    4,045
    Thanks
    479
    Thanked 3,711 Times in 1,610 Posts
    Rep Power
    18

    Default I was really looking forward to seafood for dinner.

    It was the late 1960s and we were driving up from San Buena Ventura to Santa Barbara and in the space of about 50 feet went from bright sun to total zero visibility as a coastal fog rolled in. I pulled over as close to the guardrail and cliff face as possible and we got the MGB top out of the boot and had put the frame together and on the car and were about to add the skin when we heard a horrendous crash a little ways ahead. The sound of crashes continued and kept getting closer and closer as car after car plowed into the growing dam. I don't remember hearing any screech of brakes and my wife and I just stayed behind the guardrail and waited for the noise to stop. Soon the sound of horns and red tail light became visible and traffic seemed to be slowing down and even stopping. It wasn't long until the line of stopped cars was all the way back past the MGB and other folk were joining us against the cliff face. The pileup seemed to continue forever but now was cars south of us and likely extending out of the fog because we could hear brakes and sliding and the impacts were far less severe.

    We were there for hours while police and ambulances and fire trucks and wreckers sorted out the mess. I can't remember for sure but I think the final total was like 80+ cars. Eventually we were able to back down the line to an area where we could turn around and head back home. I had really wanted a bowl of cioppino on the Pier in Santa Barbara but we settled on Tacos Al Carbon from a little shack near the court house in Ventura.

  2. The Following 3 Users Say Thank You to jar For This Useful Post:

    manoeuver (September 10th, 2020), Ole Juul (September 10th, 2020), welch (September 14th, 2020)

  3. #2
    Senior Member manoeuver's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Location
    Near Midwest, US
    Posts
    1,594
    Thanks
    1,227
    Thanked 1,081 Times in 555 Posts
    Rep Power
    15

    Default Re: I was really looking forward to seafood for dinner.

    I like cioppino too. that's a heluva pileup, you really dodged a bullet there jar!

  4. #3
    FPG Donor ♕ Chrissy's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2013
    Location
    United Kingdom
    Posts
    11,404
    Thanks
    6,876
    Thanked 10,362 Times in 3,977 Posts
    Rep Power
    24

    Default Re: I was really looking forward to seafood for dinner.

    That was surely your lucky day to not be in the middle of it. Shame about the cloppino though.
    Regards, Chrissy | My Review Blog: inkyfountainpens

  5. #4
    Senior Member guyy's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2017
    Location
    Brooklyn NY
    Posts
    775
    Thanks
    381
    Thanked 618 Times in 344 Posts
    Rep Power
    8

    Default Re: I was really looking forward to seafood for dinner.

    Quote Originally Posted by jar View Post
    I had really wanted a bowl of cioppino on the Pier in Santa Barbara but we settled on Tacos Al Carbon from a little shack near the court house in Ventura.
    Sounds harrowing.

    I like Ventura but i’d be disappointed i didn’t get to La Super-Rica Taqueria.

  6. #5
    Senior Member ethernautrix's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2012
    Location
    Land of Po
    Posts
    1,064
    Thanks
    1,661
    Thanked 1,282 Times in 556 Posts
    Rep Power
    13

    Default Re: I was really looking forward to seafood for dinner.

    The fog along the Pacific Coast Highway is not to be trifled with.

    Nothing horrible happened, but I was returning from a road trip to the tip of Oregon in my just-purchased car (have car, will road trip!) with the intention of taking Hwy One all the way back to the Bay Area. I'd left Gold's Beach that morning and made a right at that giant Redwood that you can drive your car through (and I did) to the coast. It was a beautiful day.

    Until the fog. I'd driven in heavy fog like that before, but on straighter highways. PCH was all hairpin turns and steep drops on the right. My fear was hitting a car in front of me and fearing someone would slam into my car from the rear. Oh right, with the fog came the night.

    I made it, exhausted, to Bodega Bay and found my way to 101, got home safely that night. What a harrowing ride!

    An 80+ vehicle pile-up... crazy.

    Yesterday, I read that hurricane winds were toppling semis in Utah, 45 trucks in one day. Horrifying.
    _____________
    To Miasto

  7. #6
    Senior Member manoeuver's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Location
    Near Midwest, US
    Posts
    1,594
    Thanks
    1,227
    Thanked 1,081 Times in 555 Posts
    Rep Power
    15

    Default Re: I was really looking forward to seafood for dinner.

    On our honeymoon in '04, my wife and I drove from Vegas to Seattle via SoCal, taking PCH all the way from Sunset Blvd till it wasn't possible anymore, somewhere past Redwood Country.

    Somewhere around Big Sur the fog was thick as cotton and rolling up the hill over the road as I wound our rental car through the tight turns. My bride was weeeeping but nothing terrible happened.

  8. #7
    agrissol
    Guest

    Default Re: I was really looking forward to seafood for dinner.

    i like fish

  9. #8
    Senior Member FredRydr's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2012
    Location
    Carlisle, Pennsylvania USA
    Posts
    4,907
    Thanks
    1,396
    Thanked 6,390 Times in 2,505 Posts
    Rep Power
    18

    Default Re: I was really looking forward to seafood for dinner.

    Quote Originally Posted by jar View Post
    ...I had really wanted a bowl of cioppino on the Pier in Santa Barbara but we settled on Tacos Al Carbon from a little shack near the court house in Ventura.
    Weren't they seafood tacos?

  10. #9
    Senior Member jar's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2012
    Location
    Deep South Texas
    Posts
    4,045
    Thanks
    479
    Thanked 3,711 Times in 1,610 Posts
    Rep Power
    18

    Default Re: I was really looking forward to seafood for dinner.

    Quote Originally Posted by FredRydr View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by jar View Post
    ...I had really wanted a bowl of cioppino on the Pier in Santa Barbara but we settled on Tacos Al Carbon from a little shack near the court house in Ventura.
    Weren't they seafood tacos?
    They were marinated flank steak. Little shack was in the parking lot and the office I worked out of a couple doors south.

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •