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I've been lucky enough to drive most of the Cali roads mentioned, as well as Skyline Drive along the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia. My faves have been Skyline, Rt 1 from 101 north of San Fransisco out past Stinson Beach, and the Redwoods, as well as some of the canyon roads north of LA (like Laurel Canyon back in the '80s). Tail of the dragon is way to congested anymore. There are a ton of better roads in the vicinity that aren't well known at all (and many of us would like them to stay that way... ).
speaking of dying....
I grew up on this road and did more than a few trips making sure I could double the speed on curve warning signs. The last car to Estes had to buy the beer to get the courage to race back down (very stupid indeed, kids in THOSE "muscle-car" days ,,,...). I never lost a friend to an accident in the Big Thompson canyon, but plenty in the flood of 1976. http://www.google.com/search?q=big+t...Q&ved=0CFoQsAQ
Of course I can't share my ultimate road, but it is in north central WY through the Big Horn Mtns !!!
Last edited by StealthRabbit; 07-06-2011 at 08:55 AM..
I drove the entire length of Mulholland Highway north of LA a month ago. Unfortunately the rental company shafted me and I got stuck with a Hyundai Santa Fe (not even the right class of vehicle I chose to rent).
I've been lucky enough to drive most of the Cali roads mentioned, as well as Skyline Drive along the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia. My faves have been Skyline, Rt 1 from 101 north of San Fransisco out past Stinson Beach, and the Redwoods, as well as some of the canyon roads north of LA (like Laurel Canyon back in the '80s). Tail of the dragon is way to congested anymore. There are a ton of better roads in the vicinity that aren't well known at all (and many of us would like them to stay that way... ).
Laurel Canyon is still pretty good IMHO, but then, when you were driving it, I was playing with toy cars and imagining going to California someday One of my friends grew up in LA, and had an Austin-Healy with a 302 that he would use to race against his rich friend's dad's Porsche in the 70's, and he's talked at length about his experiences. It's still one of the better roads up in the Santa Monica Mountain range.
I'm pretty happy that no one really knows anything about Redwood or Mines and never talk about it on dedicated, local enthusiast sites... that's how the racing scene in LA got reamed last decade. It was still pretty active, but the Fast And The Retarded crowd encouraged the local PD's to start enforcing some mercurial and ultimately unconsititutional laws cracking down on it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mustang84
I drove the entire length of Mulholland Highway north of LA a month ago. Unfortunately the rental company shafted me and I got stuck with a Hyundai Santa Fe (not even the right class of vehicle I chose to rent).
Mulholland is still a good one too, although it's become pretty built up along some stretches in the last decade and so there's more traffic. Adding to this, there's a private school there that caters to the children of celebrities and the super-rich; there are cops there during the day and sometimes as late as 6-9pm if there's an event going on, and though I was never bothered, I've heard that they'll pull over anyone who looks like they might plan on taking some turns aggressively. At night it's much better... it's one of the legendary racing roads of California, but IMHO it's eclipsed by some of the less-popular and more intense rides. It's still absolutely a good one to take a friend or friends who've never been on a spirited drive on, though!
Parts of I-10 across North Florida are raised road through a swamp. There's no where for police to hide. As such, you can go as fast as you want. Straight, but free from the law. That's nice.
211 & Skyline Dr in Virginia are really great, too.
101 in California is awesome!
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).
young and foolish... NEVER try to race a skilled and fit Tandem team, especially at 11,000ft...I about died on this maneuver)
One of my friends grew up in LA, and had an Austin-Healy with a 302 that he would use to race against his rich friend's dad's Porsche in the 70's, and he's talked at length about his experiences. It's still one of the better roads up in the Santa Monica Mountain range.
