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Easy Rider route retraced and photographed

TWTim

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This guy retraced the steps of the cast and crew of Easy Rider, photographing the filming locations as they appear today:

http://www.mrzip66.com/2009/04/20/route-from-the-movie-easy-rider-map/

Here's the route:



He does a great job of finding the buildings that are still standing:

sacredmountain.jpg


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Oh, and yes, he did it all by motorcycle. Very groovy.
 
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Most interesting! I like the bit about Fonda getting so tired riding ape hangers that he couldn't lift a beer :chug:

Give me Dennis Hopper's bike (of the two) any day.
 
It's funny I remember loving that movie when I was a teenager but I watched it a few months ago and it was kind of depressing. Either way it was still such an iconic movie.
 
Agree..............great movie. Depressing, but great. Nice find.
 
It's worth a Saturday viewing, if nothing but just to see how the world has changed since then. Plus everyone likes a road trip movie.
 
I've never seen the movie - don't plan to.

You really should pick up a copy and check it out. You don't have to agree with it politically to appreciate what a zeitgeist of the era Easy Rider actually is. The film captures a pivotal moment in time for modern culture and contains some beautiful examples of mid-twentieth century Americana. The soundtrack is fantastic, as well. IMO, it's a must-have in any rider's motorcycle movie collection. :thumb:
 
You really should pick up a copy and check it out. You don't have to agree with it politically to appreciate what a zeitgeist of the era Easy Rider actually is. The film captures a pivotal moment in time for modern culture and contains some beautiful examples of mid-twentieth century Americana. The soundtrack is fantastic, as well. IMO, it's a must-have in any rider's motorcycle movie collection. :thumb:

I appreciate your perspective. I am simply not a big fan of motorcycle movies, nor do I much care for the music that I've heard in the clips of this one.

I enjoy riding big time - taking long trips with a friend or two. I don't care for the "biker mentality" as portrayed in this movie or in that wretched film (watched it on an airplane) "Wild Hogs".

Glad ya'll enjoy "Easy Rider" I agree - the scenery is great and I like the look back on Route 66. Would like to ride a bit of that one day.

If I avoided movies that conflicted with my political views, I dare say there would be a lot fewer movies for me to watch :-)
 
Cool site. "Easy" seemed really cool when I was 18. Now I think I have a little better concept of real life, 40 years on. But, in the day, cooool!

I wish someone would re-trace the route of the orginal "Vanishing Point" with Barry Newman and Cleavon Little, not the lame-o Viggo Mortensen version. VP was like the cager version of Easy Rider.
 
It's funny I remember loving that movie when I was a teenager but I watched it a few months ago and it was kind of depressing. Either way it was still such an iconic movie.

The problem is most of the non-riding public still have that powerful stereotype of what most bikers are like, especially the pirate HD crowd.

Last weekend during the LDDave ride to eat in Lockhart, Texas, a group of elderly people parked next to my bike. As they exited their automobile's, they asked if the large group of sport-touring riders present are part of the ****'s Angels, no joke!

It was so tempting to play along with a gag....I did not though. :(

RB
 
Very cool. Born To Be Wild was playing on my radio at home as I was reviewing his website.

In that opening clip they ride past a large Paul Bunyan type statue holding an axe. Anyone know where that is? The only one I've ever seen is outside of Don's Hot Rod Shop in Tucson; or at least it was there 40 years ago.

Next spring/summer when I go back up to the Flagstaff area I'll hunt down some of those sites and take my own photos. Flag is under 30 inches of snow right now, so there's no way I'm heading that way for a few more months.
;-)
 
In that opening clip they ride past a large Paul Bunyan type statue holding an axe. Anyone know where that is? The only one I've ever seen is outside of Don's Hot Rod Shop in Tucson; or at least it was there 40 years ago.

Those were called "Muffler Men" back in the day. They appeared in many different themes. When I lived in San Angelo as a little kid, there was one on Sherwood Way at some auto repair shop. It was there for a long time, but disappeared during the '90s.

Dig this:

http://www.roadsideamerica.com/muffler/

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CAMERmuf_smalz.jpg
 
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Thanks Tim. A quick google shows that the statue is still in place in front of Don's shop and that it's been there since 1964.

l296113-1.jpg
 
I grew up in lafayette louisiana, and when easy rider came out, we all saw it.
I rode my suzuki T20 to the bridge where he got shot, and we all sat and pondered life.

after graduating in '69, I took a pilgramage to big bend texas looking for peyote buttons, and realised I didnt know who I was.

40 years later, i'm still looking for myself.

but I know if I go there, the bridge will still be there.
 
When that movie came out, we all flocked to see it. Myself and wife on my '47 Knucklehead chopper I had not long ago finished. I even had the same type exhaust as Peter did. ;-). The movie fit the times and was a hit across the country. I still like seeing it once in awhile even today. Kinda like Lonesome Dove and Forest Gump and Top Gun. Kinda never leaves your mind if your broad minded enuff to accept all that spread of movie types.

http://historyhunts.blogspot.com/2009/11/low-road-tour.html

A good friend of mine does a ton of exploring about South Louisiana and Mississippi mainly. His bike and his camera let nothing be safe from his quests. For awhile it was Civil War and lately he's been chasing old train tracks. The road where they did the finale on Easy Riders is one both he and I run pretty often. It's just a good ride even though it's about 60 miles or so from my house to the start of it.

Suzukijo, you will enjoy lots of his stuff. I just sold him my DR650SE not long ago but his other bikes are a MotoGuzzi and a DL650. Also lives in the Breaux Bridge area near Laffayette.
 
I remember when Easy Rider came out. I like the road trip aspect of it but I didnt like the dope, the law breaking,etc when it came out and still don't today. Of course, everyone had the soundtrack on 8-track...

It is fun to go and see movie sets years after they make the flick. They always look different(even if the buildings, grounds are still the same). Have always wanted to ride over the Bixby Creek bridge in CA that Bronson rides over in the series and movie. I think the series "Then Came Bronson" actually was made before "Easy Rider". Remember reading an interesting bit about Fonda in a business journal years ago ref Easy Rider. Fonda was/is a pretty asute businessman. He controlled the distribution rights to the movie and pocketed about 25 million several years after the movie was released. The money flowed with the move being a big hit. Can't remember the particulars in the article but Fonda did well by it. All this evil capitalism.....
 
I remember when Easy Rider came out. I like the road trip aspect of it but I didnt like the dope, the law breaking,etc when it came out and still don't today.

It's interesting how we each perceive the elements of the movie differently. To me, the lessons they learn along the way are what bring Wyatt to the realization that they had made a mistake in how they had financed their freedom. The cocaine deal, leaving the commune, disrupting the parade which ultimately led to George being killed -- to me, those aspects of the plot all served an important purpose in making the story complete by the end.

Anyhow, I wasn't born when Easy Rider was released. I became aware of it in the '80s when I was 11 or 12 years old. One thing I always identified with, even as a kid, was that Billy and Wyatt simply wanted to be free individuals and live peaceful lives according to their own philosophies, but were not allowed to by the world around them. That always struck a chord with me.

And of course, who can for get the best dialogue in the movie:

 
I was 12 when "Easy Rider" came out, didn't get to see it till a few years later (R rating). I remember the buzz it created when it was in theaters, and my older brothers and their friends talking about it.

It did become a part of the culture of the Baby Boom generation. And it did, in part, spark a lot of interest in taking trips on motorcycles (but on a motorcycles more comfortable that Captain America).

The problem is most of the non-riding public still have that powerful stereotype of what most bikers are like, especially the pirate HD crowd.

Last weekend during the LDDave ride to eat in Lockhart, Texas, a group of elderly people parked next to my bike. As they exited their automobile's, they asked if the large group of sport-touring riders present are part of the ****'s Angels, no joke!

It was so tempting to play along with a gag....I did not though. :(

RB

One of my favorite "on-the-road" stories involves the H-A's.

In 2002 I took my 12 year old son on his first long ride to a BMW Rally in Paonia on my '93 R100RT. My wife decided she would tag along with our daughter in our mini-van and keep an eye out on her baby.

On the return trip we stopped for gas and I was checking my oil level when my wife pointed out a group of H-D riders wearing vests. She asked if they were H-A's. I grew up in California and saw H-A's a couple of times on the highways. I didn't get a good look and said no at first. Then I got a better look and saw their colors, yep they were H-A's.

I went back to my oil checking and one of them walked over and asked some questions about my RT. We had a conversation about Airheads in general and I asked a few questions of my own about H-A's, I figured I'd never have the chance again. I asked if they still did Sturgis. He said they'd stopped going, too much hassle. They have their other rallies to attend (I guess the Laughlin River Run in NV is one of them) and their own private get togethers. I asked if he ever got hassled by the general public. He gave a hard kinda smile and just said (paraphrased for content) "F*** with one Angel and you f*** with ten." Yessir, nuff said.

On the face of it he was an OK guy, relatively clean cut considering he was an Angel. The group then mounted up about the same time I did and hauled off down the highway.
 
On the face of it he was an OK guy, relatively clean cut considering he was an Angel. The group then mounted up about the same time I did and hauled off down the highway.

The only experience was coming back from the northwestern US on my ST. I was riding through Glenwood Springs canyon west of Gypsum, Colorado when I noticed an old HD coming up my rear view mirror really fast. He slowed down as he approached me and peered at my bike, then sped ahead...his black jacket had Los Banditos emblazoned on the back of his weathered leather jacket..

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RB
 
The only experience was coming back from the northwestern US on my ST. I was riding through Glenwood Springs canyon west of Gypsum, Colorado when I noticed an old HD coming up my rear view mirror really fast. He slowed down as he approached me and peered at my bike, then sped ahead...his black jacket had Los Banditos emblazoned on the back of this weathered leather jacket..

eek2.gif


RB

That's a really cool thing about riding motorcycles. If you and I had been in a mini-van we'd never have had those experiences. The bikes involved, though radically different in look and sound, still bridged the gap.
 
Pivotal film. Retracing the route in today's scene is great. Good post.
 
I remember when Easy Rider came out. ... "Then Came Bronson" actually was made before "Easy Rider"......

Two of my old nick names! First was "Honda Man" because I had a 1967 Honda S-90. Totaled it into the right rear quarter panel of a lite blue Ford Mustang. Got 19 stitches in the top of my head. :eek2: Became know as "Crash"! When the "Then Came Bronson" TV series started I was called "Then Came Bronson". When the "Easy Rider" move came out they called me "Easy Rider". At the 10 year high school reunion we had one guy remember all of my nick names! :doh:

When my brother got his first CB-750 he was chased by the police supposedly and written up in the Shreveport newspaper as "Easy Rider nabbed in wild chase at 120 mph on I-20". :rider: I don't believe he would ride/abuse a brand new bike like that. He always took meticulous care of his bikes. I actually heard part of the chase on a police radio while waiting at a riders house. We were waiting for him to show up. We took off without him. Next mourning at 07:00 AM I picked up the phone and our insurance agent was calling to cancel his insurance! My father then showed me the newspaper report. The funny thing about the whole incident was they didn't put the "III" in my brother's name. My grandfather was deceased and my father had dropped the "Jr." from his name. My father did landscaping and ground maintenance at Barksdale Air Force base. He had a John Deere riding mower. That morning one of the officers walked up to him and said "Bill, I didn't know that thing would go that fast"! :rofl:

Did not know they went through Shreveport and Riverside.
 
then came Bronson sold a heck of a lot of sportsters back then. I think you can still get a t-shirt and stickers from this guy that was doing Bronson stuff a few years back. Would have to google it to find it. I still have a t - shirt with the dollar bill eye on it and " Hang in there " written under the eye.
 
I saw Easy Rider when it came out in 69, I think. And it showed pretty accurately what much of late 60s were, like it or not. I know I wouldn't want to relive it.... LOL

But the route is cool beans. :sun:
 
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