The wife and I like camping a lot; long weekends away in the mountains or the Mendocino or Big Sur coast to enjoy nature, the scenery and the peace and quiet. A couple of times a year however we go “camping” with her parents. They have one of those monster 5th wheels and like to go camping to hang out with other people with monster RVs and all of the associated noisy toys…they mostly set up their satellite dishes, pull out the plasma TV under the awning and watch sports all day…just like home, but somewhere else.
This weekend we camped at Pismo Beach. Pismo Beach/Oceano Dunes is the off road road capital of the world.
On Saturday afternoon we took a drive along the beach and I have never seen anything like it. There were hundreds of huge RVs parked on the sand below the dunes, many of them in circles as if they were trying to keep out marauding indians. It appeared that each RV had a minimum of 3 flags flying, mostly pirate, confederate or with shilouette’s of naked women. The whole beach was shrouded in smoke from the fires and each camp was blasting ear piercing music from loud speakers. It looked like an army on the eve of battle.
In the dunes above were literally hundreds huge trucks, Humvees, Jeeps, dune buggys, dirt bikes, quads, and a wild assortment of home made jalopys screaming all over the place jumping cliffs, and doing donuts in the sand. The noise was deafening, from the high pitched scream of 6 year olds on 2 stroke dirt bikes to growling monster v-12 trucks…and there was the ever present blare of ambulance sirens as they came to take the wounded to the hospital.
Looking at the millions of dollars of toys on display I couldn’t help thinking “what recession”? I was also amazed by the numbers of children flying around the dunes…their parents must be INSANE.
I’m very happy I never have to go back there again. It was hell on earth.
I looks similar to the dry lake beds in the Mojave that I used to frequent a very long time ago. Ride dirt bikes, get drunk, and shoot guns!
I’m actually very thankful that 99% of “campers” prefer to congregate. Even in the San Gabriel mountains around the LA megalopolis, it was easy to find places where I wouldn’t see or hear a soul for a week…
Dude, for one ratchet down the societal ladder visit Glamis any weekend over the winter. Basically Pismo with the added benefit of the 909 factor (more tattoos, less teeth).
I have been somewhere similar in Oregon. The hubby and I were searching in vain for camping on the Oregon coast in the summer and decided to check out the beach area. We unknowingly drove into dune buggy hell and my husband said, “We better get out of here before Mad Max gets us.” We saw exactly what you saw, kids running wild, beer, flags, and really scary people, only we didn’t have to stay. It was a total culture shock.
We experience something like this when we launch to go cross country skiing and there are snowmobiles. Not quite as freaky but a similar scene with kids buzzing around and loud engines and testosterone.
LOL! That has to be one of the most inside SoCal references ever.
Pismo has a definite 559 factor. Driving north yesterday on 101 we were stuck in a 20 mile long jam of RVs until we hit the 41 to Fresno where they all got off.
The guy in the site next to us was in a $200K motor home, 2 years old. Gets 7mpg and it costs him over $100 to get to and from Pismo every weekend…and he goes every weekend. He has the full line of toys; two quads and two dirt bikes and a Jeep Wrangler in tow. He was ex military, a lifer now retired. I didn’t want to ask where it all came from.
The rest of the campers there were definitely not wealthy, but they had lots of expensive toys and big trucks to tow them. I got the impression that the kids were getting dirt bikes instead of 529 plans.
Shit Matt, why get your kids into the dentist when the facts are that if they are not busted out by an ATV, they will be in a bar fight or when the girlfriend gets mad and hits them upside the face with a booze bottle?
Goes along with the tidbit I heard on the news last night.
25% of americans have 2 weeks or less living expenses in the bank.
50% of americans have 4 weeks or less.
I worked with a guy who was like that, new car every 2-3 years, dirt bikes, quads, a harley, 2 snowmobiles, and lived paycheck to paycheck.
