Posted by: Danielle Danger Quinn
Are you a Mod or a Rocker? Whether you're a sweater-toting scooter-boy, or a leather-clad moto-rebel, The Los Angeles Cretins welcomed all to both their clubhouse and annual campout this past weekend. It kicked off with a meet and greet party at the Cretin's top-secret lair on Friday night. We met up with the group at La Cita, a mariachi bar turned band venue/dance club, and then headed out to the clubhouse. The contrast of the old bikes with squeaky springs, rat-ta-tat-tatting their way through the urban LA streets was a real switch... The gang rode through Chinatown and into an industrial area where we entered "the bat cave," leading us to what looked like a bunch of storage garages on the rooftop of a building. The clubhouse had a postcard view of the LA skyline. Just as we were arriving, Dodger Stadium lit up the sky with a fireworks display that seemed like it was put on just for us.


La Cita


The clubhouse

The night just got cooler from there. They rolled up the garage doors to unveil every motorcycle rider's dream garage/bar. There was racing memorabilia everywhere, lamps made from helmets, and an old motorcycle hanging from the ceiling. They had a full bar, but the drink of choice was undoubtedly Pabst Blue Ribbon. The place was whimsical, and the crowd moved freely from the garage to the outside area where bikes billowed across the rooftop. The Cretins are an eclectic group of people with an eclectic group of bikes, welcoming as hell....in a good way. Just when I thought it couldn't get any better, the DJ showed up and started spinning a mix of rock and roll meets eighties punk. The place was full of rockabilly chicks dancing to do-wop hits. It was one of those moments when you look around and think that life really doesn't get much better.


Inside the clubhouse



On Saturday morning, the bikes met up at the Glory Moto-Gear Shop on Hollywood Blvd., and the scooters met at Eatz Café on Los Feliz Blvd., each group gearing up for the ride up Angeles Crest. The bikes stopped at the Shell station where Highway 2 and the 210 Freeway intersect for some “minor” repairs before heading up to the campground located in the San Gabriel Mountains, northeast of Los Angeles. The Rockers arrived at the campsite first to a locked gate, and tried for a while to get a truck around it before just lifting the whole thing off its hinges. By the time the scooters got there, the rockers had already picked out their sites and set up their tents. Eventually, the park ranger came by with the correct gate code. The campground was perfect since it had a great little loop around the whole thing that was more than adequate for “racing” purposes. Upon arrival, the scooters did some minor repairs of their own.


Broken bike at gas station


Scooter on the picnic table

Eddie from the Cretins did a great job organizing the event. As soon as the chase truck arrived the keg was tapped, the DJ started spinning, and the BBQ got fired up. After lunch, the Mod vs. Rocker events got underway. First was the tug of war. The rockers were down 2 to 1 from years past, so this year they came up with a plan…and won!


Tug of war

The next event was the “slow races”. With the start and finish lines about 12 feet apart, elimination rounds were held for the slowest ride between the lines without putting a foot down. I got knocked out in my first race by the guy who would eventually win. You could tell that some of these guys had been practicing all year for this one event. There was an impromptu burnout contest, and a raffle in which my brother and I won the grand prize, a George Foreman BBQ. He later traded the BBQ for a flask.


Slow races

Throughout the day, people were challenging each other around the “track,” and I’ll have to hand it to those scooter guys, some of them were pretty quick. We partied through the night with campfires, riding stories, and beer.


Racing video, end of 5 lap race


Bikes slow racing, definitely a rocker

Sunday morning we rolled up our sleeping bags and hit the road, stopping for breakfast at Newcomb’s Ranch to start our journey back to the real world. The weekend was just as every weekend should be: fun bikes, great people, and good music.



Don’t worry, now that I know what’s up, I will be honing my slow race balancing skills at every red light between now and next year’s event.

Link: Check out Danielle's Picasa album for more photos and video

Link: “Big wheel little wheel” myspace page for more info


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