Urban roads, your neighborhood streets, may be at the bottom of many driver's lists for enjoyment. They do give you bad weather routes, alternate ways around the traffic, not to mention a way home. Nevertheless, these are perhaps the least challenging and most dangerous of all roads. Pedestrians, oblivious children, pets, driveways, and blind corners make the Porsche less desirable than the family sedan for their navigation. The key to coping with these roads is knowing which go where, and how best to piece together short cuts.
If you talk about congestion and rush hour traffic, visions of cars mired in the "beep and creep" clutter of the freeway comes to mind. Who hasn't been caught going in or out of town with the rest of the workforce? It is a regular occurrence to hear that traffic is slowed to a standstill on one local freeway or another. Generally though, the freeway system is a remarkably efficient method of travel once outside the city limits. Begun in the late 1950's as a result of Eisenhower's Interstate Highway Act, the national highway system offers some of the most spectacular and safe driving around. Interestingly enough, the mandate provided for roads to be constructed where the cars would be traveling at least 70 MPH. True enough, the fantasy of the "oil shortage" in the early 1970's provided an excuse for lowering the speed on federal highways to 55 MPH. The feds threatened to remove highway funding from states that did not comply with the lower speeds. The insurance companies and the NTHSA climbed on board with statistical dribble on the danger and threat to our lives if we drove at more than 55 MPH. If you are interested in following the proselytizing safety champions or the reactionary diatribe, read Car and Driver's editorials. Suffice it to say that the speed limit is now up and well within the limits of both the highway and today's cars, if not the drivers. In Oregon, one has only to drive I-5 between Eugene and Medford or I-84 between Gresham and The Dalles to see an example of how attractive and fun a freeway can be.
The twisting, turning mountain or coastal road offers a different challenge. Like the commute hour traffic on the freeways, being stuck on these roads behind an under powered car or unwilling driver can certainly be frustrating. Once free of the moving road block, the mountain roads like Skyline Drive, or many of the roads leading up and down the ridges of Portland's west hills are good cut and punch driving. There is a danger there, however. The number of cyclists and joggers make it hazardous, more for them than you, if you insist on pushing hard and driving for the apex. Additionally, pulling out to pass may be more dangerous than you can imagine. With a car like the Porsche, you can easily be in the 50-60 MPH range on a road where the rest of the world is following the 35 MPH speed limit. Yet given a clear, dry day these roads can be one of the most exhilarating rides for the avid sports car driver. There is a Skyline Road/Drive/Boulevard in nearly every city. In the San Francisco bay area, the coastal mountains that run between San Francisco and Santa Cruz are also topped with a "Skyline Drive." Roads like Page Mill and Atascadero make for adventurous driving to the crest. In LA, the road of choice used to be Mulholland Road. Car and bike geeks would graffiti the retaining walls even back in the 1960's.
My favorite kind of roads are the two lane state highways. These come in two varieties: the twisting, turning roads and the "pre-interstate" highways. The first is exemplified by the coastal highway, Route 101 in Oregon and Washington, and California 1 (the Pacific Coast Highway). The photo on the left gives a clue as to why it is so much fun. This coastal highway stretches from the Olympic Peninsula south to the suburbs of the Los Angeles basin. Some portions (Haystack Rock, Oregon Dunes, Point Reyes, Big Sur) are made famous in travel brochures. Do you watch Clint Eastwood movies? Ever notice that his production company is named Malpaso? There is a bridge on Highway 1 just south of Carmel that spans Malpaso Creek. No coincidence.
Oregon State Highway 26(the Sunset), has elements of all road types. Westbound from urban downtown the road quickly changes character as multiple lanes climb up past the zoo. Out into the top of the Tualatin Valley, 26 becomes much like any Interstate. West of Banks, the Sunset turns into the classic two lane highway; fast but with few passing lanes. Approaching the coast range the highway climbs into a two lane, well paved, twisting road. At its terminus, it again becomes an urban crawl.
The "pre-interstates" are the kind of road your parents and mine used for travel on family vacations. Highway 99 is a good example. As 99 travels the west coast, it is interrupted by many towns. Some are almost ghost like in appearance since the Interstate has drawn away the commerce. This kind of highway also has some outstanding examples of excellent driving roads. Highways like Oregon 219 trace routes from Hillsboro to Newberg and on south through the Willamette Valley towards Salem. These roads are well paved. Although they do not require a lot of heel-and-toe they do offer other than straight line driving. The average speed can be as much as 70 MPH, but you have to keep a little closer eye out for the gendarmes. Still, their appeal is enhanced by the lack of truck and RV traffic. The real attraction that these "pre-interstates" have for me is their link to the heyday of the American car. I love finding the old filling stations. They make an outstanding back drop for photos. It is fun pulling into an A&W Drive In for a burger and a float.
Shortly after I got out of the Army in 1969, my friend Scott and I plotted an automotive adventure. We wanted to go for a week long trip. We established two boundary conditions for the drive. We both had to get in the maximum amount of driving and we would attempt to minimize travel time on multiple lane roads. To accomplish the first, we each drove our own cars. I had the Sprite and Scott was driving his TR-3A. Tops were down. String back gloves were on. Time to rock and roll.
We left the Santa Clara valley and drove over California 9 to Santa Cruz and California 1. Up the coast and across the Golden Gate we veered west across Mt Tamalpias and down to the shoreline. Continuing up the coast on California 1 we drove, the surf pounding off to the left and the motors singing as we worked the cars through some of the greatest driving in the state. We finally stopped for the first night at Leggett (Junction of California 1 and US 101) just north of Fort Bragg. Continuing the journey the next day, we explored the area bordering the Eel River where floods in the mid 1960's had devastated the local economy. Further north we found other back roads and tourist attractions around the area of Avenue of the Giants south of Eureka. We walked through the Mystery Spot ("Magnetic center of the earth", "You won't believe your eyes.", etc., etc.) and drove through the Trees of Mystery. We spent the second night in Eureka. In the early evening we washed and waxed our cars in the parking garage at the motel. The manager cheerfully lent us hose, buckets, and a pile of old bath towels. Just try and find that kind of service today! A veritable seafood feast followed that night. I have since returned to the area on two separate occasions and was unsuccessful in locating the restaurant. The third day we traveled east along the Trinity River on Highway 299. This was our first experience with what would be called road rage today. Climbing up the hills along the river we approached a log truck. We hung back until a passing lane was available. With Scott's TR in the lead, we pulled out to pass. When Scott was about even with the trailer coupling and I with the rear wheels, the driver moved left and forced some pretty radical braking. At first we thought that he had just not seen us, but a repeat incident with a single car passing attempt convinced us that this was no joke. Eventually we got by using family cars to run interference. Bastard.
We elected to leave 299 and travel south on State 3 to 36. We intended to then cut back and go to Red Bluff. Part of this trip included a well paved dirt road through the valleys of the Trinity National Forest. My love of opposite lock driving got me into trouble when I misjudged a corner and nosed the Sprite into the roadside culvert. Fortunately there was less damage to the car than to my ego and we pulled it out using the Triumph and a rope. You just don't travel unprepared with a British car. You have to remember that this was before Interstate 5 was opened and we spent the night in Red Bluff after watching the highway construction activity for a couple of hours. On day four we drove east of US 99 and enjoyed the gold mining country and the Sierra foothills. There are some magnificent roads there (most notably California 49) and neat little mining towns as well. Just as a sanity check for today's world, I can remember we were ticked off that the cost of gas was so high in the small towns. Forty-five cents a gallon for premium seemed outrageous. We spent the night in Grass Valley (hey, we had to.it was the 60's!). The fifth day it was back west again on California 20 to the Napa-Sonoma Valley. We must have sampled ten different winery tasting rooms. Obviously we spent the night there. Or at least I think we did. The final day it was back down across the Golden Gate and home. Man, what a gas.
The roads are all still out there. Pick the road you want for the time you have for travel and your final destination. There is something good, and not so good, about each route. The trick is to remember that there is more than one way to get there and, by using each one, you learn to appreciate the finer points of all the others.