Ridgecrest may be rumbling due to earthquake aftershocks, but it was also rumbling due to some beautiful vehicles cruising through on Sunday, July 21, 2019—including three from Corvettes of Bakersfield!
Last month, COB received an invitation from Ridgecrest Corvette Club’s Kyle to join them on a cruise from Ridgecrest to Kernville. Dale and Cathy in a C7, Ron and Bill in a C6, and John and Cher in a C5 made the run and had a great time with some new friends.
John and Cher traveled to Ridgecrest on Saturday after Friday’s C8 Reveal Run, planning to meet up with the group on Sunday morning at the cruise’s meeting spot; Beansters Espresso in Ridgecrest.
Early Sunday morning, Dale, Cathy, Ron, and Bill assembled at the Broken Yolk on Brundage in Bakersfield to head to the meeting spot. They had a scenic and fun early-morning drive through the Tehachapis and across the desert. Their route included curvy and hilly Garlock Road, which passes by Garlock Ghost Town. This little 1800’s town provided water for cattlemen and freighters wishing to avoid the potentially treacherous washes in Red Rock Canyon. There’s not much there now to see, especially passing by at highway speeds…but it is a fun road to drive.
They met up with John and Cher at Beansters and everyone got a chance to enjoy some good coffee and baked goods while sharing some fun stories of their journeys to Ridgecrest!
Kyle from RCC arrived and joined the COB group. He said that he invited several more car clubs to join the cruise—not just other Corvette clubs. As a result, there was a nice variety of vehicles that started showing up for what would become a fourteen-car caravan. There were several Corvettes, a couple of Mustangs, a Maserati, a Fiat, and a Toyota truck, driven by some fun car enthusiasts.
The caravan left Beansters and proceeded east on Highway 178 to the southern Sierra Nevada mountains, through Walker Pass and down to the Kern River Valley, travelling around the north side of Lake Isabella on Sierra Way to Kernville. There were great views of the lake along the way. The caravan’s destination was Ewing’s on the Kern Restaurant for lunch. The group sat on the patio overlooking the mighty Kern River. Both the lake and the river were beautiful and many people were out enjoying them.
After a delicious lunch and great camaraderie, most of the caravan continued around Lake Isabella on Highway 155 for a photo opportunity at French Gulch. Afterwards, the COB group split off and proceeded west down the Kern River Canyon on scenic and winding Highway 178, heading back to Bakersfield. But, the run wasn’t over yet…
Realizing that the best way to end a great run on a hot summer day would be ice cream, the group decided to stop at Rosemary’s Family Creamery on the way home! Linda also joined the group there and the fun continued.
After a great day of driving, camaraderie, and food, the group dispersed, looking forward to the next event.
Special thanks to Dale for coordinating the run, and to Kyle and RCC for the invite!
John S.
For more pictures, Click on this Flickr link: https://www.flickr.com/photos/158760832@N02/albums/72157710017888482
