Vintage shots from days gone by!

Is the guy on the far right the ghost rider?


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Al Greens drive in Indy.

 

When I was a kid, a friend's dad owned a garage that included a vulcanizing (both full recap and tread only) facility. From hanging around there, I came to the conclusion that it was a hot, dirty job it must have been to work there. Rubber dust everywhere, and hotter than working in an oven, always with the risk of a bad burn. I thought working in the logging industry was a safer alternative.
Many years later in 1965, when I made the decision to join the air force to pay for my engineering degree, I decided to make a trip to LA for a bit of a holiday before starting pilot training.
I was driving down on the I-5 south toward Bakersfield in my convertible with the top down on a beautiful day, and even though I was speeding, a semi with an empty hiboy was in the process of passing me in the left lane. The next thing I heard was an explosion like a cannon had fired right next to me. After I collected myself enough to know that I was still alive and that there was nothing wrong with my car, I looked up to see this great rubber snake flipping through the air at the same speed that we were travelling. It didn't take a second to realize that it was a recap on the truck that had let go. The cap landed on the side of the road, and I was extremely grateful that it wasn't a steering tire. After changing my diaper, I carried on into LA uneventfully.
Every time I see a recap, or pieces of a recap on the road, I am reminded of that incident. It put me off recaps for life.

Bob

 

Look at that crowd, too! Gary