L.A. Is My Beat: Vintage Photo Friday

1962 Cadillac with dinghys on top, Beverly Hills

Here we are in 1962 in the backyard of our duplex on South Bedford Drive, with two boats strapped atop our 1962 Cadillac, ready to drive down to Alamitos Bay in Long Beach for a day of sailing. Mom and I are posing on opposite sides of the Caddy, my brother, Ken is securing the ropes. This photo is taken from a collage that I put together over 30 years ago for my parents' 30th anniversary. The photos in the foreground of my Mom and Dad are from the 1970's.

We often drove to Alamitos Bay for the Fourth of July. We'd sail all day and then have dinner and watch the fireworks from The Pike set off over the Bay. I remember our little boats very well. The white one, a Snark, was made from heavy-duty styrafoam. My Dad won it in a contest at the local gas station. It had a bright yellow, plastic sail. Eventually, after years of salt water, the styrafoam started to erode like a disposable coffee cup. The other boat was a version of a Sabot that my Dad built. It was slightly bigger than a regulation Sabot so that 3 of us could sail in it at the same time.

We travelled with those little boats all over Southern California for sailing vacations...Long Beach, San Diego, Cabrillo Beach, Newport and Balboa, Santa Barbara and beyond. Eventually, my Dad graduated to larger boats and a yacht club membership. By 1964 our days of nomad sailing were over. The recently dredged out Marina del Rey would be the location of our boating adventures in summers to come.