Monday, November 6, 2023

Back when buses were reasonable transportation

 


14 comments:

  1. Funny. Picture is of red rocks around Sedona Arizona. Greyhound did not go there in the 1960's and 1970's (year implied by coach model.) We had to take Continental Trailways in the Verde Valley if we were going anywhere. Greyhound ran up to Flagstaff from Phoenix, and across 66/I-40, but all local traffic was on the big red buses.

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    1. That looks to be a late 40's Silverside GMC bus. There is a bus mechanic that spent some years touring the country fixing old busses and trucks, and his home away from home looks identical. His is a '47. Look on y0u-tube for Bus Grease Monkey videos'. His recent ones are the process of repainting this old bus for future treks. He's been working in a shop he built during the covid idiocy, so off the road, mostly.

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  2. Twenty years ago I needed to get from Minneapolis to Omaha and decided that instead of renting a car, I would take the good ol' nostalgic bus ride so I could sit back and read a book and let them drive me there. Never, ever, ever again will I take a bus anywhere. You've been warned. Don't. Do. It.

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    1. Same here, Omaha to Denver with some really sleazy characters. Seats were very uncomfortable.

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    2. L.A. to Fresno. It was a nightmare.

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    3. Buses have been a no-go since the 70's for me. Long trip up the East Coast, after the car ate the trans. Got stuck in a snow storm, sat for a day on the shoulder. '72, I think.
      Local in the Mt View, CA area , '77, after the ignition coil in my '66 Ranchero died. Took a local to the parts store. Yuck.

      Forgot about the ride from the NYFC airport to Wildwood, '84? when my ride didn't show. Stopped in every little crossroad, 14 hrs in a bus seat. Actually less time than the snow job, though.

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  3. I wanted to buy a BMW Z3 listed on craigslist in Payson, Arizona. A buddy of mine who lived there test drove it and gave me thumbs up. Had to take the bus from Albuquerque to get there. It was like a nursing home on wheels. Everyone on that bus was in need of immediate medical attention. A 9 hour ride from 11 to 8 sitting across from the crapper that hadn't been emptied since the east coast.

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  4. Buses were never reasonable modes in mine or your lifetime.

    In my youth I did take a greyhound. An old black woman sat in the back rolling joints and passing them out. The whole bus stank to high heaven. The driver wouldn't stop to let me out.

    At the next stop, two negro youts tried to roll me. As I slammed one against a wall, his buddy stuck a finger in my back saying he gonna shoot me. I turned round to clobber him. They both got away but with a few bruises. Never again.

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  5. Heard "Thank God & Greyhound You're Gone" by Roy Clark earlier tody on SiriusXM 62.

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  6. Rode the silver dog from San Antonio to Biloxi Ms with a bunch of other airmen, slept and read a book or watched the scenery.

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  7. I used to ride buses and trains all the time with no problems. But that was in the late 40's and 50's...gee, time flies.

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  8. CW I am copying this picture to sent to Bus Grease Monkey.
    Here is a link to his 1947 Gm Greyhound Bus.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiKN2hwieCw&ab_channel=BusGreaseMonkey

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  9. In 1996 I rode the hound from Biloxi MS to Montgomery AL.

    I swear I could have ridden a bicycle and arrived faster.

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  10. Rode in those as a kid going to ski schools at Snoqualmie-Stevens-and Crystal Mountain...Always warm and comfortable, met some young ladies too.
    Still love the sound of those 2 stroke Detroits!
    Some of my work mixer trucks had those dependable engines.

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