September 30, 1955.........

Cal Poly University student Donald Turnupseed was heading west on California State route 466 (now 46) in his 1950 Ford Tudor sedan. When he made a left turn toward Cal State Route 41, he failed to notice the Porsche Spyder heading east. The Porsche, driven by James Dean hit him nearly head on. Within 10 minutes, James Dean was dead of a broken neck and other major injuries. Turnupseed and Dean's passenger, Rolf Wütherich survived the crash.



Today, about a mile from the crash site, in the small unincorporated village of Cholame (about 25 miles east of Paso Robles) is a memorial to the events on that infamous day. Right next to the memorial is a restaurant, which in its self is a living memorial to James Dean. It's called the Jack Ranch Cafe. The reviews I have read pretty much agree that the food is good, but not spectacular, with one exception. Apparently Jack Ranch has some of the best pies in the state...



They also serve beer! With this in mind, and because I will be unable to attend the Bastard Bash II in Bend Oregon, I would like to propose the Jack Ranch Bastard James Dean Memorial Pie Run to be held on the 56th anniversary of his untimely passing. I plan to be there about 11:00 am on September 30, 2011, soon after which, I will indulge in a very large piece of berry pie ala mode. Hope to see you there.