Anyone on here from South Central L.A.

[j8bug]

Not Compton, Watts, Inglewood or Crenshaw District. Im talking more like the neighborhoods surrounding USC (newton,southeast,southwest) you know what I mean . We had a pretty large tight-knit VW community thruout the 80s. Lurking on here for several years I have yet to run into anyone. We werent gang related or affiliated with car clubs but we ran more as groups of football teams (westside boys,central city, ghetto boys, the radicals). The latino and black communties had never been closer than they were throuot the 80s. Before bugs, street football and house parties all we ever did was fight against each other and make the news for the race riots that would break out. Things did get out of hand towards the late 80s and yes I know many are dead or have been in prison for many years. I would even go as far as to only ask what Jr. high did you attend because many never graduated high school or graduated from Y.A. or like myself that graduated H.S. but got OTd all over the place. I attended Adams Jr. High and also had lots of friends from Carver and my home high school was Jeff. Speaking only for my hood on the southeast side of USC, Todd and Arron really set off the bug scene for us in the early 80s. Before them I cant really remember anyone who drove bugs. They were black and older than most of us so they set the standard with their own touches that we looked up to, deep centerlines, deep alloys, tire smoking motors and they were friendly ass hell too. They took my best friend gramps under their wings and it was all over after that, we were hooked. A few friends and aquaintances from the day were my best friend Gramps (25L), Johnny Cardenas drove a white european style bug and the fool also thought he was european while his silly ass was always on his way to wayside, Chiefy drove a disco looking bug with moon caps. I last saw Chiefy and his brother Cuco in Enso, Cheezer was being Cheezer, Todd and Arron had moved out to the Crenshaw District, Lavoy went from 5'4" to 6'6" in 6 months, the Ochoa brothers had moved out to the inland empire somewhere, Drac was dead, Dur-Dur was dead (javier del real), Miguel-dracs best friend we had some fun in his white65 on those long commutes from south central to Roosevelt high in the 10th grade. The Hernandez brothers on 28th & maple drove an ugly ass yellow bug. They didnt have to because they were pro boxers & gym rats but they were down ass hell with the raza anyway. Hardcore boxing fans might recognize the name El Chicanito Genaro Hernandez, He fought Sissy De La Hoya when sissy was in his prime and genaro was already way past his prime. Sissys camp would not have any of that. (Its Ok a fellow Boricua exposed him shortly thereafter anyway, Tito Trinidad) Anyway, they knew who Genaro was, genaro went to roosevelt and sissy went to Garfield. That was motivation enough to knock his pretty little face out. His older brother El Chicano Rudy Hernandez was known as the California champ but he drove a 66 pro street nova and popped wheelies whenever the cops werent looking. The other 2 brothers were built like football players and all you saw was head when they cruised the hood in their raggedy ass yellow bug. Moreno on 27th street had a sweet burgundy squareback w/white interior on fully polished alloys, his brother-in-law owned a junkyard on Mission rd that was our source for free parts. The last time I saw Joe LLamas I tuned his dual weberd squareback and his brother was also growing his hair long and starting a BMW club, Pique was getting processed at the new county, Scanless Joel from The Radicals was wearing a yellow pill-module jumpsuit at twin towers, fruitboy Jorge was opening his first market called Numero Uno at the corners of San Pedro and Jefferson blvd, his boy big nose Albert was shermed-out, Rockhead became a chiropractor, these next 2 went to Cathedral High but they were the downest mo-fos in the hood, Al Ramos or chaquis as I knew him had a sweet red 67 w/flames, his brother Pablo Ramos I last saw about 15 years ago at Pomona getting his then 16 year old son Damien hooked on the Vdub obsession, Borrego died of Aids, Lalo was still a prick, Whistle or Huevas depending on where you knew him from had bought Gramps vert (lime green one on alloys) then traded it for a cutlass on daytons and then got jacked, he shouldve stayed with the V-dub crowd. Cachis-Cachis had bought my 52 Zwitter and his brother-in-law wrecked it, Pepe my little brothers best friend got a sweet deal off me when he was just getting started: a complete bug w/ 1835 and 44 webers in a trade for a brand new stock motor that i needed for a kombi, but that was more like the early 90s when the scene had died down, Grease Monkey was being Grease Monkey and I was still acting a fool till about 28. I could go on and on and almost everyone on here rolled a Vdub at some point or another in the 80s except for Raul Rivas who kept us focused on sports and fruit boy Jorge. Jorge Torres always had long dollars so he fucked with Porsches and Ferraris but we all knew him cause most of us had worked for him or his father Serafin at some point or another. What I loved the most about the Vdub community back then was we could roll from 23rd street to 61st street and from Central ave all the way to Western ave without any beef and if their was any beef it was nothing a good old fashion toe-to-toe squab couldnt settle. We didnt steal from each other and all we were interested was a good party anywhere in the city. Ah, we cant forget the hood rats who also loved bugs and if you rolled a ghia you easily had 2 or 3 of them. Got to give it up especially to the girls that trekked it all the way from areas like Glendora, Covina, San Dimas, Santa fe Springs looking for a little excitement and a thug- f.... on weekends. (laura Parks, michelle moulton,Tammie, taylor, blondie, isabel etc,etc,etc) oops, I hope no one from charter oak high or santa fe springs high is listening. If you are not from that era and you can read this far (j.k. ) I dont even want to know whats it like now? I get wierded out evertime i get back out there...
Ps. sorry for all the edits but its been almost 20 years and everytime I remember someone by name I try to include them, then there all those that I dont remember there names and then there all those that i only knew by face because we ran the same parties, clubs or hangout spots.
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Frank Ochoa said; "I still have my convertible bug from high school. Now that Gramps is out Im going to make some changes but Im still going to keep it Cal-Style, you know, all original but lowered with some alloys"

Fred one of the original members of The Bus Boyz said; "We were the first to ever Cal-Style a Bus.. No one was doing it back then".

[juniorvick]

sounds like fun times.. when i read the Ochoa brothers i though you were talking about my uncles... but then when you said they moved to the I.E. i knew it wasnt them...

[j8bug]

You never know.Their was about 11 of them. Thier roots date back to a busy transmission shop on 49th place and Avalon in South central. . Frank Ochoa built some sick verts back in the day. He was well known in the hood. The black crowd used to call them the Ocholo brothers because they couldnt pronounce Ochoa. Im sure their shops still exist. They were expanding everywhere. If frank is still around he would have lots of pics and relics from this genre. they were pretty well-off so im sure they had money to spend on a camera.
_________________
Frank Ochoa said; "I still have my convertible bug from high school. Now that Gramps is out Im going to make some changes but Im still going to keep it Cal-Style, you know, all original but lowered with some alloys"

Fred one of the original members of The Bus Boyz said; "We were the first to ever Cal-Style a Bus.. No one was doing it back then".

[homebrewin']

Blood in, blood out homie....
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[j8bug]

huh, im talking about the fun 80s; bugs, parties, girls, street football, hanging out at The Casa, atomic dog, freaking, disco music, fire extinguishers, mooning. What started in the mid 80s, and ended up with everyone killing each other im not interested in re-living. We were childhood friends man. We went to kindergarden, elementary school , junior high together . Yeah, we all had a little thug in us, but It got stupid, it got out of hand. Thats why I got the fuck out of there. Id rather remember the good times than shed a tear for all of my friends that i grew up with that are dead, in prison, in a wheelchair, cracked out, freeze-dried or on welfare. Dude, Im done shedding tears, our mothers were out of tears by the time they passed away. Dont talk about blood brotha.
_________________
Frank Ochoa said; "I still have my convertible bug from high school. Now that Gramps is out Im going to make some changes but Im still going to keep it Cal-Style, you know, all original but lowered with some alloys"

Fred one of the original members of The Bus Boyz said; "We were the first to ever Cal-Style a Bus.. No one was doing it back then".

[rusty57]

Lynwood class of 89 here.
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67 Ghia coupe
www.TagDefender.com

[j8bug]

[j8bug]

[GDOG57]

Westchester high(near LAX).Class of '86
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'57 oval window deluxe,Agave green(L240) 2276cc w/51.5 IDA's
'57 type 2 panel ( L31 dove blue) project daily driver,Singleport 1955cc

[j8bug]

[rusty57]

[j8bug]

[rusty57]

We drained our pool and skated in the safety of our own home most of the time. Joined the military to excape the hood. Now a chippy trying to give back. Lynwood was crazy between 86 and 89. But living there made me stronger!!!
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67 Ghia coupe
www.TagDefender.com

[j8bug]

[j8bug]

Although our community was fairly large not many people would be familiar with it. Check out this photo of my zwitter getting a front clip. This was not a shop. This was the rear parking lot of 1 apartment building. Try getting away with that today.... Bugs ruled!!!
_________________
Frank Ochoa said; "I still have my convertible bug from high school. Now that Gramps is out Im going to make some changes but Im still going to keep it Cal-Style, you know, all original but lowered with some alloys"

Fred one of the original members of The Bus Boyz said; "We were the first to ever Cal-Style a Bus.. No one was doing it back then".

[markm]

Loyola High class of '79. Worked security at USC '80 and '81, went to UCLA. Grew up in El Sereno.

[j8bug]

Played little league ball right behind loyola (normandie park).. Isnt it a trip how these prestigious private schools wound up in the middle of the hood and UCLA a public school wound up in the midlle of Beverly Hills/Bel-Air. I can tell you a quick story, I went out on a service call once out by Vermont and King and the couple was from Illinois. They had just dropped-off their son at USC Film School. They were in shock and terrified of leaving their son behind. But the one thing I learned about them kids living so close to them, they adapt quick and they become just as rowdy as the rest of us. Of course, I didnt tell them that though..
_________________
Frank Ochoa said; "I still have my convertible bug from high school. Now that Gramps is out Im going to make some changes but Im still going to keep it Cal-Style, you know, all original but lowered with some alloys"

Fred one of the original members of The Bus Boyz said; "We were the first to ever Cal-Style a Bus.. No one was doing it back then".

[Randall]

Don't be calling it South Central. It's officially "South LA". The City Council made it so. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Los_Angeles
South Central got a bad rap so they went and changed the name. You hear what I'm sayin' man?

Best movie about South Central -- http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116126/maindetails (Not really )

[j8bug]

[j8bug]