Recent Posts
The Origin of the ‘SPEED DEMONS’ ® (1935)
In the early 1930’s Muroc Dry Lake was little more than a remote desert expanse with a water tower, railroad tracks, an Army Air Corps base and a nearby working ranch. In February 1935 Pancho Barnes bought that ranch. Pancho Barnes, a fearless pilot, single mother and fierce competitor had earlier broken Amelia Earhart’s speed record in 1930, becoming the… [Read More]
Pancho Barnes and Duncan Renaldo (aka: The Cisco Kid)
Born in Romania on April 23, 1904, Duncan Renaldo (birth name Vasile Dumitru Cughieaneas) was orphaned at an early age and never knew his birth parents. He was raised and educated in various European countries and arrived in the United States in 1917 as a stoker on a Brazilian coal ship. After his ship caught fire at the docks in… [Read More]
Thaddeus Lowe: Pancho Barnes’ Famous Grandfather
Thaddeus Sobieski Constantine Lowe (August 20, 1832 – January 16, 1913), also known as Professor TSC Lowe, was a scientist, dreamer, visionary, brilliant inventor and consummate showman. He also was a balloonist, soaring above the clouds in his hydrogen-gas-filled silk balloon suspended in a wicker basket. In 1861 at the beginning of the Civil War he figured that aerial reconnaissance via… [Read More]
Become an online member of Pancho Barnes’™ legendary Happy Bottom Riding Club™ (aka: HBRC™)
Howdy Friend, You’re officially invited to saddle up and become an online member of Pancho Barnes’™legendary Happy Bottom Riding Club ™, now revived and reimagined for the digital frontier. Inspired by the bold, brilliant spirit of Pancho Barnes and her desert hideaway of mischief and camaraderie, the online HBRC ™ Membership is your ticket to a community that values fun, friendship, and fearless… [Read More]
Waldo Waterman and Pancho Barnes
Waldo Waterman (1894 – 1976), was an aviation pioneer, inventor, and son of a California governor. In 1929, at age 35, Waldo became general manager of the Los Angeles Metropolitan Airport (now known as Van Nuys Airport) where Pancho Barnes (aka: Florence Lowe Barnes) and her cousin, Dean Banks, kept their airplanes. Pancho Barnes and Waldo Watermen had been friends… [Read More]
JJ Ford’s Ballad: Legend of Pancho Barnes
Singer-songwriter JJ Ford has captured the fearless spirit of Florence Lowe “Pancho” Barnes in his moving tribute ballad, Legend of Pancho Barnes. The song first appeared on Ford’s 2018 album Last Carousel, blending the storytelling tradition of country and folk with the larger-than-life history of one of aviation’s true trailblazers. With heartfelt lyrics and a timeless melody, Ford’s ballad celebrates… [Read More]
Wiley Post Unexpectedly Drops In To Visit Pancho at Rancho Oro Verde
In early January 1935, Pancho Barnes and her young son, Billy Barnes, moved to Rancho Oro Verde (later known as The Happy Bottom Riding Club), where they planned to live full time. On February 22nd of that same year, Wiley Post, who was world-famous for being the first pilot to fly solo around the world, “belly” landed his Lockheed Vega, the… [Read More]
Interview with BLACKIE GOLD
The following interview was conducted in 2006 by the Pancho Barnes Trust Estate Archive with early hot rod Dry Lake racer Hyman “Blackie” Gold. Blackie became a friend of Pancho Barnes about 2 years after she relocated from Pasadena to Muroc on her Rancho Oro Verde. This interview features an excerpt from the coming book, VOICES FROM THE HAPPY BOTTOM… [Read More]
Pancho Barnes Film TV ENCORE April 20th
KOCE-TV PBS Television, Huntington Beach, will ENCORE the award-winning documentary, “The Legend of Pancho Barnes and the Happy Bottom Riding Club” on Tuesday evening, April 20th at 9:00 p.m., and a second ENCORE presentation on Sunday night, April 25th at 11:00 p.m. KOCE-TV, the nation’s sixth-most-watched public television station, is proud to have supported the creation of this dynamic documentary,… [Read More]
TV debut on April 15th for new Pancho Barnes Film
After several award-winning and sold-out theatrical screenings, “The Legend of Pancho Barnes and the Happy Bottom Riding Club” makes its National Television Debut on Thursday night, April 15th at 8:00PM on southern California PBS station KOCE-TV. Considered to be one of the best fliers of the 20th Century, Pancho Barnes is an American Legend waiting to be discovered. A new… [Read More]