On the path of “Easy Rider”

A scene from the police station in the movie Easy Rider. This scene was shot in Las Vegas, N.M.
A scene from the police station in the movie "Easy Rider." This scene was shot in Las Vegas, N.M.
The same scene in Las Vegas, N.M., today.
The same scene in Las Vegas, N.M., today.

MrZip66, a motorcycle enthusiast who is on our blogroll, recently produced a post so good that I wish I had written it.

After years of research, he managed to figure out the route the characters took in the 1969 film “Easy Rider.”

Not only does he have a map so you can take the route yourself (a good chunk of it was on Route 66), but he has stills of many of the locations where the film was shot and what they look like in the present day, including shots from Las Vegas, N.M., that he allowed me to reproduce here.

Go here to read it. I commend it to your attention.

(Photos courtesy of MrZip66)

3 thoughts on “On the path of “Easy Rider”

  1. I’ve read his post. I’m sure any motorcycle rider, regardless of brand, dreams of following their route.
    I saw the movie once. The riding scenes were good. And I love “Born to be Wild” by Steppenwolf. But, over all, found the movie kinda pointless.

    1. I’ll agree that the screenplay meanders a lot. But for a film that had no set script at the start of production, I thought there were good scenes there. It was way better than it had any right to be. Sometimes filmmakers just get lucky.

      I think the description of “pointless” does apply to “Two Lane Blacktop,” however. I think it tried to emulate “Easy Rider” but failed miserably, save for the swell car they were driving.

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