For many people, their first experience in Pine Mountain Club was at one of the festivals—- the Lilac Festival, the Wine Festival, or Oktoberfest aka Fall Festival. It would be impossible to tell the full story of the Oktoberfest without a lengthy section about Rick Young.
Never a permanent resident, Rick and his family (five beautiful daughters) made the trip from Orange County to PMC on most weekends, and the family (daughters and then-wife Barbara) would also stay for extended periods during the Summer. In the early ‘70’s, they built a cozy second home on Grizzly Drive, about a block from the PMC Stables.
It was at that house that we met Rick—— early one Fall morning, on our very first visit to PMC. We traveled from the San Fernando Valley with Mike Schmidt in his Jeep CJ-5, struggling to keep warm in the cold wind that leaked around the canvas top. After a brief stop at Pine Mountain General Store where we met Floyd Bolton, and enjoyed a cup of hot coffee, we drove around the Golf Course and Clubhouse to Rick’s house. He couldn’t have been more welcoming to us! He too had coffee, but he asked if we’d rather join him in something a little stronger—— in this case, a Bloody Mary, although actually it was vodka, ice, and just enough mix to give it a pink tinge. That’ll warm you up!
From that very first encounter, we became good friends. Rick would always stop by the weekends he was in PMC and say “Hello”, and many times he would drop off a garden hose or two. (He was in the wholesale industrial hose business, and if a length of hose had a small defect, they couldn’t sell it, so he would bring it to us. I don’t think I bought a garden or air hose for the service station in almost forty years!)
Rick was active on the Recreation Committee from it’s very beginnings, many years as Chairman. The fledgling Oktoberfest, founded by Fred Westlund, had been moved to Labor Day weekend in the late ‘70’s to take advantage of the milder weather. With the large crowds that always came to enjoy the last long
summer weekend, it quickly became a hit with PMC Members, guests, and visitors from all over Central and Southern California. Rick was not only MC of the Festivities, but he, with many others, worked tirelessly to put on a great, fun, show for everyone.. He was easily recognizable in his alpine hat and droopy Bermuda shorts, making sure that the beer truck was properly set up as early as possible, and regularly did taste tests to ensure that it was chilled properly!
Rick’s stamina at the Oktoberfest was legendary. He was there with the first work crews in the morning, oversaw the set-up, and then worked all day and into the night: running contests and raffles, meeting and greeting, dealing with the inevitable snafu’s, and always managed to join the crowd after the Festival closed at the Apache Saddle (Madd Bailey’s) or Furlano’s until closing time. The bartenders at the Apache Saddle loved to tell the story of one night Rick appeared to be in a condition that made it unwise to drive himself, so they left his car and drove him home. By the time they got back to the bar, Rick had walked across the golf course, and was waiting for them to pour him another! That’s what friends are for!
Pine Mountain Club has enjoyed a collection of nice people over the years. Truly a good guy—- funny, caring, interesting, and hard-working—- Rick is one of the best, and I’m proud to call him my friend.
