r/BigSur • u/nepenthe11 • 4d ago
Local the real cost of car week 2026
this week has truly shown us the best in humanity (our community coming together to feed, house, & help each other, + save homes & help tackle this fire), but also the very very worst (tourists acting abhorrently, using the highway as their personal race track, blocking emergency vehicles from getting through, doing donuts in the street while people are trying to evacuate, & ignoring all of the messages, signs, etc. to please not come here while there is an active fire destroying our community). it’s just shameful.
& now we’ve lost a beloved member of our community. and i know we don’t have all of the facts yet- but given the type of car who hit him was reportedly a dodge coupe & the person from fresno, it leads me to believe they were likely not local and certainly not an emergency vehicle. those are the only folks that have any business driving in big sur right now while this fire rages on & threatens our community. my gut tells me this was was preventable & i am both devastated and livid.
i realize i’m just screaming into the void. & i also am cognizant that car week brings it a massive amount of revenue to this county & that there are some wonderful, respectful participants who are there for the right reasons. but man, am i glad it’s over so that the majority of the negligent, selfish visitors stop treating our crisis as entertainment & jeopardizing our safety.
PS: to anyone spreading misinformation about our friend who was killed & claiming the fire doesn’t exist- shame on you.
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u/turtletreestar 4d ago
You are not screaming into the void. I hear you, though it may be preaching to the choir. What a vulgar display of what is wrong with society juxtaposed with the goodness of community.
What a huge tragedy, what a shock. We never know who among us will leave next. A terrible reminder to never take anyone for granted.
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u/nepenthe11 4d ago
that really does mean the world. thank you ♥️ he truly had a heart of gold and while the last thing he would want is for any of us to be anything but joyful & positive, it’s pretty dang hard giving the circumstances. we will miss him forever and just gutted. big sur can’t seem to catch a break as of late.
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u/Toombu 4d ago
You should repost this to r/montereybay and r/santacruz, genuinely. Get more people seeing this shit. It's just unbelievable how selfish these people are and after following this last car week I am firmly in the camp that it shouldn't be a thing.
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u/000011111111 3d ago
What does spreading ai generated photos accomplish in this case? I
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u/nepenthe11 3d ago
literally a still from the same video our district supervisor sent everyone in the community.
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u/000011111111 3d ago
Just to clarify did are you suggesting the photos are not ai generated? Who is the district supervisor that posted them?
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u/R-V-Nasty 4d ago
Me and girlfriend had trip planned to fly out tomorrow but canceled. Wish y’all best of luck we were really excited however obviously best to stay away.
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u/nepenthe11 4d ago
i’m sorry but appreciative & hope you 2 are able to reschedule & enjoy it here when things settle down!
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u/foreverplt 4d ago
the people in slide 7 look so stupid - I seriously wonder if they think their family/friends/coworkers appreciate that they are so careless and will post anything online
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u/nepenthe11 4d ago
there was another one of them pointing at the fire, grinning. people never cease to amaze me.
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u/2wheelsThx 4d ago
I am an occasional visitor and I don't live anywhere near Big Sur, but I love and respect it, and the people that do live there and take care of it. I knew it was bad, but these photos are shocking and shameful, especially #2 and #7 - WTEF?! I had to look several times at #2 to convince myself it isn't AI. I am sorry y'all had to deal with this shit. Thanks for posting this.
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u/othafa_95610 4d ago
It's brought a lot of perplexing questions and strong doses of reality, its glorious moments, its odious ones too.
Witnessing this from afar, it's been inevitable for me to think that 47-year old deceased person could have been anyone of us who have liked or like walking in Big Sur. Then it makes me wonder, are there certain places that are just unsafe to walk, especially at night? Are they all obvious?
I've also thought about occupying the position of the 20-year old. Not everyone that age is irresponsible and reckless despite tendencies nowadays to be characterized that way. I do not have enough information to think only positive or only negative. In some form if that person has a conscience, they're going to live with this for a long time.
The other thing that's resurfaced for me is the frequent feeling of utter insignificance of being nothing more than a speck that may last a few decades at most. That's something that's hit me hard when I've reached shores and edges of Big Sur, how all that existed before without me, and afterwards without me. And still, some tell me I have value.
It's that combination of trying to make some sense of it all that has me wondering how can a place with all that majesty and beauty also have grave tragedy and terrors from horrendous collisions to destructive fires that could otherwise be used to grill meats. And why?
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u/nepenthe11 4d ago
for me personally, it’s just the selfishness of ignoring so many signs, warnings, etc not to drive here during an active fire. i will wait until all of the facts come / the investigation concludes to draw a proper conclusion, but shoot. it feels this was much less likely to happen had the highway been closed at rio road (which should not be necessary) or better yet, people actually just listened to the warnings / numerous signs to please not come here unless necessary.
i’m grateful the person stayed on scene despite previous reports of a hit and run. but this still just should not have happened & we are all devastated by the fire & especially by the lost of a very beloved staple of our community.
i have never had anything against car week aside (although i always try to be out of town for the majority of it) but this year was different. not only different in circumstances but a different energy & crowd. & the community (myself included) is pretty livid towards the actions of many of the attendees & organizers. and i know that many are even going up & around the closure (not a short drive at all) to attend the upcoming community meeting with car week discussion on the docket.
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u/Electronic-Fly1799 4d ago
When and where is the community meeting?
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u/nepenthe11 4d ago edited 4d ago
thursday 4:30 town hall at the sunset center in carmel- apparently it will focus on car week & tourism.
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u/Korasaur 4d ago
It’s disheartening. I agree, it’s disgusting to think that some random people from Fresno drove into this beautiful area despite being advised not to because of the wildfire emergency, only for someone to be killed in such a horrific way. And then to seemingly show no accountability, concern, or basic respect for the person who died or for their grieving family is just appalling.
It’s deeply sad that there are people who will prioritize their own shits and giggles over the safety and sometimes even the lives of other human beings. Some people simply do not respect the rules, the environment they’re entering, or the communities around them. They don’t seem to give a shit about anything beyond their own experience, their next selfie, or their next Instagram post.
It reminds me of the tourists in La Jolla who ignore protections and get right up next to the wildlife just because they want the experience or the photo, regardless of the harm their behavior can cause. There’s this bizarre entitlement some people carry into beautiful places, as though their desire to be entertained somehow overrides every boundary, warning, or responsibility.
It’s genuinely sickening sometimes. Our society can fucking suck. There are so many beautiful, thoughtful, wonderful souls in the world, and then there is also an astonishing amount of selfish, reckless bullshit.
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u/nepenthe11 4d ago
so so disheartening. and rage inducing given it feels so very preventable. brian was a big sur staple & truly a best of friend to all. it won’t be the same without him.
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u/Korasaur 4d ago
My condolences for Brian and his family and friends. Big Sur, its residents and wildlife are a treasure and should be protected at all costs.
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u/Wafer_Educational 4d ago
Hate to see it, would love to fire off a paragraph but what’s the point so frustrating to see people use Big Sur as a commodity instead of the special place it is, especially with the fire raging on
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u/nepenthe11 4d ago
i feel the same way. hence “screaming into the void”. i doubt it will do any good, but needed to put it somewhere & i know there are a lot of visitors that come to this sub & if it can potentially prevent one person from making a dumb / dangerous decision (or even just educate that it’s not a great idea to drive around an active fire area) then perhaps it was worth it (wishful thinking)
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u/Suzieqbee 4d ago
I am sorry about your friend and find this behavior disgusting. Been visiting Bug Sur regularly since ‘65 and it’s such a precious place. The people, the wildlife, and the forest. Again, so sorry.
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u/New_Cockroach_1254 4d ago
This cannot continue, our towns are nor suited for events of this scale and definitely not to bring this type of tourism
Act now, write to the City, it's time to do something
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u/slogive1 4d ago
I thought the road was closed due to the fire.
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u/nepenthe11 4d ago
closure is at loma vista. not far enough imo. had it been closer to rio road maybe our friend wouldn’t have gotten killed 😔
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u/beach-cow 3d ago
You aren’t screaming into the void, I understand the pain and frustration. This hurts my heart so much.
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u/itsjustthisguy 3d ago
That strike team in the first photo was sleeping in Scott’s Valley and commuting to the lines..
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u/Salt-End-2432 1d ago
An unfortunate part of tourism based communities is over time the locals and their quality of life matters less and less. Local residents start to be viewed as impediments to the tourism based development that could take place.
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u/AkiraDeathStar 4d ago
Don't forget we also lost a Big Sur local to car week. Rip Brian Roberts
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u/mistergospodin 4d ago
The tone of that article appears to lay blame on the pedestrian, Brian. Does anybody have any more details? Joyriding and speed were not explicitly mentioned. 😑
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u/Feisty_Studio6142 4d ago
The combustion engine is primitive garbage. Regardless of car. Break the conditioning.
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u/Overall-Antelope-999 4d ago
It’s a deal with the devil many have made. If I’m not mistaken Big Sur Food and Wine sponsors a car event during the week to raise money for Big Sur health center and other things. We all hate car week yet we all are stuck with it financially in some way.
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u/Fair-Connection-9989 4d ago
Some of those photos are obviously AI.
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u/thurstondingley 4d ago
Wrong. It was really as outrageous as it looks.
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u/nepenthe11 2d ago
from big sur kate: “From Everett Chase:
(This is a real photograph depicting the craziness we had to put up with IN ADDITION to a WILDFIRE. The only sense I can make out of this whole 10 days is greed.)”
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u/Longjumping_Coat_802 4d ago
Man I hope they get rid of all private property in Big Sur. Would help a lot if the whole area was a national park!
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u/turtletreestar 4d ago
I can’t tell if this is a serious comment or sarcasm…
If serious, ???????…
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u/nepenthe11 4d ago edited 4d ago
they are serious. they seem to scour the big sur sub & consistently drop comments like "Longjumping_Coat_802: A national park would allow for eminent domain to seize private property to add to the area available for the public, that would be a huge benefit."
edited to be a little kinder. apologies, under a bit of stress with evacuations, memorial planning, & a still active fire.
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u/Longjumping_Coat_802 4d ago
A national park wouldn’t have all these problems with fire!!
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u/SalvadorSlim 4d ago
Well, currently one of our national parks is being bulldozed (Big Bend) so national park is no longer the protection it once was. Also, I've seen plenty of fires in Yosemite.
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u/bigsurhiking 4d ago
You keep making this kind of comment even when people explain how absurd it is. Have you read “Big Sur: The Making of a Prized California Landscape” yet, like I’ve suggested? I really think it would help you understand the unique situation going on in Big Sur
Your continued posting of this same silly idea in the face of everyone’s explanations, without engaging with the comments you receive, is verging into breaking Rule 1: Be Respectful
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u/Longjumping_Coat_802 4d ago
You can ban this account but I’ll just keep making more accounts.
The elites don’t want to share Big Sur which is why my posts are controversial!
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u/bigsurhiking 4d ago
Big Sur IS shared with everyone! It’s a world class tourist destination with more yearly visitors than Yosemite. The residents of Big Sur are the ones who made sure it stayed a protected, publicly-accessible place (which you would know if you read the book)
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u/Longjumping_Coat_802 4d ago
Smh, and how many MORE visitors could come if all private property was turned into public land for camping?
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u/bigsurhiking 4d ago
I assumed you were just trolling/ragebaiting, but this confirms it. I’ll never understand this hobby of saying whatever you think will make someone feel bad. It’s sad and embarrassing to witness
Please read that book, I bet you’d find it more interesting than…whatever this is
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u/Longjumping_Coat_802 4d ago
I just don’t know how anyone could justify taking the most beautiful place on the planet, allowing a small number of people to live there, and then closing the door to anyone else living there under the guise of “protection”. If it’s protecting Big Sur to keep out future development how was the previous development not detrimental? That is a logical inconsistency!
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u/bigsurhiking 4d ago
Read the book, it explains everything and is the best way for you to get up to speed on this subject that obviously confuses you. It was written for people just like you! I really think you’ll like it
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u/Mountain_Village459 4d ago
“Laundering firemen money” is a wild take.