Slow Baja - Travel Talk With Slow Baja Remembering "Coco" Of Coco's Corner

Episode Date: September 16, 2022

RIP Jorge Enrique Corral Sandez. The Baja Icon, better known as "Coco," was found dead at his residence. For decades, a stop at Coco's Corner was a must for travelers heading south of San Felipe.  Coco was the informal archivist of Baja's highway 5. He recorded every visitor in his guest registry. Every time we stopped, we would buy a beer, sign the book, and Ted would ask Coco about the road conditions. Coco inevitably would draw a map as he explained in detail the construction progress and the current state of the dirt sections. I recorded this podcast on July 9, 2021 Coco passed at his ranch, South of Gonzaga Bay, on August 30, 2022 Check out Coco's Facebook page here

Hello, hello, hello, Ola, Como Estabh, Slow Baja, amigos. My heaping dose of gratitude goes out to you, the Slow Baja listener. Slow Baja has been on a super, super slow role this summer, and I apologize for that, and I've gotten some messages from you. Ryan Millen, I hear you, bro. But I just want to say I'm back after 30-something years here in San Francisco. The Slow Baja HQ has been packed up, shipped off, and soon. I'm going to be living somewhere in downtown Chicago, and I just haven't had the capacity to really focus on bringing these stories forth, and I apologize for that.

So if you're still listening, hey, thanks to you. Today's show is with the one, the only, and sadly, the recently deceased Coco. Coco and Coco's Corner has been a fixture on the east side of the Baja Peninsula there south of San Felipe for, I don't know, decades. I stopped in and saw him and recorded this show last summer in July in my Slow Baja podcasting recording trip, and it was over 100 degrees the day that I stopped by, and I was the only one there, and man, it was stinking hot. I drove by and missed his turn. There wasn't very good signage, and I missed his turn as his new spot, and I made a U-turn. I thought, I'm already by, he probably didn't see me, whatever, and I thought, I've got to go back.

So I made a U-turn and came back, and by the time I was. I had pulled up and walked in Coco had already written Slow Baja in his registry. And it's the first time ever that he had written, you know, my name or the name of my truck in his book in his own hand. Obviously, there's some pomp and circumstance that goes around, goes on with signing the book and all of that. And that's what I love about Coco and coming into his corner with a group of folks who've never been there before and the banter and the slander.

and the slights and the jokes and buying the beer and signing the book and all that. And I just love it and it saddens me a little bit that he has passed on. Anyways, I thought I'd drop a couple bucks in the can, get a can of beer, and it turns out Coco's refrigerator that day was on the blink. So I went into the cooler and my land cruiser brought forth a couple of Takate Rojos and a couple of waters. and he absolutely insisted that I replaced the beers that I gave him with a couple of warm bud lights. But we had a nice time. We had a nice chat.

Nobody else showed up. And he was really in a kind mood. And I thought, you know, I'd run out to the car and grab my microphones and see if I can get a recording for Slow Baja out of this visit. And I never really got it edited. He was a little hard to hear and, you know, just kind of put this one on the back burner. But with his passing, I thought, dang, I'd just. just need to share this with the folks who knew them and the folks who didn't know them. It's a little bit hard to hear, but, you know, concentrate, listen to Coco and, you know, hoist a

hoist a glass. Fortale, of course, is what I'll be hoisting and say, salutos amigos. And I hope he's having a better life wherever he is. So I'll be back with something fun and stay tuned without further ado. Coco. Hey, this is Michael Emery. Thanks for tuning into the Slow Baja. This podcast is powered by Tequila Fortaleza,

handmade in small batches, and hands down, my favorite tequila. Hey, I want to tell you about your new must-have accessory for your next Baja trip. Benchmark Maps has released a beautiful, beautiful Baja California Road and Recreation Atlas. It's a 72-page large format book of detailed maps and recreation guides that makes the perfect planning tool for exploring Baja. Pick yours up at Benchmarkmaps.com.

Coco, talk to me, baby. Okay. How do you know, Amigo? My name is George Henry. George Henry Corral Sanders. Everybody knows me for Coccos Conan. Coco's Conan coming. He came my name for Coco.

When I'm born, there's my mother. I come in for the hole of my mother. Somebody says, He's coming one Coco. That's when I got born than my mother. And I ran here for two many years. I work in different places. I work in for different places.

The first time I worked in a far away from Bees in Enceernada, and I don't speak English. I move. I try over there. I speak English. No, very good. I have. Well, it's.

Slow Baja, and I'm on a travel talk driving down to, from San Felipe, or Colexico is where I started, and I'm driving down to Guerrero Negro today and on to the San Juanico Surf Society tomorrow, and you have to stop by and say hello to Coco when you drive down on the five. And so I've stopped in. I've traded Coco a warm beer for a cold beer. He's got some refrigeration problems currently, and I'm just delighted to be sitting here and get Coco's story. So Coco, you moved into this new house on April 10th. See? Correcto.

I hear the 10th, the April. I think of three months. Three months. Yeah. I'm here, but down over there, the place I stay. I've been 24 years. And the guy by the guy by the, Hidl, he told me, Coco, you wanted the

arrastrachers or you want to stay in here? No, I wanted the arraughtas. That's the way I'm moving here. But I'm moving here and I told okay, I wanted the harrachtas, but keep my paper there's las arrastrassas. He came my paper everything. Now I got eight hectares in here. Now I'm still good, I got my own ground, and I'm well, well for complete for 39 years for Gatle Papers for the Grand. So you're here.

And I feel good, Gatapes for the guy, you buy Gido and Meligindo Gagaliana. Now this place before is Coco, the Bay of the Coco. Now this place is the name, the new Coco's Corner. And at the last time, Coco is died a long time ago. Coco's dying and I got a new Coco's corner. Well, Coco, how does it feel to be famous? How does it feel for you to be a, uh, a gente famous? Well, I, I feel a very good thing here.

And when it goes, the difference, not too many people's stop. People pass and pass. So, only people come in here, the people you know me, and we come in here, 50 minutes ago, I got a doctor in here. And you see a movie in the television, and we got the, you got the, you got the, La Paz tomorrow. But I said, I want to see this guy,

Cocos Corn. Corpus Cornyn, is the name for Orandum. That's the name. It's on the map. Yeah, I am the map. I am the map. As you look at me and give him up, you know funny me. I have the name and the map and it's not on the map and everybody and the radio.

And the any place is my name. No my name, sobrenombre. Sobrenombre. My name is George Henry Corral Sandus. Sandus for my mother, Corrard for my father. So I got Jorge Enrique. And the Jorge come in Coco. And I'm here. And I got a crazy gringo in front of me with a bocina.

And I got a bocina in my hand. You go only going here, Coli Kahneman, he comes me, I got beer, so he said, okay, I gave you one beer, then my, and then you give me one of you. So, Coco, you've got a lot of friends in the off-road racing world. You have lots of racers who have helped you build this house.

For the score race, your old Coco's Corner was a checkpoint. Tell me a little bit about your friends who raised. race off-road trucks. Well, before I got friends. When I had my different place, I got a lot of people visiting me over there. The people, it helped me for all the house over there, but I got my new house in here. My money, I got my little monies, I sold it, I got a house.

One over there, no go no more, and no papers, but I stayed there for more of 34 years. And no identification paper, nothing. So I got a new guy, E. By the Grand, Emeligindo Galliana. And I got this place in here. I call the new Cocoa Corny. No more Las Arrastas. And I got in here one more. I want to see the people it could come in here.

None of my pass the car room, you know, stop. Before, a lot of motorcycles stopped in here. And I've been seeing a lot of motorcycles pass, and it's a sign of this new caucus corner. Nobody stopped. Why? I want to see why it no stop now. You need more signs.

I know, and there more signs. More signs. More high. Yeah, more signs. More signs. And there are four signs more. But somebody needs to help on plywood and paint. Yeah.

We need some plywood and some paint. Well, Slow Baja can help you with that. I drove by, but I had to turn around and come back. Tell me about your books. You've been recording the people who have visited you every day. This book, I started on this books, people can start sign the name, the name and what place you're born. It's in number 12, the book, the rest of the books are in Ensenada. I got in here in my house, number 12, and number 11, the books.

But the rest of the books are an enceanaada. One book, number four, one American guy is stealing, my book. And I got the friend, this guy is still in my book. I got the others for the friend where the guy they want to steal in my book. It's a Newport beach. Hmm. Stole your book.

He's still in my book, number four. This book has got 2,500 signs in the book. So how come you decided to record everybody who comes to your house? I want to get one record. This book just go to the sound house one day and everybody go look around for this book. This number of 12 book I got here

and not too many people's been here. I want to see why all the motorcycles passed, maybe pass for here, 25 motorcycles, one motor cycle. One motor, why? This is I want to find it. Why? The rest of motors go, and different motor is stopping here. That's a good question.

Coco, I know in my stops years ago, you've made much, you've had lots of art in your yard in around, your house. Crazy art. Very beautiful cans, lots of things. You've used found objects. Folk art is what we call it in the United States, but found objects. Women seem to give you some of their clothing. Can you tell me about that? Well, they were the probably in my house. The old house is six kilometers north north I got a lot of stuff over there pantaleta pants and all the stuff but I've working here in the new house and I go put out every

stuff all the cans and I go put on the fence and all the canes we go put on all the canes I go put all the cans, botes tecate pacifico so I go slow I Benadhill three months. He made chance. He made chance and I go back all the stuff that you see before. Yeah, so what brought that on?

You made this beautiful painting on the wall of the Virgin Mary. So tell me about your art. What? Tell me about the art that you make. Well, this Virgin de Guadalupe

is in a garage the Alphoninas. Somebody pinned before, but it's in bad, bad conditions. So I told the lady over there before he died, he made paint, I went for the motel, for the alfoncinas. He's taken me a five months, paint, but I ping perfecto. So I gave it the motel, the art boncina,

the new, no gerente, the Alconinas, he kept all the people, said, got this picture and threw away to here. I don't want to hear. So I go and got it and I bring it here in my house. So it's something you found on a job. Yeah, I thought you, I thought you painted that. I painted this.

You painted it on top of the old painting. Yes. Got it. Because somebody pinned before, but he was in the garage in bad conditions. Yes. And I renew the pink. Renew the complete is, you know, see that page or something's wrong. But I pinned.

Got it. So, Coco, we have to ask about, I have to ask you about the panties. What? The panties, the women's panties. Oh, pantalettas? Pantolettas. Pantolettas. Well, the people, the girls come in here and take it out of the pantaleta,

and Suntanis and Coco, you wanted my pant. Yeah, or come and take it out. Oh my God, I am proud. Excuse me. Well, it was quite a collection. You've got a lot of work to do to cover these walls. I got a five hundred pantaletas and two thousand brazillas

he's in the sack and you had to count them all I got one pantaletta here big one I told everybody this is my sister pantaleta he's showing me a pair of panties that are on the wall I don't think you can call these actually panties These are grondees.

I think it's three friends. One metro of one. A metro? A friend of yours. Yeah, a friend. He's like two years ago. Here at Slow Baja, we can't wait to drive our old land cruiser south of the border. When we go, we'll be going with Baja bound insurance.

Their website's fast and easy to use, check them out at Bajabound.com. That's Bajabound.com, serving Mexico travelers since 1994. Well, folks, with all the rains that Baja has experienced, I bet you're asking yourself if they are going to have the NORA 500 at the end of the month. Well, they are. They're down there checking the roads right now, figuring out what roots need to be modified, which routes are passable, where the mud is, where the water is, all of that.

Elisao Garcia, the race director, is putting in the time. I'm putting in the miles right now, and the Nora 500 is going off September 28th to October 3rd. The Slow Baja Safari class has some room in it, so if you've got a four-by-four vehicle and you're thinking about jumping in, check it out at nora.com, and I'd love to see you in Ensenada at the end of the month. So you were born in Ensenada, yeah? No, I born in Tijuana. I born in Tijuana. in February, February 25 and 1927.

1937. Yeah, and I'm 82 years, 84 years now. And how did you get here? How did you get to this place? Four K. Well, before I worked in the police for check around the ranchos, I check around the cows and all the stuff,

and then and a horse. for 54 years and a horse all time and I got a burrow in behind and got all the radio he got all the cooking area and a burrow and I traveled all these mountains in here all the way to Bayo Los Angeles check it all the ranchos and all in Baja California all the ranchos and check around people the ranchers and cocos somebody seen my my 10 or 20 cows here last week so I need go check on all the ranchers all the places and I making my report all the way and Senada nobody buy cows

for if somebody wanted to buy a cow and they report to me so you were checking around all the ranches for the thefts of the cows and the goats and everything else

can you tell me a little bit about the ranch life the life on the ranchos you must have stayed there right because you were traveling by horse so when you got to a ranch you were going to stay the night there yeah

I've stayed the night I don't say in the ranch, the rinds, the ranch of people, and just a time I don't say, I move. I like to stay in the fields. I got my own tin,

my own ten, and I make a big one stick in the ground, but the horses and not take out, and send the burrow. But I stay, more than I stay in the ten.

People, a nice tan, and I cook it over there. But just kind of people told me, you stay here? No, I like to stay up the house. And that's the way I can see somebody coming in the night time.

You can see if somebody's coming to get you. Yeah. And I got my... It's Pellegroso, no? Huh? Pellegroso? Yes. Your work?

Yeah, I said, Perleoso, I got my pistol, I got my gun all time. I got my gun in here. The one I use it. The company, you came a nice, beautiful gun briefly, and I don't want it. And I say at night time, and I see somebody,

his ombres, muato, he bye, bye, I want to see what you want at 3 or 4 o'clock in the morning. There's people come in in a truck. Come in a truck, and try to take it a cow. He's leaving the truck a long way. and push three or four cows because of the truck. I've been got to a lot of people, but no more police. That's why I retire a man and I stay here.

No legs, but I feel happy. No legs, but you feel happy. Do you tell me about your legs? What happened there? No leg? What a time come on the truck and we break my leg? complete. And the talk place it was, if you want to you lay back, he was going for ten years, you know, hook up again. No, cut it, please. I don't want to stay ten years away with one pinch you lay.

And the second leg, I got provost in my house. I got nail and a piece of lumber. The nail is no good. So I need to go take a guerrero Negro and cut the leg. The way he cut in my leg, you don't go believe it. I look around you, I got a knife. My lady's got five days, all my fingers, and a half of my feet is black. And, Doctor, it put on my needles, and put all my red oxide,

and cut it, you got to my chin, the one you used to put car, the alambre. Wow. There the way I carry my leg quick and fast. Because I got no problem no more with the nail, got my and my fix. So I stay here and I feel happy and I want one rinded shirbeza before it's too hot.

Boy, it is hot today. Driving my old truck, Coco, it is hot. All right, well, Coco, thank you for me. Making some time. Thank you very much, Sen. You've started my house, and they've been a nice beer, and I've been drinking hot water all day. Hot water.

Doesn't hear it. How water. And I want to see somebody in order the solar refrigeration coming here and need help, please. Okay, so Coco needs a little help with solar panels and getting his refrigerator to make things cold for the great future of Coco's new corner. Please, somebody come and help. Okay, Coco. Thank you very much, everybody.

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For appearing on Slow Baja today, our guests will receive the beautiful benchmark map 72-page Baja Road and Recreation Atlas. Do not go to Baja without this, folks. You never know when your GPS is going to crap out, and you're going to want a great map in your lap. Trust me. Hey, well, I hope you enjoyed that show and you were able to hear Coco. Interesting cat, you know, one-on-one, quiet day, nobody there. He was really kind and gentle and thoughtful. I've been there in years past where he's been, you know, the crazy Coco, putting on an act,

munching panties, you know, doing grabby, grabby, whatever. Not a place I'd want to bring my daughter or my wife sometimes, but Coco was a real character. and I will honestly sincerely mourn his passing and have. My friends at iTunes have told me that this is my 100th podcast. I'm a little amazed by that, but I couldn't be happier to bring forth this short show about Coco and share it with you. So Saludus Amigos Podcast 100, Coco's Corner. I'll be back with something fun next week.

And again, thanks for love. listening.